An Ashton, Idaho, grower says he’s experimenting with mineral oil on his potatoes as a cheaper alternative to limiting the transmission of diseases spread by aphids.
Clen Atchley sprayed mineral oil over 130 acres over his potato fields in Hawai’i earlier this year. He says that he’ll begin using the oil on his fields in Idaho if the crops in Hawai’i harbor fewer viruses than his other seed fields.
Atchley said he spent $5 per acre on the product after talking to experts at the National Potato Council's summer meeting. Prior to that, he was aerially applying fungicide every 10 days to control late blight. However, the oil has been used in conjunction with his usual insecticide use.
“If we wind up with considerably less virus, (mineral oil) will be something we use more of,” Atchley said
Mineral oil use may be new to many growers across the country, but the practice has been gaining traction in Montana.
Nina Zidack, Montana’s seed potato certification director, says growers have been using mineral oil for multiple-generation crops.
Montana State University plant pathologist Barry Jacobsen has assisted in mineral oil trials. He says the oil blocks certain aphid-vectored diseases, such as potato virus Y, from being transmitted from an insect to a plant. The oil remains on the leaf long after it dries, giving the plant extra protection.
“If I had to pick something ... to spray, oil is by far the best thing,” Jacobsen said.
Source: Washington Times