Potato Grower

38 POTATO GROWER | FEBRUARY 2020 What to know when buying Idaho certified seed potatoes Discerning Customer Diggin' In Diggin' In SEED | By Kasia Duellman, University of Idaho Extension Seed Potato Specialist Certified seed potatoes, simply put, are those that meet the standards of a certification agency. In Idaho, seed potato certification falls under the purview of the Idaho Crop Improvement Association (ICIA). Seed potato that has been certified in Idaho has undergone a minimum of two in-field inspections, a bin/harvest inspection, post-harvest testing, and shipping point inspection for grade. Buyers of Idaho certified potato seed can be assured of several things: • It met land and isolation requirements; • It was inspected twice while growing in the field, at which times it did not exceed the tolerances for specific diseases and varietal mixture; and • It has undergone bin/harvest inspection, post-harvest testing and a shipping point inspection for grade. Another important point for seed potato buyers to know about is the concept of limited generation seed, which has a new naming system in Idaho. NEW NAMING SYSTEM Idaho seed potatoes are "limited generation seed," since they have not been increased in the field more than seven times beyond the laboratory-tested seed stock, known as pre-nuclear seed. Pre-nuclear seed potatoes are often purchased as mini-tubers, but they can also be tissue-cultured plantlets, stem cuttings or line selections. They are planted in soil to produce the first generation of seed potatoes, which up until recently were known as the "nuclear" generation. The ICIA recently adopted new nomenclature to indicate the number of times seed potatoes are increased in the field. This new naming system aligns with some other states such as Maine, Michigan and Wisconsin. It designates what used to be called nuclear seed (the first generation grown from pre-nuclear seed) as Field Year 1 (FY1) seed. FY1 seed potatoes (previously known as nuclear seed) are used to produce FY2 seed potatoes (formerly known as G1 seed). FY2 seed are then used to produce FY3 seed (formerly known as G2 seed), and so on. Using FY7 seed (formerly known as G6 seed) to produce certified seed is still not allowed in Idaho under this limited generation system; thus, when buying Idaho certified seed, none will have a designation beyond FY7. Under this new naming system, commercial seed potato buyers will usually purchase seed lots designated as FY4, FY5, FY6 or FY7. These are equivalent to the old designations of G3, G4, G5 and G6. As a side note, the field year designation, as in the previous naming system, doesn't necessarily mean that a seed lot has been grown in the field for the number of generations indicated. Sometimes, the seed lot has been grown for fewer years than indicated. There are several scenarios that can lead to designating a seed lot as a different "generation" or Field Year. For example, if seed potatoes grown as FY3 seed potatoes Vive products contain trusted active ingredients, powered by Allosperse® – the revolutionary delivery system in a jug. Simply the best mixing products available. n AZteroid® FC 3.3 for rhizoctonia n Bifender® FC for wireworm and rootworm n NEW Xyler™ FC for pink rot and pythium leak n NEW Midac™ FC for Colorado potato beetle and aphids n NEW Averland™ FC for Colorado potato beetle, psyllids and mites DRIVE RESULTS with EASY APPLICATION and PROVEN CONTROL © 2019 Vive Crop Protection Inc. Always read and follow label instructions before buying or using Vive Crop Protection Inc. products. Bifender and Averland are Restricted Use Pesticides. Allosperse, AZteroid, Bifender, Averland, Midac and Xyler are trademarks of Vive Crop Protection Inc. products. Bifender and Averland are Restricted Use Pesticides. Allosperse, AZteroid, Bifender, Averland, Midac and Xyler products. Bifender and Averland are Restricted Use Pesticides. Allosperse, AZteroid, Bifender, Averland, Midac and Xyler vivecrop.com U NTRE ATE D TRE ATE D WITH A ZTE RO I D FC 3. 3 Average yield increase 20.4 cwt/ac TRE ATE D WITH A ZTE RO I D FC 3. 3 Average yield increase 20.4 cwt/ac U NTRE AT U NTRE ATE D U NTRE AT ViveCropProtection - Potato - PotatoGrower Jan&Mar20 - 7.083x3.167.indd 1 2019-12-16 9:34 AM 4073-10ViveCropProtection.13h.indd 1 12/23/19 10:41 AM

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