Potato Grower

38 POTATO GROWER | NOVEMBER 2022 study for potatoes. I've heard countless stories from growers where they have fields that are physically and chemically similar, but one always outperforms the other even though they are so similar. The difference must be the biology of the soil. We need to examine the Investing In Soil Health To Boost Yield And Quality The biggest challenge we face going forward is how to grow more food using fewer resources. The three most important resources for food production are land, water and nutrients. But there is only so much of each. We need to be as efficient as possible with all three as we continue to produce food for a growing Working to do more with less Washington State Potato Commission By Chris Voigt, Executive Director population. We are currently pretty good at making food and doing it in a very efficient manner … so how can we get better? Better managing our soils to maximize yield and quality is the next frontier that agriculture needs to explore. There are literally millions of different organisms that live in the soil, and we know very little about their role in food production and how they all interact with each other. The more we can learn from the study of the soil biome, the better we can manage the soil to increase food production. A lot of research has been done in Midwest soils and Midwest crops, but very little soil health research has been done in the lighter soils of the arid West. The information void is great in this area of Soil health seems to be the big buzz word lately but in Washington we've decided to make it more than just a buzz word and have taken action to become the leader in potato soil health research. characteristics of those over-performing fields and see if we can replicate those features in the under-performing fields. Soil health seems to be the big buzz word lately but in Washington we've decided to make it more than just a buzz word and have taken action to become the leader in potato soil health research. The results will not only assist the growers in Washington and the rest of the Pacific Northwest but will also help other potato-producing states gather the much-needed information in this lightly researched field. The Washington State Potato Commission partnered with Washington State University and the Washington State Department of Agriculture to create and support the Washington State Soil Health Initiative. The Soil Health Initiative was approved by the Washington State Legislature and will provide funding for long-term soil health studies scattered throughout the state. Potatoes will be part of the long-term studies at two of those sites across the state, one in Mt Vernon, WA, and one in Othello, WA. These are the two primary potato growing regions in the state. The Washington State potato community has also come together to finance the creation of an Endowed Chair for Soil Health in Potato Cropping Systems at Washington State University. Growers, processors, and input suppliers raised more than $3.4 million for this position. Dr. Steve Culman, formerly of Ohio State University, has been hired by WSU to fill this important endowed chair. The interest from this fund will be devoted to learning more about the soil in potato cropping systems and exploring ways we can better manage our soils to maximize both yield and quality. The demand for Washington potatoes overseas is strong and outstrips supply each year. Due to land and irrigation limitations, we are unable to increase acres to boost production. We have to focus on boosting production on the existing irrigated ground if we are the meet the growing demand for our potatoes and potato products. Our investments in research to better manage our soils will be key in boosting production to meet the needs of a hungry world. PG

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