Snake River Valley, ID
After two successful growing seasons at the Incubator Farm site in the Columbia Basin of Washington, Yara has established a new Incubator Farm location in the Snake River Valley of Idaho. This new Incubator Farm location will enable us to investigate Yara’s TopPotato crop nutrition solution in a new and important potato growing region. The aim of the work on the Snake Valley Incubator Farm is to explore how a complete potato crop nutrition program that drives productivity and grower profitability can simultaneously lead to a reduced carbon footprint and improved nutrient use efficiency.
The 160-acre trials will analyze the role of crop nutrition and practices such as 4R nutrient management in supporting the industry’s need to continue to produce high-yielding, quality crops, while also implementing solutions to decarbonize the value chain.
Field-scale trials at the farm will include half pivots of Yara’s TopPotato crop nutrition solution and half pivots of grower standard fertility program, with multiple points of data collection throughout the season to evaluate crop performance related to emergence and early vigor, tuber set, resilience to stress, yield, storage and processing quality.
TopPotato
A 160-acre trial with half pivots of Yara TopPotato program compared to grower standard nutrient management program.
The TopPotato program includes a dynamic nutrient program that is optimized for high potato yield and quality:
- YaraVita® PENTAFLO™ applied in-furrow to promote early and rapid shoot and root growth, allowing the crop to take up water and nutrients earlier in the season and allow for earlier row closure.
- A portion of in-season N needs replaced by YaraLiva® CN-9® at tuber initiation and spoon-fed through to bulking. Calcium provided in an available form at tuber initiation and through to bulking helps build cell wall strength, improve tuber quality, and can help mitigate heat stress. Nitrate-nitrogen is available to the crop for quick and predictable uptake.
- Dynamic and proactive application of YaraVita foliar crop nutrition based on needs detected through tissue and soil samples taken throughout the season and an understanding of crop need at each stage of growth.
For more information about the Snake River Valley Incubator Farm, contact
Erika Wagner, Agronomy Solutions Manager
