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Spraying the appropriate surfactant over potato ridges just before emergence reduces common potato scab in dry years. Application of the right soil surfactant leads to a higher content of soil water in the ridges during periods of drought and that is unfavourable for the scab causing bacterium. Furthermore, in dry years a treatment with a soil surfactant can increase tuber yield significantly. So it appears from a two years spanning field experiment on a drought sensitive sandy soil of a Dutch experimental farm. Results of this research are published in the Potato nutrition courier, the supplement of the bimonthly Plant nutrition courier. The Plant nutrition courier is a digital newsletter about research on plant nutrition and fertilisers.

In a feature about soil surfactants this digital newsletter also reports about effects on tuber size, nitrate leaching and soil structure. The choice of the right soil surfactant does matter: besides soil structure improving surfactants there are also soil structure spoiling products, so it appears from an accompanying desk study.

The beneficial effects of soil application of surfactants have been found by American agronomists. The first patent application covering this use of surfactants is dated 1954, so it appears from a patent scan conducted by the Potato nutrition courier. Soil surfactants are used as wetting agents on greens and in potting mixtures. Use of these products in field crops like potato is less known and up to now effects of soil surfactants on common scab are totally unknown.

Source: Plant nutrition courier
    12-08-2013 00:00