The potato harvest is just about to get underway in many parts of Prince Edward Island (P.E.I.), and many Island farmers are wondering what all the rain this summer is going to mean for this year’s crop as they head out into the fields, as Nancy Russell reports for CBC News.
Greg Donald, general manager of the P.E.I. Potato Board, said the crop is looking good, but not as good as last year when it was almost an ideal season.
“I think we had every bit the crop, the potential, as last year. But with the ongoing cooler and wet weather, I think that’s going to affect some of the productivity,” Donald said.
Donald said harvesting will be more difficult this year due to the excessive moisture, meaning operations will slow down. The weather may have also damaged the crops, he said. “Potatoes that are in very wet conditions, there can be issues with tuber rot, especially in the high-risk areas, in low areas or poor-drainage areas of the field.”
Source: CBC News. Read the full story here
Photo: Soil sticks to the potatoes dug out of a P.E.I. field. Island farmers say they’re concerned about what all the rain this summer is going to mean for this year’s crop. Credit Shane Hennessey/CBC
