'You have a problem if you let the apple slip'

Last summer, the Maas flooded the entire company of the Van den Eertwegh partnership. A violent event, the wounds of which are far from healed. "The claims settlement has barely started, but we have to turn our attention to the front again. The potatoes will have to go back to the ground soon," says Wim van den Eertwegh.

Although claims settlement requires a lot of attention and sharpness, there are also 'smaller' challenges to which the arable farmer remains alert. One of these is the control of thorn apple, a strongly emerging weed in its area. "Doornappel can multiply explosively. If you let it slip, you have a problem."

The year 2021 was a very eventful year for the Van den Eertwegh family to say the least. Due to the flooding of the Meuse, their entire company – and a large part of the crops – was flooded by more than one meter. "Look, here the water is just below the counter top of the canteen where we are now", says Wim van den Eertwegh while showing some photos on his mobile. "And here's the barn. One big brown mud puddle."

The arable farmer says that the company has had to deal with flooding more often in the past, but never in the middle of the summer. "The big difference is that now about a third of the crops have been lost – about 50 hectares in all. We were actually just before the harvest. All costs had been incurred, so that means maximum loss. All in all, things are going well. for several tons of damage. That won't bother you." Fortunately, the cattle (fattening bulls), the machines and the other equipment were able to be brought to dry land in time. "We also put some of our stuff on a plateau with cubic boxes. In the end, that just stayed dry."

Although the area has been designated as a disaster area and thus also non-insurable damage is compensated, the damage assessment and the financial settlement have largely yet to start – almost six months after the disaster. "And that while we already have to incur costs for the new season. The cash flow is therefore not positive for our company; that does cause some concerns."

Clay potatoes are lost
About half of the potatoes – about 40 hectares of Agrias annually – have been lost. And that has also put the regular customer in a bad way, as Van den Eertwegh knows. "We have been supplying our Agrias to Bex Aardappelen here in Kessel for years. They make fresh chips for the catering industry all year round. We were able to supply most of the early potatoes, which were on slightly higher sandy soils. But clay potatoes were required for longer storage. – which were largely on the floodplains – have all been lost, so the company had to buy them through other channels."

Fortunately, the relationship with the buyer is good, so that the cooperation can continue as usual next season. "We ensure a harvest that is as spread out as possible on different types of soil, so that Bex can produce fresh chips all year round. In addition, we also focus on quality as much as possible, for which we are also rewarded extra. an unlucky year is on the rocks," said the arable farmer.

Tackling thorn apple firmly
Of a completely different order, but also important, are the increasing problems with thorn apple. According to Van den Eertwegh, this weed has multiplied and spread enormously in his area over the past ten years. "One plant easily has ten to fifteen seed bulbs. If you give it the chance to pop, you get a true explosion of seeds," the farmer knows. He himself does everything he can to avoid getting these weeds into the harvester or combine, 'otherwise you will find them all over the plot a year later'.

Agrea advisor Peter Ickenroth, who is also present at the meeting, agrees that thorn apple is a strongly emerging weed in the Limburg and Brabant countryside. "Because thorn apples can grow quite large, you can often see from the road whether they are present in the field. Growers who do nothing or too little about it will eventually have major problems with these weeds," he warns.

An effective way to control thorn apple is through (pre-emergence) weed control in potatoes. This includes the soil herbicide gofor central. Ickenroth: "The active ingredient flufenacet in Gofor is known to have a good effect against thorn apple. Pre-emergence spraying with 2 liters per hectare of Gofor – supplemented with Boxer® and Proman® for an even broader effect – is therefore a very good option on the one hand to tackle thorn apple and on the other hand also to immediately clear up all other troublesome weeds such as melded, nightshade and various grasses."

'Gofor option' clearly visible
According to the advisor, it was already quite clear last season which growers had opted for the 'Gofor option'. "There you often saw some thorn apple on the roadsides, but often nothing at all on the plot itself. That does indicate that gofor – especially on moist and settled soil – can show excellent results against these difficult weeds.”

For the coming season, Ickenroth expects (even) more potato growers to switch to Gofor. "People literally see the success with Gofor in the field. That way the drug sells itself."

_{Boxer® is a registered trademark of Syngenta
Proman® is a registered trademark of Belchim Crop Protection}

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