Crop tour Potatoes - Week 24
Potatoes planted a month later on average in 2023
The plots Innovator of the Boerenbusiness Crop tour were planted almost one month later than last year. The average planting date this year was May 14, a planting date that few potato growers have experienced before.
It is nothing new that potato planting was later than usual this year. Due to the wet spring, growers had to be patient. The first plot was not planted until May 3 in IJzendijke in Zeeuws-Vlaanderen.
Potato plant dates 2023
At the beginning of May it finally stopped raining - almost impossible to imagine - and it was still waiting for the soil to become capable enough to lower the discs of the potato planter. The conditions for planting were far from good everywhere, but time was running out. A meager northerly wind and the lack of precipitation have not made things any better in recent weeks. The various Gewastour plots in the Netherlands are divided into three regions: north, central and south. The average planting date of the South region is May 8. This is one to two weeks earlier than in the other regions this year. The center has an average planting date of May 17 and the north May 21.
| Region | Planting dates 2023 | Average planting data |
| Noord | May 19 to 23 | May 21 |
| Middle | May 13 to 19 | May 17 |
| South | May 3 to 18 | May 8 |
Compared to other seasons, the planting dates are considerably later this year. All other years, the average planting dates on the potato plots of the Gewastour was mid-April. In 2022, the average planting date was April 17. If we also look at the average of the last five years, we see that the average planting dates this season are also almost one month later.
| 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | |
| Date | April 21 | April 14 | April 21 | April 17 | May 14 |
Difference between 2022 and 2023
In 2022, the first plot was planted on March 24 in Dronten (Fl). That saves almost six weeks between then and the first planted plot of 2023. In 2022, the early planted plots even had snow on April 2 and 3, which is quite a contrast to this year.
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