PW-ACTUA Site-specific second growth control now ready to put into practice Cameras need a bit of time to pick up the colour differences of the leaf. Once the calculations are in place, the sprayer works accurately, Thanks to a dosage technique with spraying needles and an adhesive added to the liquid, every single drop is dripped on the detected second-growth plant without splashing. Large plants get more than small ones. This currently still moves along at 2.8 km per hour. But later, in We already described the technique and first test experiences with the site-specific second growth potato sprayer developed in Wageningen last year in our magazine. The ‘second growth of potatoes in beetroot land test period’ has now been completed. According to agricultural engineer and sprayer developer Ard Nieuwenhuizen, the time has come for the ingenious second-growth potato sprayer to be used in everyday practice. With a critical look and the cameras open, the researchers, students, professors, journalists and the rest of those invited to the field demonstrations are walking through the university trial beet field to ‘automatically detect and remove any second growth of potatoes’. The commentary is quite sceptical during the first few metres; ‘It misses here and there’, ‘Look here, drops on the beetroot leaf’, but 50 metres further on, the comments become a lot milder; ‘It’s quite accurate’, ‘Does it work for thistles as well?’ Ard Nieuwenhuizen patiently listens to the commentary and the questions about his promotion assignment. ‘The sprayer must make its calculations first for a few metres. practice, acceleration should be possible, according to Nieuwenhuizen. ‘New computers calculate faster. Our trial sprayer still only trickles 80 drops per second. That is not enough for the real work.’ According to supervisor Jan Willem Hofstee, it is now up to the sprayer manufacturers to mount this technique onto proper machinery. This means that it is now the turn of the suppliers of spray technology such as Kverneland and Agritechnics. ● Xisen potatoes harvested Last issue we wrote about the Xisen potato company in China. In an exclusive interview mister Xisen revealed his ambitious plans. This year he is already growing 7,000 hectares of potatoes. He says that he wants to increase this acreage by 7,000 hectares every year until he has reached a total of no less than 40,000 hectares. In addition, the company wants to reach a storage capacity of over 400,000 tons of potatoes. All potatoes are harvested The harvest of the 7,000 hectares of potatoes ended half October. The modern machines had no problem harvesting and storing the different Chinese varieties, says Johan Kikstra from the APH Group, who delivered for more than 10 million Euros of equipment to Xisen. Also next year he expects to deliver some new machines to China. ● 8 Potato World 2009 • number 4 Pagina 7

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