CULTIVATION AND TECHNOLOGY More growth volume with convex ridgers Machinery manufacturer Struik supplies slightly convex ridgers, resulting in a considerable increase in growth volume for the nest of tubers of a potato plant. In addition, the convex ridge is less erosion prone. ‘Y ou can’t cycle faster than you can’, was Kirsten Wild’s modest comment after winning her bronze medal at the recently-held World Cup Cycling in Apeldoorn (NL). Yet, she just nibbled another few tenths of seconds off her personal best. How is it possible that top sportspeople can continue to go faster, many of us sometimes wonder. Technology sometimes plays an additional role. For example, the racing bikes for the cycling sport have bearings with less and less resistance and manufacturers are making frames of increasingly lighter material. Each cubic centimetre is one more How does this sports analysis relate to potatoes? Agricultural technicians are very well able to improve the performance of machinery, including the cultivation of potatoes. An example is Struik, manufacturer of agricultural machinery. Recently, a ridger was designed that gives a potato plant more space to grow than before. And this achieved within the average ridge width of 75 centimetres. Even though it is only cubic centimetres, each tuber that is completely covered in soil is one more, resulting in fewer green tubers and consequently in a higher yield. Tuber nest as a starting point Head of Engineering, Arco Klok, explains how the ridge volume is increased. ‘When determining the ridge volume, we take the oval-shaped space in which the tuber nest grows as a starting point. This means that we are not measuring the outline as many growers are used to doing. Look, the potatoes mainly grow in this red oval section, Klok points to a cross-section of the ridge. We call this the cultivation volume. Around it, the green oval, you’ll find the total volume within which root formation takes place. You’ll practically Slightly convex ridgers provide considerably more growth volume in the tuber nest of the potato plant. 20 Potato World 2011 • number 4 Pagina 19
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