Island potato growers worried about lack of rain in August

Potato growers in some parts of P.E.I. are worried about the lack of rainfall in August as they watch their potato plants shrivelling in the field.

The area around Malpeque Bay has been particularly dry, with some fields receiving a quarter of the rainfall in August that they usually see. Elsewhere there has been more rain, said Ryan Barrett, research and agronomy specialist with the Prince Edward Island Potato Board.

"There's parts of the province, like around Charlottetown, where there was almost a normal amount of rain, and the crop looks quite good, and they're expecting a good crop,"Barrett said.

"There are parts of the Island that got 15 and 20 per cent of their normal rainfall, especially in parts of West Prince, parts of East Prince."

Barrett said he has atrial field in the Cascumpec area thatgot only about 15 millimetres ofrain in August, and is obviously showing signs of water stress.

Potato growers concerned about yields after dry August in parts of Prince Edward Island

1 month ago

Duration 3:21

What started as a great growing season in June and July has now produced late-season cause for concern for some Island potato growers, thanks to a dry August. Ryan Barrett with the P.E.I. Potato Board says more rain is needed in September, and Kinkora farmer Andrew Lawless describes how he had to use irrigation on his crop for the first time in years.

"It's leading to potato plants that are either dying early, or shutting down early, not growing," he said."They may be hanging on, but they're not really bulking any tubers."

10 per cent of crop irrigated

Barrett said the lack of rain in August was unfortunate because the crop got off to a really good start in 2024, with most fields planted by the end of May.

"June and July were almost perfect in terms of weather the right amount of heat, the right amount of rainfall and things were off pretty good start," he said.

"It's just unfortunate that in August, we didn't kind of get the rain when we needed it."

Barrett said between 20 and 25 growers in the province have irrigation systems, with about 10 per cent of the total crop irrigated.

He said some growers have the majority of their crop irrigated while others water only two or three fields, depending on their markets and the varieties they are growing.

All the growers that have irrigation have definitely had them going this year. I'd say a lot of the farms are on their fifth or sixth irrigation pass. Ryan Barrett, P.E.I. Potato Board

"All the growers that have irrigation have definitely had them going this year. I'd say a lot of the farms are on their fifth or sixth irrigation pass on a lot of fields," Barrett said.

"The last two or three years there's been a lot of people that invested in irrigation, and they didn't even have to turn them on once because we had adequate rainfall. But now, this year, that supplemental irrigation is very much necessary."

Barrett said many growers are hoping for enough rainfall in September to bulk up crops, but not too much. About 75 to 100 millimetres would be ideal.

"We always keep our eye out for tropical storms too, right? So we don't really want too much of anything because right now we could take two or three fairly good-sized rains and the ground would be able to handle it," he said.

"But if we ended up with over-saturation of the soil in September, then that makes harvest difficult."

In the absence of the right amount and kind of rain, he said,"There will be some fields that will be under budget for yield and that's just the way that they are, unfortunately."

'A bit of insurance'

In Kinkora,Andrew Lawless of Hilltop Produce has five irrigation pivots, as they're called, and is on his sixth rotation through the fields where they are located.

"We don't normally irrigate in September, but we've been monitoring our moisture levels and they're all below the optimum threshold," he said this week.

"August and September are the months when the crop is [doing] the most of its bulking. So it's very important that the crop gets the water when it needs it."

Lawless said he set out on a plan six years ago to add an irrigation system, and now has it on about a third of his acreage, at a cost of "afew million dollars."

Hilltop Producehas 1,200 acres in potatoes, mainly for processing, with additional acres in rotation crops.

"The last two years, we haven't had had to turn it on at all, but it's kind of like a little bit of insurance," Lawless said.

"I guess in our mind, we're very fortunate to have our field structured to be able to useirrigation. And yeah, it's there when weneed it. After this year, I'd say we'll probably look at expanding it a little bit."

Barrett said the harvest is already underway in Kings County, with digging underway for early fresh-market potatoes since the middle of August, and potato-chip potato varieties starting in the next week or so.

He said the primary harvest will start the last two weeks of September, noting that with an earlier start to the season in May, some farmers may also finish taking in the cropsooner than usual.