For over 33 years, the LANG organic farm in Obereisesheim, Germany, has focused on sustainable agriculture. Starting with traditional practices like diverse crop rotations, livestock farming, and soil-friendly cultivation, the farm has supplied organic food to around 300 customers while increasing soil humus levels and storing significant CO².
Since 2023, the farm has adopted climate-adapted methods, including an innovative agroforestry system supported by the “Humus-Klima-Netz.” Through collaboration with farmers nationwide, it continues to enhance soil health and resilience for a sustainable future.
The ‘A Year On The Field’ blog has a detailed report on the potato year up to the first spraying against potato beetles: https://www.yearonthefield.net/post/the-lang-organic-farm
We now want to get into the potato year after the first spraying and, above all, focus on the harvest at the LANG organic farm.
On 25.6.24 they had to treat a second time with Neem Azal T/S with approx. 2.5 litres in 400 litres of water. As can be seen in the pictures, there were again isolated but then numerous small and also a few large larvae, again more on weak plants than on strong ones.
Some potato beetles on plants.
Spraying potato plants with Neem.
The first signs of late blight could be seen, especially on the Linda variety, which is weaker and more susceptible, but due to the not very lush leaf development, the plants were able to dry out well between the rains.
Treatment with copper against late blight was not planned.
The undersown crops were developing splendidly, especially Persian clover and phacelia.
View of the potato rows with undersown crops.
The weak crop is Linda, the much stronger ones are Otolia.
View of the undersown crop.
This picture shows the very vigorous soybeans in comparison, which can supply themselves with nitrogen via the nodule bacteria and are not dependent on mineralisation from the soil.
The potatoes have not really developed sufficient foliage and were already showing signs of ripening in July. The undersown crops, especially Persian clover (which smells great) and phacelia, have developed splendidly and are an excellent pasture for bees and insects, which you can hear from the intense buzzing and humming in the field:
The potato field with the highly grown undersown crop.
Video showing insect diversity with undersown crops.
The harvest:
The potatoes were harvested on 27 August 24. The LANG organic farm used a 50-year-old Niewöhner Wühlmaus potato harvester, which proved to be extremely robust. It had rained 10 mm two days earlier, otherwise August was very dry and hot. Due to the good soil cover and root penetration from the undersown crop, the soil was slightly moist and mostly sieveable, only the clods that had formed during spring cultivation had to be sorted out.
The potatoes were very nice and clean but relatively small and far too few (approx. 5t/ha max. 1/4 of a normal harvest). Surprisingly, the dense undersown crop caused few problems during harvesting. Occasionally there were also rubber nodules, which may be due to the bacterial wilt Stolbur and may be transmitted by the winch wing cicada (due to rising temperatures in recent years in our area). All in all, not the best prospects for potato cultivation in the future.
These effects are even more serious for sugar beet.
Some of the harvested potatoes.
The Niewöhner Wühlmaus potato harvester.
Part of the harvesting team at LANG organic farm.
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