Syngenta potato PCN nematicide, Nemathorin, now has a label recommendation for wireworm in potatoes.
Nemathorin can reduce the levels of tuber damage, cosmetic skin defects and yield penalty effects caused by wireworms. The addition of wireworm to the label for 2003 will expand the usefulness of Nemathorin, allowing growers to tackle the two key potato crop pests – PCN and wireworm.
Where potentially damaging levels of wireworm have been identified, Nemathorin granules should be applied at the time of planting, at the minimum rate of 15kg/ha and incorporated thoroughly into the soil where wireworms are active.
Syngenta's Garth Bretherton said: 'The results have shown up to 85 per cent reduction in tuber damage from wireworm activity. This could prove crucial for markets where specifications are high, such as the supermarket pre-pack trade, which has especially low tolerance to wireworm damage.
'However, growers are bring warned that some level of tuber damage may still be sustained even with the use of granular nematicides including Nemathorin.' Adas's wireworm expert Bill Parker added: 'This should be combined with proactive soil sampling and bait trapping for wireworms to identify potential problems, enabling growers to decide on cropping and the need for chemical control measures.'
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