POTATO RESEARCH.

Hokitika Guardian, 14 January 1922, Page 1

POTATO RESEARCH.

f .} y WHERE THE'fedOTS EXCEL. • '■ ’ 1 LONDON, Nov 30. British and foreign delegates have met at an International Potato Conference, and the trade and the Governmetn; co-operated in the most representative show of potatoes ever seen. One of the curiosities was a little collection of tubers 'representing the bissryG3£ fhe r Taf Wynns'. The'strangest fact’ that emerged' ifrom the collection was that after a century of expert work the yield of the potato had not been increased by so milch as half a bushel. “Village Blacksmith,” which is 1 ittle, rough, and round, and “Yam’ ’ which is purple and eccentric in shape and survives only in the Orkneys, gave ns good yields’ as Britain’s Pest' What the scientific growers have done is vastly to increase what an enthusiast called “the personal beauty” of the potatoes, making" them big and smooth and regular nud proof against disease. In spite of the dry season, which is particularly unfavourable to the growth of potatoes, a wonderful collection of tubers was got together. Of the great trade groups the premier award was carried off by Messrs Dobbie and Co. of Edinburgh, who were able to announce that all the potatoes they exhibited, were actually grown in their own trial grounds. Sir A. Griffith-Boscawen, President of the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries, presided at the opening banquet given by the Government, when representatives were present from Belgium, Denmark. France, Greece, Holland. Norway. Portugal, Spain. New South Wales, Queensland, Western Australia. Tasmania, and Canada. In proposing the health of the guests thel chairman urged the importance bf scientific research into the growth of the potato and the check of disease among potatoes. He was told that 20 per cent, of the food of Europeans and English-speaking people consisted of potatoes. Indeed, the failure of the potato crop meant a national disaster. It sometimes reflected upon the whole course of history, as in the! case, of the Irish failure in 1840. In 1920. 30,000,000 acres throughout the world were under potatoes. Of these Germany accounted for 6,000,000 and the United Kingdom 1,250,000 acres. The potato was afflicted with a catalogue of diseases and what had to be done was to try to protect the grower by the application of science. Tills country was threatened very severely with the) ravages of the war disease, which was not yet understood. It appeared to be inherent in the soil, and so far no* means had been found of sterilising the soil and so removing the germ from it. What they had been able, to do was to produce a number of potatoes immune from the disease and not susceptible to it. He paid a. tribute to those who had worked at this most difficult problem, and, at Ormskirk. Had produced won- , derful immune varieties, which appeared to be the salvation of the potato crop in this country. Among the scientific exhibits in connexion with the conference is an interesting collection of photographs of the disease that attack, the potato and of the parasites that cause them. This came from the Department of Agriculture for Ireland. Dr Sal am an, of BoySon, and Mr J. W. Lesley, of . the Plant Breeding Institute at Cambridge, sent an exhibit to illustrate the breeding of colour in potatoes. They believe that there are factors which inhabit colour and change dark purple into beetroot-red vermillion-red, and white. The Dutch Potato Research Laboratory at Wageningen sent an exhibit to illustrate “mosaic” and “leaf curl” diseases, which are probably the cause of the deterioration of commercial varieties, each with a long pedigree, and the Cambridge station showed the results of crossing “Up-to-date” with the immune variety “Leinster Wonder.”

Though the conference was essentially international, the language that prevailed in discussions was the Scottish dialect. One foreign delegate said that he found it rather easier to understand than English. If the Conference has proved nothing else it has demonstrated that the Scottish people have made the seed potato their own; and the Ormskirk,'hones. is the finest scientific centre in the world.