French cuisine has traditionally had a global reputation for creating intricate and spectacular food using the finest of ingredients and techniques. In fact, French cuisine is extremely interesting both professional and amateur cooks as it represents some of the most challenging types of recipes for cooks. Alongside the precision and tradition of French cuisine, there is a growing movement of French chefs and cook who inject creativity and humor into their French dishes to achieve delicious and interesting takes on traditional dishes. This blog is all about modern French cooking and marries together traditional with the new French style to help inspire you to culinary heights.
Very few vegetables can rock your world in the same that potatoes do. Whether you want to have them mashed, boiled, fried or simply eaten as skins, this delicacy will hardly disappoint. It is therefore no surprise that potatoes have a place in many food markets. You are certainly on the right track if you are planning to start a potato farm and supply your products to a readily available wholesaler. However, you need to know some of the challenges you are likely to encounter on your potato farm. They are laid out here for you:
Blight
Potato blight is a very common disease among various species. It often affects the leaves but the effects can extend to the tubers (fleshy part of the potato) in some cases. Blight commonly affects potatoes during wet and warm summers. These conditions provide a suitable environment for the causative fungus (Phytophthora infestans) to breed and grow. After breeding, the fungus spreads from one potato to the other through warm and humid air.
Blight is easy to detect when you examine your potatoes. It is a brownish wet rot on the leaves, stems and tubers in worst-case scenarios. Sadly, this disease is very hard to stop and the least you can do is removing the affected leaves, stems and tubers to prevent spreading.
Tuber Rot
Tuber rot is a problem you are likely to encounter just before or after lifting the potatoes from the soil when harvesting. The problem is common when a wet and rainy season comes during or immediately before you start harvesting the potatoes. Wetness promotes rotting by encouraging the growth of fungus on the skin of the tuber.
To avoid tuber rot, use certified resistant seeds when planting. Additionally, harvest the potatoes when the soil is averagely moist rather than too wet or too dry. This will prevent losses.
Blackleg
Blackleg is a bacterial infection among potato species, which causes the base of their stems to develop a blackish rot. This disease is bad because it affects the potato at an early stage after planting and affects its growth throughout. The stems show stunted growth and develop a yellow colouration. Upon maturity, you will not realise a quality harvest. Your tubers will be rotten and their flesh will appear grey or brown.
If you notice any potato suffering from blackleg, you must remove it from the plantation and destroy it. Going for resistant potato families such as Saxon and Pixie will also prevent blackleg.
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