Groningen Potato Grower Uses Straw as Environmentally Friendly Pesticide

An unusual sight in Oldehove in Groningen: a field is strewn with straw. With this environmentally friendly method, potato grower Hilko Bos hopes to protect his crops against aphids and thus prevent potato diseases. “The intention is to confuse the lice, which transmit viral diseases, so that they cannot find the potatoes.”

The Groningen potato grower sees straw as a possible alternative to chemical pesticides. According to Bos, growers in Austria and France have already had good experiences with straw. Trials with this method of aphid control have also been held in the Netherlands for the past two years. The effectiveness has now been proven, says Bos. But how exactly it works, according to him, is not yet entirely clear.

“One theory is that the aphids cannot see the color difference between potatoes and straw very well,” says Bos. “They crawl into the straw and get lost in it. Another theory is that they associate the straw with autumn colors and dying plants. There is nothing to get there.”

It seems like a simple solution, but Bos is still not completely satisfied. It is difficult to distribute the straw well over the land. “The straw is very light and blows away easily. We actually need rain to make it a bit heavier.” He wonders if straw that is wet will cause problems during harvesting. “If that is not the case, then I expect that this method will be used more.”

Bos is not the only potato grower in the Netherlands using this control method. According to RTV North At least 25 potato growers in the province of Groningen are experimenting with the straw method this season.