Resource Management
About the Soil
Ideal combinations of sun, water and mineral-rich alluvial soil make Othello and the Columbia Basin region perfect for potato farming, with long warm days and cool nights offering a longer growing season than any other area. With the longer days, the potato plant is able to absorb more sun and the more sun it receives the more potatoes it produces. Heavy cloud cover and rain is blocked by the Cascade Mountains from the Pacific Ocean, resulting in annual rainfall of seven inches or less. Irrigation water from the Columbia River delivered through the Bureau of Reclamation Project allows us to carefully control the amount of water to each potato field, applying it when and where needed so there is no waste.
Ancient lakes and waterways left behind fertile soil deposits, providing fields that are ideal in texture and composition for growing potatoes. With the rich soils and abundant water in Othello and the Columbia Basin, harvests can yield approximately 30 tons per acre on average, surpassing all other states.
Water Management
Variable speed pumps have been installed on all water systems and soil moisture is monitored with rain gauges and soil probes to minimize water waste. FieldNet/Telemetry technology is used on irrigation pump stations and pivots allowing us to control water changes on our farm from any location in the world via the internet, thereby conserving both fuel and labor.
Fertilizer Management
Terra Gold Farms is very active in searching out new technologies and moving towards the tools of the future of farming. Satellite imagery provides data on weak areas in the fields. We then soil probe those areas for quantitative results and apply fertilizer with a variable rate machine resulting in the application of more fertilizer where needed and less where the soil is higher in nutrients. Fertilizer applied in this manner is spread using GPS resulting in exact coverage.
Chemical Management
We have made great strides in managing chemical applications and continually scout for pests to control them before infestation. Our team works hard to ensure chemicals are only applied as needed and we rotate modes of action to reduce resistance.
Fuel Management
Terra Gold Farms uses larger horse power tractors with GPS, combined with multiple implements, enables us to make less passes in the field resulting in less fuel consumption.