Colombia: ’Boyacá Siembra’ shows results in potato harvests
Potato harvests have already begun in nine municipalities supported by the Boyacá Sowing program. Harvests will continue until May, benefiting 300 families.
During a tour of the Pastusa superior variety potato plantations in the municipality of Úmbita, the technical and professional team of the Boyacá Siembra program visited the beneficiaries in their plots to verify the status of the crops and the progress of the current harvests.
As in the other municipalities supported by the program, plots were observed at different stages of development, which guarantees a staggered production from January to May.
In some plots, the harvest is already underway, reflecting the quality of the seed and inputs delivered to the beneficiaries. Others are in the maturation phase and preparation for harvesting, while others are still developing and flowering.
This is the case of Mr. Valerio Huertas, who has one of the healthiest and most productive crops identified during the tour, “we will be harvesting in the last week of April or the first week of May. The crop is in very good condition, because the most important thing is the seeds. If we sow good seeds, we harvest good products. And, of course, technical assistance is key, because we need guidance so that the crop does not decline.”
Potato crops in Boyacá Sowing is evident in the municipalities of Ventaquemada, Arcabuco, Turmequé, Úmbita, Tutazá, Gámeza, Duitama, Boyacá and Santa Sofía, which were structured under agroecological principles, demonstrating that it is possible to cultivate in a more sustainable and profitable way for farmers.
In some cases, frost affected part of the crops, but, in general, the outlook is positive in terms of yield and quality of the harvested potatoes. Therefore, with this program, the Departmental Government continues to work and contribute to the construction of a program with important and great results.
It is important to remember that the scope of the ’Boyacá Siembra’ program represents the strengthening of the agricultural sector as a strategy for competitiveness and productivity in the department. The initiative seeks to increase the levels of competitiveness and productivity of priority crops in the department of Boyacá, such as peas, coffee, bulb onions, green onions, corn, beans, soursop, guava, blackberry, potato, pear, tree tomato and carrot; through the expansion of the area planted with crops, development of technical, socio-organizational and marketing capacities of 1,100 families of small and medium-sized producers in the municipalities of Aquitania, Arcabuco, Boyaca, Chinavita, Chiscas, Covarachía, Duitama, El Espino, Gameza, Guicán de la Sierra, Labranzagrande, Macanal, Miraflores, Pachavita, Paipa, Pauna, Ramiriquí, Rondón, Saboya, Sáchica, Samacá, Santa Sofia, Tibaná, Tibasosa, Togüi, Tununguá, Turmequé, Tutazá, Umbita and Ventaquemada.
The project has delivered supplies and tools to the 1,100 beneficiary families. Each one has received a kit consisting of a 7-horsepower motor hoe for plowing, 22 bags of organic fertilizers, chemical and organic synthesis agricultural pesticides, and equipment for the maintenance of fruit trees.
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