The fight against insect pests and fungal diseases of potatoes is included in the list of mandatory procedures for caring for plantings. Most gardeners prefer to act on the principle “it is easier to prevent a disease than to treat it.” The insecticidal-fungicidal preparation “Prestige” for processing potatoes helps them with this.
The main advantage of the product is its use before planting by spraying the tubers with a solution. The solution is not used during the growing season, so the active substances have time to be neutralized before harvesting.
What will Prestige protect against? What can be treated with the drug?
Prestige not only destroys striped beetles and their larvae, but also works against other harmful insects that encroach on the crops of summer residents.
It is a mordant with insecticidal and fungicidal effects. These properties help the drug protect against homoptera and lepidoptera insects. The drug "Prestige" helps against such insects and diseases as wireworms, thrips, psyllids, apple scab, aphids and about 50 other types of pests.
Photo of the drug “Prestige” for the Colorado potato beetle
The product “Prestige” fights fungal diseases (powdery mildew, mold, brown rust and others). In addition, the drug contains a growth stimulant that increases crop yields, helping plants grow faster and develop better.
According to consumer reviews of Prestige, the high price is justified by its good efficiency. Once you start using the product, you can forget about the monotonous work of collecting Colorado beetles every day by hand.
How to properly and safely treat potatoes with Prestige before planting?
According to statistics, about 60% of the potato harvest on private plantations is lost due to damage by all kinds of diseases and pests. This situation is forcing an increasing number of gardeners to look for ways to protect the popular nightshade crop and preserve the future harvest. The maximum effect can be achieved by treating seed or planting material with special preparations. One of these drugs today is “Prestige,” which causes a lot of controversy among gardeners about the balance of benefits and harms of the substances included in its composition. How to properly treat potatoes with Prestige before planting? And are summer residents’ concerns about the possible health hazards of the drug justified?
Prestige: advantages and features of the drug
Prestige makes the life of gardeners easier and easier.
Due to its beneficial qualities, it has many advantages over other insecticides:
- Easy to use, does not require lengthy preparation for work;
- Long period of exposure, which does not require repeated spraying on the foliage and manual collection of beetles;
- One bottle is enough to process a large potato field or 60 kg of seed material;
- The complex effect of the composition, which helps protect against pests and microorganisms that reduce the yield and its quality;
- Toxins do not reach potato tubers and do not harm human health;
- The poison in Prestige does not pose a danger to people, since it completely decomposes after a month and a half.
The drug has no disadvantages, except for the price, but it is justified.
About the dangers of the product
There is still a lot of debate on the topic of whether Prestige can be used to process potatoes and what its harm is to human health. Specialists from NIIEG named after. Medvedev conducted numerous studies to determine the presence of drug residues in root vegetables, as a result of which it was proven that a month and a half after its use, there were no harmful toxic compounds left in the tubers.
According to the manufacturer’s description, the drug belongs to the third class in terms of toxicity, which is listed as “moderately dangerous” in the corresponding classifier of drugs. However, the developers claim that within 40-50 days the active substances completely decompose, and in general, in 3-4 months (the average period of the potato growing season), a complete and completely harmless product grows. In addition, imidacloprid penetrates mainly into the green part of plants, and practically does not reach the fruits. The same instructions state that after 53 days from the emergence of shoots, you can safely dig up and use young potatoes for food.
Of course, this version is beneficial to the manufacturer. But you can also find many reviews online that question the safety of the drug. First of all, this applies to young potatoes. There is no official data on poisoning by the product, but some gardeners note a strange taste of new potatoes, as well as their darkening some time after heat treatment. From this it follows that the drug should not be used for early varieties of potatoes, and also use young potatoes that have been treated with this product.
From the point of view of the European Union, where the requirements for product quality are much higher, the drug is not so harmless. Their studies have proven that the period of complete disintegration of imidocloprid, which is part of the drug, averages 80-200 days. It turns out that potatoes still cannot be consumed for 7 months. And since the main substances of this product belong to the middle toxicity class, then “Prestige” itself should be classified in this hazard class. Of course, using the drug significantly saves time and costs on caring for potatoes, but is this health saving worth it?
How to use Prestige - instructions for use
The instructions for using Prestige describe 2 methods for using the drug: spraying planting material and soaking the roots of seedling vegetables. The methods require different technologies for making the solution. Treatment of seed material with Prestige against the Colorado potato beetle is carried out on the day the potatoes are planted in the field.
Photo of spraying planting material
To enhance the effect on pests, many gardeners try to combine several drugs and dilute them together. But before doing this, they check the products for compatibility with the Prestige fungicide.
Important!
A small amount of both drugs is diluted together and checked, if a precipitate appears, it means that they are incompatible and cannot be used at the same time.
Analogs
During the period of mass planting, it is not always possible to find the drug “Prestige” on sale. Therefore, in order to protect plants from harmful insects, as well as pathogens of fungal diseases, you can use other chemicals with a similar effect.
Analogues of the drug Prestige
“Masterpiece” is a drug with two active ingredients (imidocloprid, thiabendazole). Consumption rate – 5 ml per 100-150 ml of water. The maximum number of treatments is 1. Consumption of the drug is 5 ml per 100-150 ml of water.
"Tirana" is a concentrated suspension that has a double effect. Active ingredients: imidacloprid, thiabendazole. The duration of the protective effect is 20 days.
“Matador” is an effective preparation intended for pre-sowing treatment of potatoes and soaking the roots of seedlings of tomatoes, cabbage, peppers, and eggplants. Active ingredients: imidacloprid, mancozeb. The protective effect lasts for 30-35 days.
"AS-Selective" is a complex drug with three active ingredients (thiamethoxam, acetamiprid, fludioxonil). Consumption – 30 ml per 400-500 ml of water, which is enough to treat 30 kg of planting tubers.
Pests and fungal diseases are the main enemies of a good harvest. Therefore, using the “Prestige” insecticide according to the instructions allows you to achieve a positive result without any special difficulties. Ignoring waiting periods and manufacturer's recommendations for using the product can be harmful to health.
How does Prestige work when it gets into plants?
The principle of action of the drug Prestige is such that the product spreads only in the vertical direction throughout the plants, coming from the tubers to the tops,
protecting seed material and shoots from Colorado potato beetles and other harmful insects.
Testing the effectiveness of the drug Prestige - video
Therefore, you don’t have to worry that the fungicide will end up in the young harvest. It is noted that after about 50 days the product is no longer contained in planted potatoes.
Prestige is a contact fungicide; it spreads to planting material and the surrounding soil. Plants are protected from Colorado potato beetles for almost 2 months from the date of treatment.
Biological preparation for the garden!
• Trichodermin: composition and methods of use in the garden
Concomitant use with other drugs
The drug can be combined with fertilizers. To determine the compatibility of two products, take one part of each and mix with 20 parts of water. If you notice precipitation, do not use these drugs together.
Many gardeners are interested in whether it is possible to mix Tabu and Prestige preparations. It is allowed to use these products together, but it is pointless to do so, since the products have the same active ingredients.
Prestige is compatible with fertilizers
Processing of planting potato tubers
How to treat potatoes with Prestige against the Colorado potato beetle will be discussed below. Prestige is highly concentrated and requires dilution with water to the required volume. Before spraying the tubers, calculate how many seeds will be needed. They are laid out on oilcloth with their sprouts facing up and the solution begins to be prepared.
Photo of spraying potato tubers
Important!
To treat 10 kg of seed potatoes, you will need 10 ml of the Prestige drug against the Colorado potato beetle. It is diluted in 100 ml of water and poured into a spray container.
Convenient to use with household spray bottles. Such bottles will help to spray the product evenly over the potatoes without skipping. This must be done from a distance of no less than 30 cm. After this, the potato seeds are left to dry for several hours so that the poison is well absorbed. Now you can plant potatoes in the ground.
Treatment of planting tubers with Prestige and planting potatoes - video
Where to apply
Carrots, tomatoes, cabbage, beets, radishes, daikon, parsnips, onions (except for onions), celery, garlic, cucumber, zucchini, eggplant, squash, watermelon, melon, pumpkin, peas, beans* More details Harmful object: Soil pests : May beetle larvae, mole crickets, cutworms, wireworms; sucking pests: aphids, thrips, leafhoppers, whiteflies. Rate of use of the drug: 10 liters per 10 m2 of row at the rate of 2 ml of the drug per 10 liters of water. Method, processing time, application features: During the growing season: water the plant at the root. When planting: add the solution to the hole during or after planting. Perennial flowers: phlox, iris, lily, tulip, chamomile, peony, hosta, fern, clematis, botanus* More Harmful objects: May beetle larvae, mole crickets, root rot. Rate of use of the drug: 10 liters per 10 m2 at the rate of 2 ml per 10 liters of water. Method, processing time, application features: During the growing season: water the plant at the root. When planting: Apply the solution to the soil at the time of planting. Seedlings of fruit and berry, ornamental trees and shrubs: hydrangea, lilac, almond, spirea, barberry, grapes, currants, gooseberries, sea buckthorn, blueberries, raspberries, lemongrass, actinidia, strawberries, red rowan, chestnut, birch, oak, maple, willow* More details Harmful object: May beetle larvae, mole crickets, root and basal rot. Rate of use of the drug: 10 liters of solution at the rate of 2 ml of the drug per 10 liters of water. Method, processing time, application features: During the growing season: apply the solution under a tree or bush. When planting: add the solution to the planting hole during or after planting. Potatoes More details Harmful object:
Colorado potato beetle, wireworm, aphids, rhizoctonia, scab.
Rate of use of the drug: 10 ml per 100 ml of water per 10 kg of tubers. Method, processing time, application features: On the day of planting, heated, sprouted tubers are poured into buckets onto film in 1-3 layers to determine the total weight of the tubers. Using any sprayer (backpack or small hand-held), the tubers are evenly treated with the solution and mixed thoroughly. 1-2 hours after drying, the tubers can be planted.
Processing seedlings with Prestige by soaking the roots
When planting seedlings of tomatoes, peppers, and eggplants in a permanent place, their roots are treated in the “Prestige” solution. This helps protect against pests, prevent diseases and increase yield. To obtain a solution of the required concentration, use a medical syringe. For 1 liter of water take 1 cube of the product.
Photo of processing seedlings by soaking roots
Important!
Prestige is used to treat seedlings of tomatoes, bell peppers, eggplants, cabbage and other vegetables.
Do this with rubber gloves. The toxic liquid is poured into a container and the roots of the plants are dipped into it for 5-6 hours. The stems should not touch the product. If there are a lot of seedlings, use shallow but wide dishes, for example, a basin up to 10 cm high.
Prestige treatment will help protect eggplants and tomatoes from Colorado beetles, cabbage from flea beetles, and peppers from aphids. The product contains additives that help prevent the development of late blight and other diseases in nightshade crops. The drug remains in the plant stems, breaking down after 40 days. It is not stored in plants until the fruits ripen.
How to dilute Prestige for processing: potatoes, tomatoes, cabbage, eggplant, fruit and berry crops
How to store the drug
It is important to store chemical plant protection products correctly, and Prestige is no exception. The shelf life of the drug is 2 years. During this time, the components of the product do not lose their effectiveness, but for this you need to strictly follow the storage recommendations.
First of all, it is important to adhere to the temperature regime. The optimal range for the chemical is from -20 to +40 degrees. If you deviate from these indicators, Prestige may lose its effectiveness.
Despite the fact that the drug belongs to the third toxicity class and is considered relatively safe, it should not be stored near drinking water or food. It is also necessary to keep the product away from children, animals and flammable materials. All these requirements apply to the concentrate itself, and not to the working solution of the chemical. If you have prepared a mixture for processing, but have not used up all the liquid, it is not recommended to store it for the future. Firstly, the working solution will quickly lose effectiveness, and secondly, storing the chemical diluted in water can be potentially hazardous to health.
Precautions when working with the solution
Being an insecticide, Prestige from the Colorado potato beetle belongs to class 3 danger and must be used in compliance with strict rules. Do not spray the product on the skin, nose or mouth.
. Work is carried out in personal protective equipment. They use a respirator and rubber gloves, put on special shoes that completely cover their feet, and clothing. You cannot eat, drink or smoke while spraying poison.
Personal protective equipment - photo
After completing the treatment procedure, you must take a shower. Things are washed, shoes are washed with soap. If the treatment of tubers is not carried out in the field where they will be planted, they are delivered to the site in tightly closed bags. By following safety rules, the risk of poisoning and allergic reactions is minimized, and the procedure is quick and unnoticeable.
Question from readers: is the Prestige product capable of harming humans or animals?
— The annotation from the manufacturer Bayer states that when used correctly, the drug “Prestige” is safe for humans and animals.
Brochure from the manufacturer Prestige
Traditional methods
If you want to grow an environmentally friendly potato crop, you can resort to folk remedies and safe techniques. For example, experienced gardeners know that the Colorado potato beetle does not like the smell of cilantro, beets, garlic, calendula, and legumes. To repel the pest, these plants can be planted between potato rows or alternate beds.
Wood ash is popularly used to process seed tubers. It is better if the material is obtained from burning birch, but if this is not available, then other wood will do just fine. The tubers are sprinkled with ash right before planting. This protection prevents potatoes from rotting and developing diseases. And the remains of onion peel, added to the hole during planting, will save the tubers from being eaten by underground pests. Perhaps, in terms of effectiveness, traditional methods are not quite as effective as the Prestige drug, but they allow you to grow completely safe and healthy potatoes.
Composition of "Prestige" and available forms of the product
The manufacturer offers the drug in the form of a strong concentration emulsion. It contains 2 substances: imidacloprid 140 g/l and pencycuron 150 g/l, which have a contact effect.
Pencykuron is a pesticide.
It fights fungal diseases that attack plants.
Imidocloprid
works at high speed, affecting pests and paralyzing the nervous system.
The combined use of two products increases the effect several times
.
The poison in Prestige is highly toxic to insects and fungi and moderately toxic to humans. Plants do not feel the effects of the product, it does not affect them.
Manufacturers offer Prestige bottles of different sizes: 60, 150 and 500 ml. For small areas of potato plantings, you can buy 30 ml of the product in a bag, and for seedlings - a blister syringe with a capacity of 6 ml. All preparations are accompanied by instructions with a recipe for using Prestige for various crops in the garden. The expiration date and safety precautions are indicated.
Photos of Prestige bottles of different sizes
Mechanism of action and scope of application
The drug from Bayer CropScience is a disinfectant that has two effects at once: fungicidal and insecticidal.
As a fungicide, the product acts as follows:
- affects fungal microorganisms, disrupting the ability to divide, which is why fungi cannot live and reproduce;
- stimulates the production of substances that protect the plant from pathogens. These microelements are not dangerous for fruit crops, animals and humans;
- leads to the death of leaves and other parts that are already affected by the fungus. This is a necessary measure that prevents spores from infecting other leaves and branches;
- inhibits energy metabolism in fungal cells, causing the latter to die.
This effect is achieved thanks to the action of pencycuron, a contact fungicide. It does not penetrate inside the plant, but acts externally, making this substance safer than systemic drugs that affect the plant from the inside.
The product is effective against common scab and rhizoctonia.
The insecticidal effect is achieved due to the second active ingredient – imidacloprid. Once in the body of insects, this substance blocks ion exchange in the synapses of nerve cells, which is why the animal’s body seems to “freeze”: the insect convulses or cannot move due to paralysis. As a result, the pest dies. The product is active against beetles (including Colorado potato beetles), Homoptera, Lepidoptera and thrips.
The drug has two effects: fungicidal and insecticidal
Analogues of the product "Prestige" for processing potatoes and other plants
Similar products to “Prestige” with the same components, but in a different concentration, are: “Bator”, “Rector”, “Tanger”. They can also cause harm to the health of people and animals, and must be used with caution.
In addition to these drugs, Aktara, Confidor, Komandor, Antrakol, Tanrek, Mospilan and Actellik are popular among gardeners.
Questions from readers: What is Prestige KS for?
The drug Prestige KS is another product developed by Bayer for treating potatoes against harmful insects: Colorado potato beetles, wireworms, leafhoppers, aphids, thrips, moths, flea beetles, and beetle larvae. It combines not only fungicidal protection, but also provides the effect of additional growth stimulation.
Photo of the drug Prestige KS
Mechanism of action of the product
So, what happens next? The drug, when it gets into wet soil, begins to act quickly, the substance spreads throughout the soil around the potatoes and forms a protective “wall”.
When the young plant begins to sprout, it absorbs this product through its roots, which is evenly distributed around the planted treated potatoes. Then the protective substance rises through the cells of the young shoot and immediately manifests its functions:
- provides protection against harmful insects during the growing season
- stops attacks of various fungal diseases
- helps the young tuber to withstand various natural stresses: heat, cold, lack of sunlight
Thanks to these properties of the drug, the plant improves its growth and brings high yield results. Studies have shown that the toxic substance, while in the plant, does not penetrate into new young tubers. Those. the poison is found only around the old planted tuber and in young shoots; it will not get into new tubers.
Studies have proven that the product does not penetrate new tubers
Prestige from the Colorado potato beetle: reviews of those who used the product
Insect pests are an eternal problem for every summer resident. And everyone solves it in their own way, some try to cope with folk remedies or with their own hands, but this does not always help, unfortunately. To protect their plantings from harmful beetles, they use Prestige in their gardens and gardens.
Reviews of some of them about the use of the drug Prestige are presented below.
Not all reviews are positive, since prestige is still a chemical agent, the use of which can also lead to negative consequences for plants.
Olga, Tyumen:
“I’ve been treating potatoes with prestige before planting for several years now. prestige helps against the Colorado potato beetle and wireworm; this problem has always been relevant for us. Previously, we used other means, constantly sprayed potato bushes, several times over the summer - the effect was much weaker than using Prestige.”
Photos of dead Colorado potato beetles on prestige-treated potatoes
Anna, Lipetsk:
“I doubt that the product does not accumulate in young potatoes at all, I tried to use it and it really works, but I am too worried that the Prestige poison is harmful to humans, the manufacturer classifies the product as hazard class 3.”
Yulia, Volgograd region:
“The manufacturer promises that the Prestige product will save us from all the troubles with potatoes for the entire season. It really works, it lasts about a month. This gives the young plants the opportunity to grow and get stronger, but then the Colorado potato beetles appeared again and began to eat our potato tops. Colorado beetle larvae also hatched and ate all the bushes. Therefore, I’m not sure that such a powerful chemistry as Prestige for the Colorado potato beetle is a good solution to this problem.”
Antonina, Kazan:
“We grow potatoes for sale, so collecting insects by hand is not suitable for us. We have been using “Prestige against the Colorado potato beetle” for the second year now and are satisfied - the product is effective against insect pests, protects potatoes, and the annotation states that it does not accumulate in young potatoes.”
Safety precautions
"Prestige" is classified as class three in terms of toxicity. Such substances are harmful to the human body. To reduce the effect of the drug, it is necessary to follow safety rules during the preparation and use of the substance. To do this, put gloves on your hands, wear rubber boots, and you will also need respiratory protection. Clothing should cover the entire body, a protective face mask and a hat will also be useful.
The procedure should only be carried out in calm weather. This way, the substance will not get into the surrounding plants or animals. At the end of the procedure, all clothes are washed, as well as equipment. Then you need to thoroughly rinse your nose and throat. Be sure to take a shower.
Attention! During treatment, do not smoke, drink water or eat under any circumstances.
How to process planting material?
If, nevertheless, the choice is made in favor of “Prestige”, then the planting material can be treated with it both in advance (2-3 weeks before planting the potatoes) and immediately before planting in the ground.
In the first case, the treated tubers are left for further germination, and if it is necessary to transport the treated planting material, it is carried out only in hermetically sealed bags or packages in order to eliminate the risk of the negative impact of chemicals on the environment.
In the second, potatoes can be planted already on the day of treatment, but only after the tubers have dried well, otherwise the solution will not be absorbed into the tubers, and after planting it will immediately go into the soil. This significantly reduces the effectiveness of the chemical.
In order for the processing to take place correctly, the potatoes must first be sorted out, removing spoiled and damaged potatoes (since the drug will not cure or “resurrect” them), and then dry thoroughly, spread loosely on a film, and spray generously and evenly with the solution. It is prepared in a ratio of 1:20, that is, for 10 ml of “Prestige” - 200 ml of water (volume per 10 kg of potato tubers). Thus, it is easy to calculate the ratio of disinfectant and water for more or less tubers.
Prepare the working solution immediately before use, avoiding storing it in prepared form.
If planting is not planned on a large scale (for example, planting a new variety for testing), it is more advisable to place the potatoes in a bag or net and simply lower them into the solution rather than spray them.
Only whole tubers can be sprayed with the product! Damaged or cut planting material should not be processed! It is also forbidden to cut potatoes after processing before planting: they must remain whole and fall into the soil in this form.
Toxicity of Prestige
Insectofungicide Prestige belongs to hazard class III
. It is safe for humans, warm-blooded animals, and processed plants. Despite this, it is very important to follow the processing times specified in the instructions and take into account the characteristics of the crop being processed in terms of vegetation.
On a note:
In the central zone of the country, the drug Prestige is used only in the mid-season or late stages of potato harvesting. This is done to ensure that all the active substances of the insecticide are completely released by the time of harvest. In the south, it is recommended to process varieties with early and medium ripening periods.
Record harvests with Prestige
Before writing this article, I visited many forums and gardening communities. And what did I learn? Forums for farmers and gardeners are full of enthusiastic reviews of the results of using the Prestige disinfectant. Those who grow potatoes and vegetable crops on an industrial scale speak especially eloquently about it, and, therefore, issues of environmental cleanliness are not in the first place.
In such farms, the main focus is, of course, the yield and the amount of processing costs. As practice shows, using “Prestige” for treating seed potatoes, potato growers save not only money, but also labor costs. Since the drugs to which the pests have already adapted require several treatments during the growing season.
Precautionary measures
The drug belongs to the class of low-hazard drugs. However, it is necessary to strictly observe the consumption rates so that there is no overdose, which can lead to poisoning.
Prestige treatment is carried out wearing protective clothing, gloves and a mask. After the procedure, you must thoroughly wash your face and hands, rinse your mouth, and put your clothes in the wash.
Tubers are processed on dense material or film. After complete drying, they are transferred to a permanent place of growth in bags. The treated seedlings are sorted into bags or boxes, always placing the roots down. Afterwards, the landing is carried out immediately.
