Met Éireann has today (Tuesday, June 9) issued a potato blight advisory for the entire country.

The national forecaster said that weather conditions conducive to the spread of potato blight will occur across much of the country on Thursday (June 11) and Friday (June 12).

Met Éireann added that there will be some limited spraying opportunities today and tomorrow between any showers.

The current outlook suggests that better opportunities for spraying are expected over the weekend.

Potato blight

Potato blight is a plant disease caused by a fungal-like organism called Phytophthora infestans.

The pathogen spreads rapidly in humid weather in the foliage of potatoes and tomatoes, causing the foliage to decay and the potato/tomato to be infected.

According to Teagasc blight continues to be the most economically destructive disease of global potato crops.

In Ireland alone, it is estimated that €5 million is spent annually on fungicides to mitigate the impacts of the disease, which represents between 15-20 fungicide applications per season.

Met Éireann

In its latest farming commentary, Met Éireann said that there will be further unsettled conditions over the coming days.

However, there are indications of more settled conditions for Friday and the weekend.

Met Éireann said this week is due to be wetter than normal for many areas with between 1 and 2 times the average amount of rainfall expected, wettest in the north. It is likely to be drier in the far south, where below average rainfall is expected.

Over the next few days, the weather will remain cool, before it turns warmer for Friday and the weekend.

Overall, mean air temperatures are likely to trend slightly above average during the coming seven days, especially in the east.

Drying conditions will generally be moderate or poor for much of the working week, better conditions are likely over the weekend as it turns warmer and drier.

Little change is expected in field conditions over much of the coming week, but soil moisture deficits will likely to start to increase towards the end of the week.