Montana state seed report 2024

The 2024 crop was planted on time with good planting conditions in May, but got off to a slow start with a cool June. July was hot, but temperatures moderated in August and crop growth was very good.

The northwest growing areas experienced both warmer and dryer conditions, and growers are reporting excellent quality with very strong yields and a nice size profile.

Montana’s seed potato growers took advantage of the mild autumn conditions and were 100% harvested by the second week of October. Most areas in the state received a soaking rain the third week of September, which set everyone up with perfect harvest conditions. There was no frost damage in any of our growing areas.

Montana certified 10,957 acres for the 2024 crop, down 3.4% from 2023. While Russet Burbank is still the most widely grown variety, the total acreage continues to decrease. At 3,102 acres, it is 7.5% less than 2023 and has dropped 19.5% over five years.

Conversely, Clearwater Russet acreage has increased 15% to 2197 acres in the past year and acreage has jumped 85% in 5 years. Umatilla ranks third at 1366 acres and Ranger Russet acreage is fourth at 1021 acres.

Alturas rounds out the top five processing russets at 601 acres. Overall, Norkotah selections are down 11.3% to 1254 acres. Thew Texas 278 line is the most widely grown at 599 acres. Texas 296 and Colorado 3 have similar production at 219 and 241 acres respectively, followed by Texas 112 at 195 acres.

Specialty varieties including red, purple, yellow and fingerlings make up a small portion of Montana seed potato production at 289 acres. Chip varieties are a minor component of total production with Lamoka and Atlantic combined at 210 acres.

— Nina Zidack, director, Montana Seed Potato Certification