Hi and welcome to Spud Scoop this week. No late blight has been reported in potato fields, however weather conditions are favorable for late blight and late spores have been found in Lake Bronson, Oakes and Perham. Keep scouting for late blight. If you have any leaves, you’d like tested for late blight let Gary Secor or Andy Robinson know. Early blight is becoming more prevalent. Aphid numbers have doubled over last week, causing the PVY Vector Risk Index to more than double this week. The good news is PVY Risk Index values are less than half what they were at this time last year. This continues to be a low aphid year, but it only takes a few aphids to move inoculum around in a field. Harvest season is here. Our red and yellow-skinned potato trials are sizing up well. The favorable planting conditions and warm weather has encouraged rapid tuber growth. Some early russets were harvested this week including we harvested an early russet research potato trial. The value of herbicides, from one of our research plots can be seen below, you can see where herbicide treatment was and was not applied.