PRESQUE ISLE – With the harvest just more than a month away, the Maine Potato Board’s August meeting was short and sweet, with officials declaring that, right now, growers are looking at a good crop season.

“Everybody feels we’ve got the makings of a good crop out there,” said Don Flannery, the board’s executive director. “But it’s a long while between now and the first part of October.”

Flannery said Thursday that some late blight around the region is under control, but that growers will have to take precautionary measures in harvesting and storing this year’s crop as they prepare them for market.

“Marketwise, I think it’s going to be a year where the price for open, uncontracted potatoes might not be as high as last year, but the supply should be in line with demand to make for a reasonable marketing season,” he said.

During the board’s meeting Wednesday, officials discussed several issues affecting growers, including fertilizer sampling, water access and a recently held natural resource industries conference.

Flannery said the state Department of Agriculture has done some fertilizer sampling to look at quality control and “to make sure consumers get what they’re buying.” He pointed out that when a grower buys a specific analysis fertilizer for a particular crop and the analysis is wrong, it “throws off production of that crop in some way.” He said that some of the analysis seems to be off and that the board will be working with the department to try to address the matter.

Flannery updated officials about a recent Board of Environmental Protection meeting that involved a public comment session about flow rules, which would determine how much water would be available for “withdrawal” from a given body of water at any one time.

Flannery said the board expressed concerns about limiting water access to farmers. The BEP’s recommendation on the issue will be given to the Legislature in January. Flannery said the board will take up the matter in Augusta at that time.

Flannery reported that the board took part in a natural resource industries conference at the beginning of August in Bangor.

About 50 forestry, aquaculture and agriculture industry officials met to discuss the issues facing them and to brainstorm ways to build capacity among them in order to “be more effective in having some input in helping natural resources prosper in Maine.”

Flannery also reported that Conrad Caron, who is retiring, has resigned from the board. He said that officials will fill the position early next year.

The Maine Potato Board will hold its next meeting at 3 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 18, in the board conference room.