Growing potatoes is a common activity that almost all gardeners do in their summer cottages. It is quite difficult for people without practical experience to grow such a vegetable, since they are unfamiliar with all the nuances of this process. Therefore, in order to get a high-quality harvest, you need to familiarize yourself with the features of growing potatoes in the garden.
Seed selection and preparation
Before you start planting potatoes, you need to familiarize yourself with the rules for selecting and processing planting material.
Seed selection
To grow potatoes in the country, you should choose the highest quality seed material. It is recommended to plant zoned varieties of vegetables with resistance to parasites and common diseases. In this case, it is necessary to change the seed annually, since with prolonged use of tubers in crop rotation, even the most productive varieties lose their characteristics.
For people living in the middle zone, potatoes of the mid-early or early variety are suitable. Residents of the southern regions should give preference to late-ripening potatoes. However, it is best to plant several varieties of vegetables with different ripening periods on the site.
Treatment
Before planting and growing potatoes, pre-treatment of the tubers is mandatory.
To protect the plant from insects, fungicides such as Matador are used. It helps get rid of beetles, fleas, moths and the Colorado potato beetle. To prepare a working solution, 40 ml of the drug is mixed with 300 ml of warm water. During processing, all planting tubers are laid out in a row and sprayed. When they are completely dry, they are turned over and sprayed again. One treatment is enough to protect the plant from pests for the entire season.
Land preparation
To grow potatoes in Transbaikalia and other regions of the country, it is necessary to prepare the soil.
The first treatment is carried out in the autumn before the onset of the first frost. In the fall, the entire area where potatoes will be grown is dug up using a spade.It is also recommended to completely clear the garden of all weeds that may be infected with various diseases. When the entire area has been dug up, fertilizers are added to the soil. Rotted manure is perfect for feeding the area. When processing one square meter of garden, 10 kg of manure mixed with 20 grams of sulfate and 40 grams of superphosphate are added to the soil.
The next stage of soil preparation is carried out in the spring, when the ground warms up to 12–13 degrees. In the spring, the soil is drained so that air can better penetrate the soil. To do this, the top layer of soil is slightly shifted with a pitchfork. Some people re-dig up the area in the spring and remove weeds. However, when digging again, the shovel goes deeper into the ground under the potato beds higher - only half a spade.
Landing dates
Many people grow late and early potatoes in early May and do not pay attention to weather conditions. Potatoes are planted only in heated soil. If the soil is too cold, the tubers will grow slowly. Also, when determining the timing of planting, pay attention to the moisture content of the soil. Waterlogged soil negatively affects the health of the vegetable and leads to rotting of the planted seed.
Some people do not like the quick growth of early potatoes and therefore plant them at the end of May. However, this should not be done, since closer to summer the soil dries out and, as a result, the yield of vegetables deteriorates. On average, dry soil reduces yield by 20–30%.
To accurately determine the timing of planting tubers, you need to understand at what temperature potatoes grow. Potatoes are planted when the ground warms up to 10 degrees and night frosts completely disappear.Therefore, it is recommended to regularly monitor the weather and air temperature.
The main thing is to plant it correctly!
After preparing the site and seeding material, you need to familiarize yourself with the agricultural technology of planting potatoes. There are several common planting methods that are popular among gardeners.
Planting under mulch
The basis of this growing technology potatoes is mulching, in which the surface of the earth is covered with covering materials. When growing vegetables under a mulched layer, the gardener will not have to constantly water the bushes and loosen the soil.
The most commonly used organic material for mulching is straw. It is recommended for use in areas with alkaline or neutral soil with a low acidity level. They also use fresh grass, which is useful for increasing nitrogen levels in the area.
When planting resistant potato varieties, potato tubers are laid out under a mulched layer on the surface of the ground. Then they are sprinkled with soil so that the seed does not turn green and germinates faster. When all the potatoes are covered with soil, they are covered with a layer of straw 20–25 cm thick.
Planting in circular ridges
The technology of growing potatoes in circular ridges was first used in Holland and began to gain popularity in our country relatively recently. The main advantage of this method is the increased yield of potatoes growing in ridges.
Before using this planting method, you need to prepare a bed. To do this, the area is dug up and fertilized with ash mixed with manure. After fertilizing the area, beds of the required size are made - 1–2 meters is enough to plant three rows of potatoes.
When the beds are made, the potato tubers are laid out in rows at a distance of at least 30 cm. The laid out potatoes are covered with a small layer of earth, from which a ridge is formed with a rake.
Care and treatment
After planting, the potatoes are cared for in order to obtain a high-quality harvest.
Watering
When growing this vegetable, it is necessary to monitor the level of moisture in the soil.
Potatoes love moisture, but this does not mean that they need frequent watering. It is enough to moisten the soil twice a week in normal weather and three times in drought. Each plant uses 3–4 liters of water. Water the potato bushes very carefully so that water does not get on the leaves.
Alternative hilling
The technology for growing potatoes includes regular loosening of the soil around the bushes being grown. The first hilling is carried out after the emergence of seedlings. To do this, it is recommended to use a small rake so as not to accidentally damage the bushes. Repeated hilling is carried out when the plant grows to 10–15 cm in height. Next time you will have to loosen the rows after the rain.
Top dressing
Many people don’t know after landing how to care for potatoes and whether it is necessary to feed it. Plants must be fed, since a lack of nutritional components impairs the yield of grown bushes.
Fertilizers are first applied during the growing season, when the tops of the plant are strengthened. To do this, add 200 grams of urea and 2 kg of rotted humus to the soil. This proportion is enough to fertilize one row of potatoes.
Repeated feeding is carried out when the first signs of a lack of nutritional components appear.Their shortage is indicated by the gradual withering of the bushes and yellowing of the leaves. For the second feeding, 100 grams of potassium sulfate and 500 grams of ash are used.
Disease and pest control
To get a good harvest, when growing potatoes, you need to monitor their health, since pests and diseases negatively affect the yield.
When the first signs of disease or the presence of dangerous pests appear, the plants are sprayed with Bordeaux mixture, which is very effective against pests. To prepare it, 100 grams of lime are mixed with 5 liters of heated water. In parallel with this, in a second container, 50 grams of copper sulfate are mixed with 4 liters of water. Then the two created solutions are poured into one large container and stirred. The bushes should be sprayed with Bordeaux mixture once a week until the symptoms of the disease completely disappear.
Harvest
After the growing season has passed, you need to start harvesting the ripe crop. It’s worth doing this when the tops have completely turned yellow and dried out. Digging up ripe potatoes is carried out on sunny days, so that later you do not have to waste time drying the tubers. When all the potatoes have been dug up, preparations for storage are carried out and a suitable room for the vegetable is selected. It is better to store the harvested crop in the cellar.
Conclusion
Almost all vegetable growers grow potatoes in their gardens. To properly grow this vegetable, you need to familiarize yourself with the features of planting and caring for potatoes.
