2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
To get a good harvest of potatoes, you need to properly prepare and store the seed. It is the observance of all the nuances and subtleties that guarantees the yield of the "second bread"
General potato storage technology
Potatoes are the staple food on the menu of many gardeners. Dishes from your favorite potatoes are on the table every year. In order for the potatoes to reach our kitchen, they must not only be grown, but also properly preserved, taking into account all the technologies. The preservation of potatoes is determined by the initial quality of the tubers. To increase keeping quality during the growing season of potatoes, strictly follow all protective procedures.
Harvest the tubers at the optimal time that is set for each variety. Remove the tops a week before harvesting. Potatoes will survive well if, during harvesting and transportation, the tubers are subject to mechanical damage as little as possible.
Drying is an important point in preparing potatoes for winter storage. This is a defining moment for the preservation of tubers in naturally ventilated cellars. The method of drying provides potatoes with resistance to late blight and wet rot. Usually tubers are dried in the furrow or just on the grass for 1-2 hours. Prolonged exposure of potatoes to the fresh air, especially at night, reduces the keeping quality of tubers.
Before sending potatoes to storage, they should be prepared. Clear debris, the remains of last year's potatoes, whitewash the room, preferably 2-3 weeks before the harvest is placed there.
Choosing a potato planting material
Productivity primarily depends on quality planting material. Growers know that potatoes tend to degenerate. That is why change the planting material at least once every 5 years. Choose varietal tubers, the ideal potato weight for planting is 60 g. The first thing to remember is that potatoes tend to degenerate, so you need to change the planting material at least once every five years. After the autumn harvest, wash the selected seed potatoes in a weak solution of potassium permanganate and dry. Store the seed outside for a couple of weeks, then move it to storage.
Treatment of potato seeds before planting
In mid-April, it's time to think about preparing potato tubers for planting. Remove the seed tubers from the basement and place them in a warm, bright place. The temperature of the room should be 15 -20 degrees, then the process of vernalization begins, or in other words, the germination of potato buds. For potato planting material, choose tubers weighing from 60 to 100 g. It is possible to take smaller specimens, then you will have to throw several pieces into the hole.
To get a rich harvest with excellent taste, you will have to perform several manipulations. After about a week, when the potato tubers selected from the fall have awakened, treat them with mineral fertilizers. Choose potatoes in large sprouts. As a fertilizer, use superphosphate with the addition of copper sulfate, potassium permanganate, urea. Use melt water to prepare the solution. If there is a lot of planting material, then place the tubers in a net and dip it in a disinfectant-nutrient solution for a couple of minutes.
Such treatment of potatoes implies the prevention of tubers from various kinds of diseases. After processing, place the tubers in a warm room without direct sunlight. Try to spray the tubers with warm water once a week, so the potatoes will not lose moisture. Turn the seed over from time to time.
When the weather is good and the soil temperature warms up to 8 -10 degrees, you can plant potatoes.
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