According to their own biological features Potatoes are not some fancy crop that requires special conditions for its development. On the contrary, it is a very plastic culture.
For example, in middle lane In Russia, in the private sector, even today, potatoes are grown according to a very primitive scheme: planting - hilling - harvesting. Of course, the yields are not record ones, but average and good.
This is explained by the fact that the natural conditions of this zone are very favorable for the cultivation of potatoes. Here temperate climate, regular and uniform precipitation and light mechanical soil structure.
The southern zones, on the contrary, due to their soil and climatic conditions are not suitable for growing this valuable food crop. Such unfavorable factors like heat, drought, high solar lighting and chernozems heavy in mechanical composition sharply inhibit the growth and development of potatoes, which ultimately results in low yields and rapid degeneration and changes in the seed qualities of tubers.
Nevertheless, potatoes have been and will always be grown in the south. For example, in the Krasnodar Territory alone, more than 100 thousand hectares of arable land are annually allocated for this crop. This is explained by the fact that today, for most families, potatoes have become the second bread.
In addition, imported potatoes alone cannot solve the nutrition problem in the region. And finally, despite unfavorable conditions, potatoes grown in our region are far superior in taste and nutritional value to potatoes imported from other places. Prices in city markets speak volumes about this.
If potatoes need to be grown in the southern zones, then the question arises: how to grow them, what technology to use? Unfortunately, there are almost no serious developments or literature on this issue.
Today, more than 95% of potatoes are grown by private owners, in dachas and summer cottages, each of which uses its own, based on personal experience technology. It is clear that in such conditions it is very difficult to immediately increase potato yields everywhere.
First of all, when recommending a particular technology, the following facts must be taken into account: first, the summer resident potato grower does not have modern equipment for growing potatoes, and the main tools of labor, unfortunately, still remain a hoe and a shovel, and in rare cases, a walk-behind tractor; second, the average level of income of potato growers is not so high as to require the use of expensive chemicals.
This is the broad mass of potato growers that the potato growing technology, tested for six years in local conditions, is aimed at.
First of all, you need to choose appropriate place for growing potatoes.
In the southern zones, including the Krasnodar Territory, potato crops should be placed on well-supplied soils - irrigated lands, floodplain areas with low relief, in river floodplains, in fields with high level standing groundwater, on hillsides and foothills.
What crop rotation to follow when planting potatoes
Replanting potatoes in their original place is recommended no earlier than three years later.
Therefore, it is also important to choose the optimal crop rotation, which must meet two main requirements: 1) contribute to obtaining high yields; 2) be cost-effective.
For farms growers of potatoes, you can use a shortened, three-field crop rotation:
- winter wheat or spring barley;
- perennial herbs;
- potato.
Summer residents-potato growers, who have limited space at their dacha or plot, can use a more economically advantageous crop rotation, where the previous crops are table and fodder beets, cucumber, carrots, pumpkin (except for nightshades).
In the world practice of potato growing, such facts are also known. For example, in Scotland and the mountainous regions of Armenia, peasants grew potatoes after potatoes for more than 25 years and reaped average yields.
This proves in principle that potatoes can be grown in monoculture, but it is not advisable. Firstly, potato yields in these areas are low. Secondly, the risk of plant infection with such harmful diseases as late blight, rhizoctonia, and common scab increases sharply (5 times or more).
The sources of infection of these diseases are affected plant debris remaining in the soil after harvesting.
Preparing for planting potatoes and fertilizing the site
To obtain high and stable potato yields, soil preparation must begin in the fall.
The first thing to do is to apply organic fertilizers to the selected area. The best of them are rotted cow dung doses of 500-1000 kilograms per hundred square meters or various peat manure or other composts.
Rotten chicken droppings is also a valuable organic fertilizer, but it
It should be applied to the soil in smaller doses - 100-150 kilograms per hundred square meters.
If there is not a sufficient amount of organic matter for its autumn application into the soil in bulk, then it can be added to the soil at significantly lower doses. spring period in the furrows when planting seeds.
The introduction of organic fertilizers into the soil, on the one hand, increases the yield of varieties by at least 40%. On the other hand, under their influence the soil becomes more structural: its water, air and thermal regimes improve. The soil is significantly loosened, access to air oxygen is facilitated and moisture is retained longer.
All this ultimately significantly improves the conditions for plant growth and development and contributes to high yields.
Another source of organic fertilizer can be green manure crops (spring rapeseed, oilseed radish, mustard, etc.). In late autumn, when these crops are harvested, their green mass is plowed up for fertilizer.
In the fall, after adding organic fertilizers to the soil, it is plowed deeply - to a depth of 27 - 30 centimeters. Less deep plowing has a negative impact on crop yields.
Planting potatoes on the site
In Kuban, potato planting begins, as a rule, in the second or third decade of March. Therefore, in advance, 30-40 days before planting, towards the end of January, the seed material must be prepared for planting.
First, you need to sort and reject bad-looking and diseased tubers (subsequently, during the germination process, tubers that form thread-like sprouts are also removed).
It is best to use tubers with a diameter of 5-6 centimeters for planting purposes, which form powerful green sprouts. But also with success in quality seed material You can also use larger tubers. At first they sharp knife cut lengthwise and dip fresh cuts into dry cement. After 2-3 days, a dense cement shell is formed, which successfully protects the tubers from disease.
At the end of January - beginning of February, the seed material is poured into boxes in 3-4 layers and placed in the light for germination in warm room at a temperature of 15 - 20 degrees. Under these conditions, closer to the planting period, thick green sprouts 1-1.5 centimeters long with root rudiments are formed. When placed in prepared soil, they quickly germinate and produce vigorous shoots.
This simple technique - planting with sprouted tubers - has two significant advantages. Firstly, the period of emergence of seedlings is reduced by at least 14 days, and they turn out friendly. Secondly, the method of germinating tubers protects them from growing and producing babies when they fall into damp and cold soil in the spring.
Determining the optimal timing of planting seed material - the most important condition, on which the final harvest largely depends. As a rule, spring in Kuban can be unfriendly. Often warm, fine days, which sometimes set in from mid-February, are naturally then replaced by the arrival of cold weather in March, and sometimes frosts.
Therefore, if you plant early (from mid-February to early March), then there is a risk of subsequently getting exposed to cold weather, which then has a sharply negative effect on the development of plants.
When using late plantings, there is another risk - the passage of critical stages of tuberization, responsible for yield, under critical conditions of heat and drought.
According to our long-term observations, for the flat zone of Kuban optimal timing seed planting periods are from March 15 to March 20, and for mountain and foothill areas the end of March - the beginning of April.
How to fertilize soil for potatoes
Before you start planting, you need to carefully prepare the ground.
Firstly, as soon as it ripens, it is necessary to add mineral (nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus) fertilizers.
The best form of nitrogen fertilizer for potatoes is ammonium sulfate, and for potassium fertilizers - potassium sulfate and potassium magnesia (kalimag).
Ammonium nitrate is produced in granular form and contains up to 34% nitrogen. The optimal dose of application to the soil is 1-2 kilograms per hundred square meters (100 m2).
Among nitrogen fertilizers, urea (urea) in doses of 1.0-1.5 kg per hundred square meters also shows a good effect, especially during vegetative growth and development of plants.
Potassium sulfate (potassium sulfate) contains up to 46% of the active substance. Due to the absence of chlorine in it, it is the best potassium fertilizer for potatoes. The application rate is 2.0-4.0 kilograms per hundred square meters.
Wood ash at a rate of 30-60 kilograms per hundred square meters can also be successfully used as potassium fertilizers.
From phosphate fertilizers the best data are obtained when using double superphosphate in doses of 5-10 kilograms per hundred square meters.
A good effect in improving the growth and development of potatoes is shown by the use of complex mineral fertilizer - nitroammophoska. It contains all three essential nutrients - nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, necessary for growth and development. The content of each element is 17%. The application rate is 3.0-4.0 kilograms per hundred square meters.
Mineral fertilizers for potatoes are applied to the soil by broadcasting or directly into holes or furrows before planting tubers.
After making mineral fertilizers on the day of planting, the already mature soil is loosened to a depth of 16 centimeters using a hand hoe or mechanical cutter. Then furrows are cut to a depth of 14 cm. The distance between them is 60 centimeters.
After this, the germinated tubers are placed one at a time in the furrows at a distance of 30-33 centimeters and covered with loose soil so that a ridge of small height (5-6 centimeters) is formed. More dense plantings are not recommended, as this naturally leads to an increase in the share of small tubers in the total harvest, while the share of large, commercial ones decreases.
Caring for potatoes on the site
According to the old, widespread technology, potato growers usually begin active tillage only when seedlings appear, that is, on average 25 - 30 days after planting. This method includes a number of significant disadvantages.
Firstly, within long period While the seedlings are emerging, the soil, under the influence of its own weight and rain, settles and becomes very compacted. This has a sharply negative impact on both air and water regimes.
Secondly, methods of controlling weeds are becoming more complicated.
It has been experimentally established that in our region, even on well-cultivated soils, there are about 80 thousand viable seeds of various weeds in the arable layer per 1 m2. And if they are not promptly destroyed in the early stages of development, then in the end they can sharply reduce the yield of varieties.
For example, when 15 to 26 weeds germinate per 1 m2, the yield of potato tubers decreases by 17.4 centners per hectare, from 27 to 37 - by 29.4, and from 48 to 53 - by 50.6 centners per hectare.
Most effective fight Weeds can be controlled when they are at the “white thread” stage. Therefore, already in the pre-emergence period it is necessary to actively cultivate the soil.
Immediately after planting, every 7-10 days, using a hoe or cultivator
the soil is loosened and the ridges are enlarged at the same time. After 3-4 such successive operations, at the moment of emergence of seedlings, a ridge up to 20-22 centimeters in height is already formed.
Deep planting of tubers followed by the formation of high ridges has a number of valuable advantages. Firstly, the water and oxygen regimes in the soil are significantly improved. Secondly, there is a massive destruction of weeds at the “white thread” stage.
And finally, a significant layer loose soil above the bushes effectively protects tubers from negative effects high temperatures on hot July and August days.
As a screen to protect plantings from the harmful effects of high summer temperatures and strong sunlight, you can also use corn plantings in a potato field at intervals of 3-4 meters.
After the emergence of seedlings, it is necessary to mechanically loosen the soil at least 2 more times. And the last operation - hilling - is carried out just before the tops are closed.
Thus, fundamental differences new technology from the old one are:
1. Deep planting of seed material.
2. Formation of high (up to 22 centimeters) ridges of loose soil over the bushes.
3. Regular, every 7-10 days, mechanical loosening and hilling of the soil in the period from planting seeds to the stage of closing the tops.
Many potato growers, trying to simplify the technology of caring for potatoes, form high ridges immediately after planting. This cannot be done. In the early spring terms, when temperatures are still low, a high layer of soil will prevent the passage of heat to the tubers. As a result, the period of emergence of seedlings may be greatly delayed.
How to properly water potatoes on a plot in an arid region
Potatoes are a moisture-loving crop. A lack of moisture in the soil during critical periods of tuberization can reduce the yield of varieties by 2-3 times or more. Therefore, in hot dry seasons, especially during the period of budding and flowering, when there is an acute lack of moisture, it is imperative to carry out at least two waterings. The best way- sprinkling. But in its absence, watering can be done along the furrows.
Potato diseases
Due to the vegetative method of propagation (tubers and parts of stems), potatoes are among crops that are heavily affected by diseases. Tubers are the main sources of infection.
Potatoes are affected by various pathogens - fungi, bacteria, viruses, ziroids and mycoplasmas. These pathogens, accumulating in tubers, are the main sources of plant disease in subsequent generations.
Of the fungal potato diseases, late blight poses the greatest danger to the Krasnodar Territory. Frequent rains combined with cold weather are favorable for the intensive development of this disease. Under these conditions, late blight can destroy all plantings in a matter of days.
The disease appears as dark gray spots on all parts of the potato plant except the roots. The first spots form more often on the lower and middle leaves, but can also appear on the top. Feature late blight spot - its location at the end of the leaf lobe and bordered with a white coating, which is clearly visible early in the morning in the dew.
The infection is washed off from the affected leaves by rainwater, penetrates the tubers and infects them. Dark hard spots appear on the surface of the tubers; they spread into the tissues in brown, uneven streaks.
Bordeaux liquid - how to prepare
For spraying tops against late blight, the most effective and affordable preparation is Bordeaux mixture (a mixture copper sulfate with lime). It is prepared before consumption: 100 grams of copper sulfate are dissolved in 10 liters of water and 120 grams of slaked lime are added.
To prevent late blight in potatoes, you can successfully use drugs such as ditan M-45 (12-16 g), carbacin (24-32 g), arcerid (25-30 g) and Ridomil MC (25 g). These fungicides are dissolved in 10 liters of water and sprayed on 1 hundred square meters of potato plantings.
How to deal with the main pest of potatoes - the Colorado potato beetle
Of the pests, the Colorado potato beetle poses the greatest danger to potatoes. It overwinters in the soil at a depth of 20-30 cm. The emergence of beetles from wintering places in our zone begins in mid-May. However, in monoculture conditions, when potatoes are grown in the same place for many years, insects can appear on the soil surface very early, already at the end of March.
The emergence of beetles, as a rule, is very extended - up to three months. After 5-17 days depending on weather conditions Beetle larvae appear, which after a short time go to pupate in the soil. After 6-15 days, the pupae turn into adult beetles.
Thus, a new generation of the Colorado potato beetle is born within 35-40 days and immediately begins reproduction.
In central Russia, due to weather conditions, the Colorado potato beetle, as a rule, manages to go through only one (rarely two) generation, while in the conditions of the Krasnodar Territory, with the early arrival of spring and an extended period of warm days, this dangerous pest is capable of producing up to three or four, or even five generations.
This explains the fact that in our zone the fight against the Colorado potato beetle is much more complicated, and instead of one treatment with insecticides, they have to be carried out three or four times.
According to our research, today the most effective drugs for the destruction of Colorado potato beetles are bankol and regent.
Of course, these insecticides are relatively expensive, but at the same time highly effective. In our work, to completely protect potato plantings from the Colorado potato beetle, we used double treatment with an interval of 25-30 days.
Potato harvesting - when and how?
The last agricultural technique is harvesting. It must be carried out in a short, tight time frame.
Many potato growers in the region postpone harvesting until September, believing that the crop ripening occurs before this period. This is a deeply erroneous opinion.
The potato harvest in the Krasnodar Territory is completely ready for harvesting at the end of July - beginning of August, when the tops begin to die intensively. If harvesting is not carried out promptly and promptly, then under the influence of hot, dry August days, the tubers become baked.
As a result, on the one hand, their food and seed qualities sharply decrease, and on the other hand, they begin to germinate intensively very early. Such tubers are very difficult to store winter period. The sprouts have to be broken off at least 2-3 times, which significantly worsens the seed quality of the tubers.
Therefore, potato harvesting in the southern regions must be taken very seriously and carried out within strictly optimal periods.
Harvesting should begin as soon as up to 70% of the tops on the plants die. This period begins in our conditions at the end of July - beginning of August. First of all, all tops must be removed by mowing. At this time, the young tubers are covered with easily peelable skin and cannot yet be harvested.
After removing (mowing) potato tops for a short period of time (7-10 days), a braided peel is formed, which well protects them from mechanical damage. At this time, it is considered that the crop is ripe and can be harvested.
Potatoes are harvested manually. The tubers are packed into boxes and placed for 25-30 days in a cool, shaded place (preferably with drafts) under canopies for them to undergo a healing period. At the end of this period, an additional cork layer is formed on the tubers, which successfully protects them from various diseases and mechanical damage.
Another sorting is carried out, diseased tubers are removed, and in this form the crop is ready for long-term winter storage.
How to properly store potatoes
For most potato varieties optimal conditions storage are considered temperature regime within 3-5 degrees and relative humidity air 85-95%.
Based on this, in our southern zones with mild winter and lack severe frosts It is not recommended to store potatoes in deep and warm cellars. As a rule, the temperature regime that is established in these structures is much higher than the required optimal one, and the tubers begin to germinate very early.
The simplest and reliable way- storing potatoes in boxes under sheds or in other unfinished structures without windows and doors, where it is easier to create an optimal temperature regime for long-term storage.
In this case, the boxes are lined both on the sides and on top with straw bales 25-30 centimeters thick. For ventilation purposes, small (15x15 cm) “windows” are left between the bales, which are temporarily closed on very cold and frosty days. When warmer days arrive, they open.
In our conditions, above-ground piles can also be successfully used for storing potatoes. To do this, select an elevated place on which potatoes up to 1.5 meters high are poured onto a wooden lattice bed and also covered with straw bales.
Ventilation in such collars is carried out through a ridge and a ventilation channel measuring 25x30 centimeters, laid in the middle at the base of the collar.
The ventilation duct is covered with grilles made of boards with gaps between the slats of 2-3 centimeters so that the air flow from the groove passes freely through the embankment.
Also for the passage of outside air the ends ventilation duct extend 50-70 centimeters beyond the edges of the embankment. On cold, frosty days they can be partially covered.
And lastly: to protect the collars from getting wet, they are covered from top to bottom at an angle with plastic film.
When constructing any other structures for storing potatoes, you must adhere to two basic rules: the temperature in the storage facilities should not exceed 5-6 degrees Celsius; they must be constantly or regularly ventilated.
Subscribe to updates in our groups.
Europeans have been cultivating potatoes for many years in northern latitudes and temperate climates, obtaining high yields and supplying half the world with seeds. In recent years, potato growing has been intensively developing in the hot climate of Egypt for the export of early potatoes to Europe and Russia. Is there potential for industrial potato growing in Kuban?
On the territory of the Krasnodar Territory in Mostovsky, Otradnensky, Labinsky districts, on the gentle slopes of the northern spurs Caucasian ridge There are vast areas for agricultural purposes, including arable land at an altitude of 500 - 1000 m above sea level. This altitudinal zonation in the southeastern foothills of the region creates unique soil and climatic conditions favorable for potato growing. In this “potato belt” of Kuban in Soviet times Seed and ware potatoes were successfully produced for the entire region, the production of primary virus-free super-elite seed material was developed in meristem biolaboratories - branches of VNIIKH, storage facilities were built, new technologies and samples of equipment for potato growing were tested. A dissertation has been defended on the problems of southern potato growing, including double-crop cultivation, a scheme for our own elite and reproductive seed production has been scientifically substantiated, and technological regulations for industrial potato growing have been developed and approved for the foothill and lowland zones of the region. Unfortunately, in the 90s, the industrial potato growing system in the region was practically lost. Potatoes are produced mainly in the private sector with low yields, the territorial potato research institute has been liquidated, potato growers in the lowland part of the region are suffering from increasing summer heat, which reduces yields even when irrigated and protects against the quarantine pest – potato moth, which destroys products in the warehouse. Farmers grow only early varieties of potatoes to sell them in June before the heat sets in beyond the region. There is no seed production system. In the fall, the intensive “northern delivery” of food and seed potatoes to the region begins, which are practically not phytosanitarily controlled and purchased at a minimum price, and therefore of low quality.
Winter delivery of potatoes to the region from other regions on a large transport route leads to higher prices, failure to meet delivery contract deadlines in the absence of urban storage bases, and freezing of products en route. The potential of our own potato growing in the foothill zone of the region, measured in hundreds of thousands of tons and having high consumer indicators, unfortunately, is not yet in demand. The foothill zone of the region, free from quarantine diseases and pests, has a number of objective advantages for the intensive development of industrial potato growing:
1. The growing season of the crop occurs at moderate temperatures with a sufficient level of moisture from precipitation and night dew, daily temperature changes of up to 15 degrees, which promotes hardening, increased immunity to disease, and good “keeping quality” when storing potatoes.
2. The cool climate of the foothills prevents the reproduction and mass flight of vectors viral infection and eliminates the possibility of the spread of potato moth, which allows for potato seed production and the cultivation of late varieties for winter sale.
3. The soils of the zone, mainly gray forest with medium and low humus content, slightly acidic reaction of the soil solution, medium loamy in structure, are also favorable for cultivating potatoes and obtaining a yield of 30 - 35 tons per hectare without irrigation.
4. According to crop rotation in the foothills, where livestock farming has always been and will be, potatoes are successfully combined with the production of grain fodder, corn and perennial herbs, and waste from sorting commercial potatoes is in demand for livestock feed.
5. Long-term storage of potatoes is very economical in mountain climates due to the use of cold air at night to ventilate the product without turning on refrigerators, and the absence of quarantine diseases and pests allows you to effectively preserve large quantities of potatoes until the new harvest.
6. The proximity of potato storage facilities in the foothill zone makes it possible to reduce transportation costs during winter delivery to consumers of the region, reduces the risk of importing diseases and pests with tubers from other regions of the Russian Federation, ensures the availability of control over the quality of products during production and storage, and contributes to the establishment of long-term relationships with wholesalers of the region.
7. Potatoes from the foothill zone have exceptionally high ecological purity, since there is no industrial facilities, polluting the air, water, and soil near large cities, and should be used, first of all, for children's, school and medical nutrition in regional institutions.
Industrial potato growing in the foothills of the region, based on modern technology, equipment, varieties adapted to local conditions, makes it possible to produce a competitive product with the planned quality for a specific consumer - in terms of tuber shape, skin and pulp color, suitability for cooking or frying, degree of friability, by the content of sugars, dry substances, starch, carotene, vitamins, etc.
There is already positive experience in fulfilling large contracts for the supply of potatoes with specified quality indicators for their processing at the factories of such a demanding customer as Frito Lay Manufacturing, industrial producers of the region - OJSC Agrocomplex Gubskoye in the Mostovsky district, OJSC Plemzavod Urupsky in Otradnensky district, LLC "Agrocomplex "Prikubansky" in the Gulkevichi district. Industrial production in the clean foothill zone of table potato varieties with high quality and environmental cleanliness for the needs of children's, school, medical, social, sports nutrition and its supply under long-term and direct contracts, bypassing intermediaries in government procurement, will provide our consumers with a high-quality local product, reduce costs and leave significant amounts of budget funds in the region different levels. The development of our own industrial potato growing will increase the food security of the region for a socially significant product - “second bread” for the population, support its producers and create new jobs in the economically weak areas of the foothill zone of the region, will allow the development of a seed production system of the best varieties of Russian and regionalized varieties adapted to local conditions. foreign selection to provide all potato growers of the region. The sale of the early potato harvest first in May-June by lowland producers, and from July by foothill producers, in the presence of modern storage facilities with a controlled microclimate, will ensure a year-round supply of consumers in the region with their own Kuban product, displacing imports. To solve these difficult tasks we need a serious multi-year regional program for the development of Kuban potato growing with state support commodity producers of all forms of ownership, stimulating the entry of new investors into the industry and the foothill zone of the region. At the same time, the system for selling Kuban potatoes and vegetables requires reform and further development, ensuring decent purchasing prices for producers in the region. The concept of this system and the program for its creation were developed by the Kuban Agricultural Union.
Yuri Prosyatnikov, Chairman of the Board of Directors of JSC Agrocomplex Gubskoye
preparing for planting in February
When landing in optimal early dates potato yield increases by 25-30%. And vice versa: if you are late with planting for a week or two, its yield decreases sharply.
In our conditions best time potato planting - the end of the second and third ten days of March, the first ten days of April. The main thing is that as soon as the soil has ripened, that is, at a depth of 10 centimeters it warms up to plus 6-7 degrees (usually at this time the first buds appear on the trees), the potato seeds are planted.
Now is the time to germinate them. This is usually done in a bright, warm room 35-45 days before planting at a temperature of plus 15-17 degrees. And at a temperature of plus 20-25 degrees - in 20-25 days. Tubers are laid out in one layer in boxes, on shelves or on the floor. You can do it in two or three layers. Throughout the entire period, it is necessary to systematically inspect the tubers. In this case, stunted seeds with thread-like sprouts are removed.
If the air in the room is dry, then during the entire germination period you need to moisten the potatoes two or three times. Do you want to get the most early harvest- germinate planting material in the light for 30-35 days. And after the appearance of green sprouts, another 7-10 days in a humid environment so that roots form at the base of the eyes.
As soon as they appear, moisten the tubers with a solution of 100 g of superphosphate and 50 g of potassium chloride or sulfate per 10 liters of water. This solution can be replaced with 5 g boric acid for 10 liters of water. Treat the tubers with a solution of mineral fertilizers before planting. For them, this is an additional power source, especially needed in initial period growth. For 10 liters of water you need 200 g ammonium nitrate and superphosphate. Potatoes directly in nets or boxes should be immersed in the solution for one hour. Then dry and plant.
Good results Germination of potatoes in combination with pre-planting dusting with wood ash also gives results - 1 kg of ash per 50 kg of tubers. This procedure accelerates the emergence of seedlings, flowering of plants, and the yield increases by 10-15%.
Until recently, it was believed that potatoes were quite tolerant of increased acidity soil. But this is a misconception! It has been established that if potatoes grow in an acidic environment, their yield decreases and they are more susceptible to damage by pests and diseases. It is desirable that the reaction of the soil solution be close to neutral - pH = 6.0-6.5. Acidic soil must be limed when digging - 30-50 kg of fluff lime per one hundred square meters.
Organic fertilizers brought in in the fall for digging. Mineral - during planting in spring in a hole or furrow. To do this, add nitroammophoska to one well (one Matchbox) and one incomplete glass wood ash. It should be remembered: excessive doses of mineral fertilizers, especially urea, reduce the yield and starchiness of potatoes.
The best predecessors for potatoes in the garden are carrots, lettuce, spinach, beets, cabbage, and cucumbers. Ideal - clover. This wonderful crop creates a large supply of nitrogen in the soil in a form that is better absorbed by plants. After harvesting the green mass for hay in the fall, this area is dug up.
The next article will tell you which potato varieties are best to plant here.
Liliya SADCHIKOVA,
Head of the Goryacheklyuchevsky department of the FSBI branch
IN Lately The impact of climate warming on crop yields is becoming increasingly noticeable. Yields are falling, the shelf life of crops during storage is decreasing, many popular potato varieties are degenerating, but only recently they were successfully grown in Kuban. Droughts are no longer something unusual and occur almost every summer. Since climate warming is occurring throughout not only Russia but also the planet, these tips for growing potatoes in a dacha or plot, described for Kuban, may be useful to residents of Central Russia.
According to its biological characteristics, potatoes are not some kind of whimsical crop that requires special conditions for its development. On the contrary, it is a very plastic culture.
For example, in central Russia in the private sector, even today, potatoes are grown according to a very primitive scheme: planting - hilling - harvesting. Of course, the yields are not record ones, but average and good.
This is explained by the fact that the natural conditions of this zone are very favorable for the cultivation of potatoes. It has a temperate climate, regular and even rainfall and a light mechanical soil structure.
The southern zones, on the contrary, due to their soil and climatic conditions are not suitable for growing this valuable food crop. Unfavorable factors such as heat, drought, high sunlight and chernozems with heavy mechanical composition sharply inhibit the growth and development of potatoes, which ultimately results in low yields and rapid degeneration and changes in the seed qualities of tubers.
Nevertheless, potatoes have been and will always be grown in the south. For example, in the Krasnodar Territory alone, more than 100 thousand hectares of arable land are annually allocated for this crop. This is explained by the fact that today, for most families, potatoes have become the second bread.
In addition, imported potatoes alone cannot solve the nutrition problem in the region. And finally, despite unfavorable conditions, potatoes grown in our region are far superior in taste and nutritional value to potatoes imported from other places. Prices in city markets speak volumes about this.
Today, more than 95% of potatoes are grown by private owners, in dachas and personal plots, each of which uses its own technology based on personal experience. It is clear that in such conditions it is very difficult to immediately increase potato yields everywhere.
First of all, when recommending a particular technology, the following facts must be taken into account: first, the summer resident potato grower does not have modern equipment for growing potatoes; second, the average level of income of potato growers is not so high as to require the use of expensive chemicals.
First of all, you need to choose a suitable place to grow potatoes.
In the southern zones, including the Krasnodar Territory, potato crops should be placed on well-supplied soils - irrigated lands, floodplain areas with low relief, in river floodplains, in fields with high groundwater levels, on hillsides and in foothills.
What crop rotation to follow when planting potatoes
Replanting potatoes in their original place is recommended no earlier than three years later.
Therefore, it is also important to choose the optimal crop rotation, which must meet two main requirements: 1) contribute to obtaining high yields; 2) be cost-effective.
For farms growing potatoes, you can use a shortened, three-field crop rotation:
1. winter wheat or spring barley;
2. perennial herbs;
3. potatoes.
Summer residents-potato growers, who have limited space at their dacha or plot, can use a more economically advantageous crop rotation, where the preceding crops are table and fodder beets, cabbage, cucumber, carrots, pumpkin (except for nightshades).
However, in their dachas, many potato growers, due to limited space, are unable to use even simple crop rotations and are forced to grow potatoes in the same place year after year.
In the world practice of potato growing, such facts are also known. For example, in Scotland and the mountainous regions of Armenia, peasants grew potatoes after potatoes for more than 25 years and reaped average yields.
This proves in principle that potatoes can be grown in monoculture, but it is not advisable. Firstly, potato yields in these areas are low. Secondly, the risk of plant infection with such harmful diseases as late blight, rhizoctonia, and common scab increases sharply (5 times or more).
The sources of infection of these diseases are affected plant debris remaining in the soil after harvesting.
I have already read a lot of letters about how to get a good and early one. And most readers write about how to plant it correctly.
Preparing furrows for potatoes in the fall
They are right, of course, but I think the most important thing is preparing the soil in the fall. I personally prepare the beds at this time. I dig rows, throwing back the earth.
I put any decomposing organic waste in the furrows: stalks of corn, sunflowers, a little pigeon droppings, I even use a bird feather! Then I dig the next row and cover the furrow filled with organic matter with the soil taken out of it. And I cover the top with another thick layer of fallen leaves (photo 1). And so everything goes into winter.
Planting potatoes in the Krasnodar region
I plant in the spring, in strict certain time-March 22. According to the church calendar, this day marks the feast of the forty Martyrs of Sebaste (my grandmother always planted exactly 40 tubers, and they never failed her). I plant in three rows in a checkerboard pattern. By the way, I carry out the landing with the help interesting instrument, which I read about in a magazine.
On the shovel shaft, at a height of 10-15 cm from its working tip, there is a crossbar 25-30 cm long (photo 2). I press it with my foot, the shaft goes into the ground, I pull it out - the planting hole is ready.
I put a pinch of ash in it, and on top I put a tuber with sprouted small sprouts-roots. I fill the hole with my hand or foot. After this, I sprinkle some hay, straw and leaves on top of the ground.
Beds for Kuban potatoes
My potato beds are fenced: their width is 80-90 cm, their length varies. The passages are covered with old linoleum, roofing felt, and boards. Along the edges of the beds I place low arches, onto which I attach covering material without tension. I press its edges to the ground with boards. That's all. Even if it’s frosty, the emerging potatoes are warmed by leaves and straw.
In mid-April I open it, remove the weeds and close it again: the nights are still cool. I completely remove the covering material only if it is very hot. This is how potatoes grow in organic matter (photo 3). And I start digging the harvest in mid-May. And immediately in place of the dug up bushes I plant cucumber seeds, and How to deceive tubers
But good harvest can’t wait without good planting material. Therefore, now I want to talk about how to preserve tubers until spring. All difficulties with storing potatoes are due to the fact that it is impossible to maintain in the basement desired temperature 2-3° when it’s warm outside.
But even in December “overboard” it can be no lower than 10°. Last year, for example, the good frosty days could be counted on one hand. And what's the big deal? Yes, in sprouts on potatoes! The tubers destined for food will not benefit from them, but the planting ones will feel bad - due to the large sprouts, the yield will decrease.
Here's how I solve this problem. I'll start with the same early potatoes. In our region, many harvest two crops: the seed dug in May is replanted in August (harvested in October).
And I store the tubers in plastic boxes from under vegetables that have sides 10-15 cm high. At the bottom of each of them I spread newspapers in two or three layers and place seed potatoes, always in one row (photo 4). I place the boxes in a stack in the corner of the room, without covering them with anything, but so that direct sunlight does not fall on them. Occasionally I spray the potatoes with a spray bottle for spraying flowers. Sometimes, to make the sprouts “bloom,” I trim their ends with scissors.
And most importantly, in the top drawers the sprouts themselves grow no more than 2 cm and do not stretch any further, they freeze. The trick is that these potatoes are waiting to be covered with soil, so they don’t put out more “tails,” but that’s exactly what I need!
It’s clear that the tubers in the lower boxes “think” completely differently (after all, they are almost in the dark, since there are several floors of boxes above them), and their sprouts grow as they should. So you have to break them off, but this is not a lot of work. Comfortable. This way the potatoes are stored without any hassle until August. I also store the one I dig up in the fall.
If you doubt the correctness of my method, try it. Make one box in the fall and place it somewhere in the corner, you’ll see for yourself. I also doubted it at first, and my family laughed at me when I told them about my idea. But the successful experience convinced everyone. Now I always keep my seed potatoes this way. I also store all the potatoes for eating in the same boxes (I stack them, though in two layers). Everything fits very well. And even in this abnormally warm winter I had to sort through it only once, and only for the sake of order.
Neither cabbage nor birch trees on potatoes
And now I want to talk about other garden topics, no less important than growing and storing potatoes. For example, . Some summer residents scream because they cannot cope with it. I, too, tried my best to combat it: I grew plants inside buried plastic cups without a bottom, wrapped the stems of seedlings in hard cellophane (the plants felt sick, but it didn’t protect them from pests), buried bottles of beer and bait, fertilized them with chicken droppings. autumn (cabbage grass has become smaller, but has not completely disappeared).
Mulching potatoes
The solution was found on its own when I began to densely mulch all my plantings, even began to cover the passages with mowed grass and large stems (photo 5). And for the first couple of years in the spring, the cabbage plant crawled to the surface almost dead. I didn’t immediately understand what was going on here. Only after delving into the literature did I understand everything for myself.
After all, cabbage grass lives only in loose, dug up soil. And she prunes the plants, creating open spaces so you can bask in the sun. Please note: it is not found in forests and meadows, because there is no open land! And here is a thick layer of mulch. In general, over time, in the mulched beds, there were no cabbage plants at all.
The same mulch now saves me from a weed called birch. Weeding it is a waste of time and effort. I have more than 12 acres of land, and this weed does not exist. What am I seeing in hundreds of local gardens? For example, people harvested potatoes in July, and the rest of the time the land stood bare. And this is in the heat of 40° in the shade! For us, the birch tree is an aggressor, but for the earthling, it is a dear daughter, who will protect her from the heat with her body. Therefore, the growth rate of the weed is cosmic.
What am I doing.
In the summer I always have mustard seeds in my pocket. For example, I cut out a head of cabbage early cabbage– and immediately sowed several things. Until the entire bed is free, the mustard will grow. I’ll break it at the root and put it here. The earth should always be covered: in summer from heat, in winter from frost.
In autumn, you can add more fallen leaves on top. Photo 6 shows how my beds spend the winter.
I have tried all the proposed methods for many years - I am responsible for them. I myself use a lot of advice regularly. I had to give up some after the experiment; they didn’t suit me personally.
Svetlana Vladimirovna ZARYA. Krasnodar region. Timashevsk
Maybe someone will find my request surprising, but still: please send me