My dad, who lived in the village all his life, was a real Kulibin. From an old meat grinder he made a device for cleaning corn cobs from grains, from a saw - a device for processing sorghum, and he also had an electric dryer, made according to his own design. But I still use another of his inventions - a “sword” device for planting potatoes. Or rather, with its help, holes are made where the sprouted tubers are dropped.
This “weapon” consists of a column (round in cross-section, 8-10 cm in diameter), sharpened at one end. Its length is selected according to the worker’s height - the column should be approximately chest-high. There are two crossbars on the post (see diagram): one of them is installed from the tip at a distance, equal to length the bayonet of the shovel (they press it with their feet to plunge the “sword” into the ground), and the second one is at the end (they hold it with their hands).
After I prepare the tool, I get to work on the potato plot. I dig up the ground and level it with a rake. Then I pull the cord and use a “sword” to make holes at a distance of 40-50 cm from each other. I leave about the same amount between rows. I put potatoes with good strong sprouts in the holes and then rake them.
Would you say that we can do without the “sword”? But don't talk. There are several very important points. For example: since the depth of all holes is the same (this is another purpose of the lower crossbar on the “sword”), then all planting material is embedded at the same level. And therefore the shoots appear together.
In addition, this method makes the work much easier. In one day, our family of three, without overworking, plants 25-30 buckets of potatoes. And our neighbors (there are also three of them), until they began to act like us, spent 3-4 days on this matter, and then from fatigue
there were still as many lying in a layer!
True, when my mother-in-law saw me for the first time in the garden with a “sword,” she cried out loud: “Oh, they ruined all the potatoes! Let's go around the world! But when friendly shoots appeared, she rejoiced most of all.
By the way, there is one more advantage to this method: it is very easy to carry out the first weeding, because there are no large empty spaces in the beds, and, therefore, there is no risk of cutting down the potato sprouts that have not yet emerged. Now all the neighbors are armed with “swords” and constantly remember my daddy with great warmth, although it’s been 10 years since he’s been with us. And those brats for whom he repaired bicycles for free are now growing into idiots of their own...
Svetlana Alekseevna
Our thought.
You look at such a device and think: it seems like nonsense, nothing complicated, but the benefits are enormous. Most importantly, both energy and time are saved. And why couldn’t anyone think of this before? The most interesting thing is that many summer residents-inventors are embarrassed to boast about their “units”, they say, the neighbors will laugh.
In our country, many families traditionally have private farming. For many people, this is not just a way to get healthy and tasty food at minimal cost, but also a good option for earning extra income.
Even residents of large cities with the arrival of spring go out to their land and begin cultivating vegetable gardens. One of the most popular crops, of course, is potatoes. Potatoes are tasty and nutritious, but planting them is a labor-intensive process that requires significant physical effort.
But small gardens still require heavy manual labor, just like centuries ago. Digging up and planting potatoes manually on a plot of, for example, ten acres requires the gardener to shovel almost 15 tons of soil. Such “exercises” are not for everyone.
Therefore, many try, where possible, to simplify their work by using various ways mechanization and simplification of the planting process. One of the simplest devices for manual mechanization of the process of planting potatoes is.
With the help of this simple device, which, by the way, anyone can make for themselves, gardeners in all corners of our country every spring simplify the process of planting potatoes and save energy for other equally important garden tasks.
In our article we will try to describe the structure of a manual potato planter, tell you what it is made of and how to make it, and give some tips on how best to use it.
For more information about a homemade manual potato planter, watch the video:
Having asked yourself the question: how to make a manual potato planter with your own hands, you must first of all look at its diagram. You can easily find drawings of a potato planter on the Internet. They show that the design of the potato planter is essentially a hollow pipe with an open top and a sliding valve at the bottom.
The lower end of the pipe is cut with a bevel so that a handle pointed at the bottom is formed, and the entire structure can easily enter the ground.
A sliding valve is attached to the beveled lower edge, which opens at the moment when the device with a potato tuber inside is stuck into the ground to the required depth.
To ensure that the potato planter sticks in at the same desired depth all the time, a flat stop is welded at some distance from the bottom edge. With its help, it is convenient to stick the potato planter into the ground, pressing on it with your foot. The top edge of the potato planter is open.
You can attach a container to it for a small number of potato tubers for planting and a simple one for directing them one by one towards the bottom of our device.
Necessary materials
You can either purchase a snow blower, such as, for example.
Or try to do it yourself. you will find drawings of a snow blower for the walk-behind tractor.
How to do it yourself
How to quickly and easily make a manual potato planter with your own hands. When all the materials are prepared and collected in one place, we take our pipe and use a grinder to cut off the lower part with a bevel so that a certain point is formed downwards.
We cut out the valve cover so that it covers the hole formed at the bottom of the pipe with a margin. Attach the hinge (loop) to the pipe body. We attach our valve cover to the hinge. At a distance of 20-30 cm from the bottom, we weld the footrest to the pipe.
It is best to make its length equal to the distance between the bushes of future potatoes. In this case, during the planting process, the end of the step will rest against the ground where the next tuber needs to be planted. On top of our pipe we attach handles for ease of use and a basket for potato tubers.
You don’t have to use a basket, but then you’ll have to carry a bucket of planting material with you everywhere and constantly bend down to take one potato for each hole. The basket should not be too large and bulky.
A huge basket will complicate the planting process and will interfere with the gardener when manipulating the device. And carrying a lot of heavy potatoes everywhere is also not very fun.
The size of the basket is selected individually, so that it is convenient to use the potato planter, and you do not have to add a new portion of potato tubers very often.
Fastening the footrest, handles and valve is best done by welding. Fastening structural elements with bolts or self-tapping screws may be no less strong, but in those places where their ends stick out inside the body, obstacles will form for the passage of potato tubers.
Before assembling the entire structure, make sure that the total weight of all elements will not pose a problem for you during operation.
The device should not be too heavy, otherwise you risk not making your work easier by slightly mechanizing and speeding up the process of planting potatoes, but on the contrary, complicating your life by moving a non-lifting device.
At the same time, the pipe body must be strong enough to withstand many cycles of inserting and removing the device from the ground. Individual elements The designs of a manual potato planter, depending on the preferences of a particular designer, can be made in different ways.
So, for example, the valve can be made not folding, but sliding. Also, as a rule, everyone has different designs of baskets for planting material and a method for feeding potato tubers into the supply pipe.
Some equip the valve mechanism with an additional hook so that you can reliably control the process of opening and closing with your foot. This is, of course, the simplest and most primitive agricultural tool. However, this is where its beauty lies.
Anyone can make a potato planter; the material for this will probably be found in any household, and the efficiency of the device is very impressive.
Separately, I would like to talk about one more design homemade apparatus for planting potatoes. This is a box on top of which is placed for tubers prepared for planting.
In the lower part, between two running wheels, there is a device for uniform feeding of potatoes into a pre-prepared furrow. Such a cart rides over the furrow and, while moving, lays out potato tubers at regular intervals.
A shield covering the furrow can be located behind such a device, but in this case, moving the cart will require more effort, or the help of a second person.
Such a device can hardly be called a manual potato planter, but it is also simple homemade unit, which can collect each of the old and unnecessary items.
Some craftsmen make a potato planter from ordinary one-wheeled wheelbarrows. To do this, a hole is made in the bottom of the wheelbarrow trough, into which one potato can freely pass, and in the wheel, the top point of which is located just under this hole, recesses are made at regular intervals.
When moving the wheelbarrow, potato tubers fall into the recesses on the wheel and with the movement of the wheel they move down into the prepared furrow. To prevent the tubers from falling out along the way, there is a protective wing in front of the wheel.
Shovel-harvester
Another design used for planting potatoes is called a harvester shovel. These are two handles that can move closer and further away from each other, opening and closing a cone-shaped container into which potatoes are placed for planting.
When closed, the container is stuck into the ground, after which the handles are brought together, the container opens and the potato tuber ends up in the ground. It’s convenient, but you have to bend down and put one potato into the cone each time.
As you can see, people have come up with many convenient and practical devices that make life easier for gardeners. Some of them can be called successful, some not so much, but they all help and, with varying degrees of success, replace the classic shovel.
User manual
Using such a device for planting potatoes is not difficult. The potato planter is inserted into the ground at the selected location and, by pressing the foot on the footplate at a slight angle, is buried to the required depth.
A potato tuber prepared for planting is fed into the device. After this, using the handles, the body of the potato planter is tilted in such a direction that the valve at the bottom of the device can open and the potatoes fall into the ground. After this, the device is removed, and the potatoes remain in the ground.
The operation cycle of the potato planter can be repeated again. At proper organization process, 1-2 hours is not very difficult work you can have time to sow an area of 10 acres or more. This device is especially convenient because when using it you do not need to constantly bend over.
People with bad backs appreciated the convenience and efficiency of using a manual potato planter. The entire work process takes place in upright position, potato tubers are also on top, in the basket, and you don’t need to bend down for each new potato.
When using the device, you need to get used to inserting it into the ground so that the outlet valve does not open. If you hold the valve side down, it will open simply under the influence of gravity.
Therefore, before feeding new potatoes into the potato planter pipe, you need to ensure that the valve is turned with the lid up.
Conclusion
As you can see, a manual potato planter is not a complicated device at all, either to manufacture or to operate. The materials for its manufacture will probably be found in any owner’s barn. The only difficulty in its manufacture, for some, may be the need to use welding.
But this issue is not difficult to solve, especially since everyone can master welding skills at a level sufficient to create simple welding seams, and modern welders(meaning inverter-type welding machines) do not require any specific complex skills from the operator to work with them.
As a last resort, you can always turn to a welder you know for help.
Using the potato planter is very simple. It is especially effective to use it on a potato field that has been previously plowed, say with the help of a walk-behind tractor (for example), or a mini tractor (for example,). With its help you can quite quickly and without special effort plant potatoes over a large area, saving your time and effort.
The advantages provided by the potato planter are facilitating and speeding up the planting process, maintaining the same depth when planting tubers. We hope that you found this article interesting and helped you in designing and creating a manual potato planter.
Planting potatoes - pretty labor-intensive process, especially if a large area is allocated for this crop. It takes a lot of energy and further care- weeding, hilling, cleaning. But you can significantly save time by using various mechanized and hand tools. They are selected based on the area of the plot, own strength and financial capabilities.
Types of mechanisms used
The modern market offers a wide variety of different devices that greatly facilitate the process of planting potatoes. And if the owners of the notorious six hundred square meters do not feel any particular need for them, then those who grow crops on an industrial scale simply need them. This allows you to significantly save time and effort, speeding up the process by 3–10 times.
Jerzy
The so-called hedgehogs or hedgehogs are a structure consisting of several (usually three) interconnected disks with spikes, slightly different in diameter.
In relation to each other, they are located at an angle of approximately 45º - this feature allows you to form a ridge while moving along the bed. You can improve the design by placing several hedgehogs in parallel on one frame. In addition, such a frame can easily be placed on any type of cultivator. There are also no restrictions on their use based on soil type.
Single hedgehog is rarely used by professional farmers
Video: preparing a field for planting potatoes using hedgehogs
The hedgehogs themselves are fixed by welding to a piece of hollow pipe with a diameter of 25–30 mm. Inside it there is another pipe (rod), to which a bracket is attached, connecting the entire structure with the mount and wooden handle. The space between them is filled with lubricant.
Double hedgehog is the most common option; it allows you to form high ridges while weeding the field
Each hedgehog should have spines at least 6–7 cm long and 6–8 mm in diameter, spaced evenly around the circumference of the disc at intervals of 40–50 mm. The discs gradually decrease in diameter - 30–35 cm, 20–25 cm, 10–15 cm. For the smallest of them, 5–7 spikes are enough, for the largest one you will need at least 15 pieces. Spikes can be easily made by cutting into pieces and sharpening a metal rod of a suitable diameter.
There is nothing complicated about making a hedgehog yourself; all materials and tools are quite accessible
The disks do not have to be round - if suitable blanks are available, squares, pentagons or hexagons are used. This does not affect the quality of tillage in any way. The average distance between two hedgehogs mounted on a frame is 25–30 cm.
Homemade hedgehogs are as effective as store-bought ones
Most often, such devices are included with a walk-behind tractor or cultivator, but you can make them yourself. Manufacturers offer conical hedgehogs, with which you can weed a bed without damaging the potato seedlings, and rotary ones. Their main function is weeding, hilling and “fluffing” the soil.
Hedgehogs attached to a mini-tractor allow you to very quickly prepare a field for planting potatoes
Basically, the mechanism is designed for deep loosening of the soil, weeding the beds and hilling the emerging seedlings. It is also useful to walk across the field with a hedgehog 12–15 days after planting the tubers. This treatment allows you to remove weeds by the roots and improve soil aeration. The latter, in turn, stimulates the growth and development of the root system. Discs located at an angle form an even high ridge without affecting the seedlings.
But you shouldn’t get carried away with using hedgehogs, especially for gardeners who are inexperienced in this. Both aboveground and underground part plants. The optimal interval between procedures is 18–22 days. It is enough to roll the mechanism back and forth across the bed to remove weeds from the roots.
Triple hedgehog requires the gardener to have some experience in handling it, but two rows can be processed simultaneously
When making hedgehogs yourself, the main thing is to remove all metal shavings, process them well, clean and sand the surfaces to avoid injury.
Okuchniki
The hiller is another component for the cultivator. As the name suggests, it is used for hilling potatoes. It can also be used when planting tubers. Depending on the number of rows, hillers are classified into single-row, double-row, three-row, and so on. The more there are, the more powerful the cultivator the gardener needs. The number of rows also affects performance. The hiller cultivates the soil deeper than is possible with manual cultivation. The cutters penetrate the soil 20–25 cm - more than the bayonet of a shovel.
The hiller, despite the name, is ideal for preparing a field for planting potatoes
Video: what a two-row hiller looks like
It is much more convenient to use hillers that allow you to change the working width. This way, the gardener can independently regulate the cultivated strip by setting the row spacing. Minimum Required- 70 cm. Otherwise, it will be inconvenient to care for the plantings. The specific distance is determined based on the description of the variety - potato bushes can be either tall and spreading, or short and compact.
Three-row hiller with adjustable distance between structural elements allows you to independently set the row spacing
The technology for using a two-row hiller suggests that you need to first mark the bed. If there is reasonable doubt about your own eye, markers are used. Such a device, reminiscent of a wooden rake, is easy to make yourself.
The wheels on the walk-behind tractor are replaced with lugs. The mechanism is installed at the beginning of the marking. When the width of the bed has been covered, one of the hillers is turned around and lowered into the finished furrow, grabbing a little of the already cultivated soil so as not to miss anything. Then the tubers are planted on the field treated in this way, maintaining a distance of 40–45 cm between them. The last thing to do is cover them with soil. For this, it is more convenient to use a single-row hiller. And you will need to “change the shoes” of the mechanism again, replacing the lugs with regular wheels.
Most often, the hiller is attached to a walk-behind tractor
It takes much longer to cultivate a field with a single-row hiller. In this case, the active part of the mechanism (“wheel”) is installed in the middle of the frame.
Most often found on sale the following types hillers:
- Disk. The most expensive, but also the most convenient option. The gardener has the ability to adjust the angle of inclination of the discs, significantly facilitating the work of pre-planting the potato bed, planting tubers and hilling up seedlings.
- Dutch type. Valued for its relatively low cost and fuel efficiency. At the same time, the quality of processing is comparable to the previous version. The furrows and holes made with its help keep their shape, and the soil does not fall back.
Experienced gardeners recommend using diesel walk-behind tractors when working with hillers. At more power they consume much less fuel. Its price is lower than gasoline. But when purchasing (if it is more than one set), you must check with the seller whether these models are compatible. The most popular types of walk-behind tractors among Russian gardeners are “Salut” and “Neva”.
Almost everyone who has tried the device agrees: the hiller is very convenient device, but some use it in conjunction not with a walk-behind tractor or other mechanism, but with an ordinary hand plow, citing the fact that the heavy bulky structure will crush all the tubers in the process of filling the furrows, especially in small beds. In many ways, the success of using a hiller with a walk-behind tractor depends on the experience of the gardener and the weight of the mechanism.
The hiller may not give the expected effect on heavy soils(peaty, silty, clayey), and also if groundwater comes closer to the surface than 1–1.5 m. In this case, it is advisable to first create ridges in the field with a height of at least 60–70 cm using a walk-behind tractor or other device and then plant the tubers in them.
Mini planters
A very convenient device that allows you to simultaneously cut furrows, plant tubers in them and cover them with soil. It is attached to a mini-tractor or walk-behind tractor. It depends on the type of device, its power, the area being processed, the type of soil and other factors.
The design consists of a plow for cultivating the land, a small container for tubers and hillers that cover the furrows.
May include one or more blocks. There are modifications with one more additional compartment. In this case, fertilizers can be poured into the holes at the same time. Tubers and nutrients With the help of special backfill disks located at an angle to the furrow, they fall into the seeder, and from there into the ground.
Mini planter - very convenient device, allowing you to plant a large field with potatoes in a matter of hours
As practice shows, a mini-planter greatly facilitates the gardener’s work. The four-row device allows you to plant potatoes in a one-hectare bed in about half an hour. Depending on the volume of the container, 12–20 kg of tubers can be placed in it. Moreover, the faster the mechanism moves, the greater the distance between neighboring bushes.
In order not to spend money on a finished device, you can design a mini-planter yourself. But this is a job for those who already have certain drawing and engineering skills and know how to work with tools. The design consists of a frame to which fasteners are welded on the sides to secure the planter to the mechanism and two pipes located at an angle. A container for tubers will be located on them. Under the frame there is a regular hand plow or several discs with spikes for forming furrows and one wheel on the axle. An ordinary metal pipe with a diameter of 8–12 cm is used as a seeder.
A homemade mini-planter is no worse than a purchased one, although it looks less presentable
It is desirable that the wheel be wide - this way the pressure on the soil is distributed more evenly. And it’s very convenient to use a tank from an old one as a container. washing machine. Weighs like this homemade design decently, so before using it you need to equip the walk-behind tractor with a counterweight. This is not necessary for a mini tractor.
Walk-behind tractors
Walk-behind tractor - mechanism universal purpose necessary in any farming, especially where potatoes are grown on an industrial scale. On personal personal plots its use is not always cost-effective due to small areas. To plant potatoes to a walk-behind tractor you will need optional equipment- hiller, hitch for it, special lug wheels and cutters. Using the hitch, you can change the position of the hiller, adjusting the depth of the furrow in accordance with the type of soil.
Walk-behind tractor with various removable devices- a necessary thing in farming
The walk-behind tractor is easy to operate, has a long service life and rarely breaks down. But it is advisable that a man work with him. For a woman, the mechanism may be too heavy and cumbersome. The hiller on it is more often used for planting potatoes in small-sized beds, and the potato planter is used in farm fields.
First, using a walk-behind tractor, the selected area is dug up and harrowed. To do this, a plow is installed on it. Next, to form even furrows and equal row spacing between them, a hiller is used. When using a special mini-planter, a furrow is simultaneously prepared, tubers are planted in it, and it is covered with soil.
To plant potatoes, a homemade or purchased mini-planter is attached to the walk-behind tractor.
Since the cutters inevitably leave depressions in the soil, when moving in the opposite direction, you need to place one of them so as to fall into the rut left by the second.
In this case, the soil will be cultivated to the optimal depth for planting potatoes - a little more than a spade bayonet. If this is not done, the field will be processed faster, but the furrows will be smaller - it will be difficult to plant tubers in them. Sometimes the soil is cultivated, gradually moving along the perimeter from the outer edge to the center of the field, but in this case the soil will then have to be leveled with a rake, and this is an additional waste of time and effort.
The method of plowing a field for potatoes in a spiral has both supporters and opponents
Video: planting potatoes with a walk-behind tractor
When using a hiller, potatoes are planted in the furrows by hand. To cover them, the grip width of the wings on the mechanism is increased to the maximum, and the wheels are changed from lug wheels to rubber ones. The resulting unevenness, due to the gardener’s lack of experience, can be easily leveled out with an ordinary hoe. It is best to move slowly, at first speed.
The walk-behind tractor can also be used for hilling potatoes. The hillers are installed on it so that the distance between them corresponds to the intervals between the rows of bushes. In this case, the wheels move along the rows, without touching the stems, but pushing the soil to the very base of the bush. It is advisable to carry out this procedure after rain, but not immediately, but when the soil dries out, remaining slightly moist.
Video: hilling potatoes with a walk-behind tractor
When harvesting potatoes from a large field, you also cannot do without a walk-behind tractor. To do this, choose a warm sunny day, so as not to waste time drying the potatoes and cleaning them from sticky wet soil. First you need to mow and remove all the tops from the garden bed. It is better to do this 10–12 days before the intended procedure (to prevent late blight, which often develops when storing tubers).
There is a special attachment - the so-called digger, but a single-row hiller attached to a walk-behind tractor is also suitable for harvesting. It is installed in the middle of the row and moved forward at first speed. In the process, the soil is sort of cut and lifted, the potatoes are removed from it and laid out on the bed. First, the row spacing passes through one, then returns to the remaining ones.
Video: recommendations for using a walk-behind tractor when growing potatoes
Mini tractors
A mini-tractor is a “heavy” piece of equipment that can be used in any area, regardless of the terrain. But for very small personal subsidiary farms it doesn’t fit - there’s simply nowhere for the mechanism to turn. It is advisable to purchase it if the cultivated area is at least 50 acres.
Buying a mini-tractor is economically justified only for large farms
A mini-tractor is used not only for plowing the soil and planting potatoes. With its help, you can feed plants, mow grass, remove garbage and snow from the site, and fill up holes.
It is best to attach a potato planter to a mini-tractor for planting potatoes. The hiller is not very suitable in this case, since the furrows it makes do not coincide with the track left by the tractor wheels. Hilling up the seedlings will be quite difficult.
Nevertheless, experienced farmers found a way out. The first time they walk across the field, using a two-row hiller so that both mechanisms are placed at a distance of 30 cm from the middle of the tractor wheel axle. Then the potatoes are laid out in the prepared furrows and buried, attaching an additional hiller in the center. You need to move strictly along the first track.
The mini-tractor is used not only for planting potatoes, but also for many other agricultural works
Hilling up of the emerging seedlings is carried out using a three-row potato planter. This allows you to process two rows at once. You can also use a five-section one, but in this case the tubers must be planted with a four-row planter.
Video: using a mini-tractor to plant potatoes
Devices for planting potatoes manually
The most common such devices are the hand plow and manual cultivator. The first allows you to plant potatoes in a prepared furrow. She falls asleep at the same time as the second one is dug. Then the whole procedure is repeated.
The hand plow is a very simple design, known to mankind a long time ago
A manual cultivator is used for planting and hilling potatoes, loosening the soil, and weeding the beds. It also allows you to sow seeds of most agricultural crops and break up the hard crust on the surface of the bed.
A manual cultivator greatly facilitates the work of a gardener
Another interesting device- seeder-planter. It consists of a pipe immersed in the ground and two long handles. The tuber is lowered into it, the handles are brought together, leaving it in the ground. Then the device is removed from the ground and everything starts all over again. The well-known principle of leverage is used. This device can significantly reduce the load on the back, which is especially important for older gardeners.
A self-made disc cultivator can be attached to a hiller or walk-behind tractor
There is also a manual hiller. They will have to work together. One person pulls it forward, the second, standing behind, controls the structure using handles. The device itself is a frame with disks or a small plow welded to it below. Using various drawings, you can assemble a structure with several disks, provide for the possibility of changing the angle and distance between them. Anyone who makes a hand hiller is limited only by his own imagination and skill in handling tools.
Working with a manual hiller alone is not very convenient
Homemade devices
The simplest and most common homemade auxiliary device for planting potatoes is a marker. It allows you to mark out a potato bed evenly, at regular intervals, without relying on your own eye. This is especially important if you plan to use a walk-behind tractor, mini-tractor or other mechanism for planting, hilling and harvesting. The distance between the holes must correspond to the track width between the wheels.
Anyone can make a marker for marking beds.
Essentially, a marker is a device for “punching” holes in the ground. It's much easier than digging them with a shovel. The most primitive marker is a sharpened wooden peg or a piece of pipe slightly higher than less than a meter and with a diameter of 6–7 cm. At a distance of 15–18 cm from the sharp end there is a transverse crossbar to adjust the depth of the hole. When using such a marker along and across the bed, you will first have to tighten the cords at the required intervals. The crosshairs of the resulting “grid” are the places where the holes will be located.
Markers are very helpful for those gardeners who cannot rely on their own eye.
You can improve the design by placing several cones on a fixed frame. This marker looks like a rake or trident. Optimal distance between cones - 45–50 cm, length - 15 cm. And if you make the pins retractable, you can adjust the depth of the hole.
It is more difficult to make a marker with retractable pins, but this design allows you to adjust the depth of the holes
It is a little more difficult to make a marker for planting potatoes using Jacob Mittlider's method. The method proposed by this famous agronomist allows you to significantly increase productivity without increasing the area of the bed.
Its base is a metal pipe with a diameter of approximately 2 cm. The cone that directly punches the holes is a piece of a wider pipe (60–65 mm), cut at an angle of approximately 45º. Several of them are welded to the frame at intervals of 28–30 cm. At the beginning of the first row, marked with a cord or rope, the structure is stuck into the ground and continues to the end. In the next row, the holes will need to be made in a checkerboard pattern. This method of planting allows you to harvest up to a ton of potatoes from 100 m2, but caring for such zigzag rows is quite inconvenient. Especially for those who are practicing Mittlider landing for the first time.
To extend the service life of the marker tool, wooden stakes are coated with varnish or drying oil to protect against rot, after sanding first. sandpaper. Clods of earth stick to wood treated in this way much less often. Metal cones are protected from rust by covering them with paint in several layers. The height of the handle is determined based on the height of the worker.
A metal marker is much more durable than a wooden one
The frame should be made as strong as possible. For example, duralumin pipes are not suitable, although they have a significant advantage - lightness. Pins or stakes are attached to powerful screws. Place them on the frame in large quantities It’s not practical, it’s better to limit yourself to three - otherwise the soil resistance increases greatly, and you’ll have to put in more effort to make holes, spending extra time.
For a marker to last a long time, it must be protected from dampness, rot, and rust.
It is much faster to plant potatoes using a marker using two people. The first worker presses the holes, the second one throws the tubers into them and immediately buries them.
Too many pins on the marker frame - not always good decision, making holes in this case will require significant physical effort
Another homemade device- something between a shovel and a harvester. It allows you to plant potato tubers without first forming holes. Two shovels are fastened so that they resemble a beak, their handles intersect in the shape of the letter X. When the “beak” is stuck into the ground, the handles move apart and a hole appears in the soil into which the tuber is planted. Shovels, without moving, are removed from the substrate, the potatoes remain in the ground. There is no need to fill the hole anymore.
Video: planting potatoes with two shovels
Various mechanisms significantly facilitate and speed up the process of planting potatoes. They are also used for soil preparation, hilling, and harvesting. Useful device It is quite possible to assemble it yourself. There is nothing complicated in the design (especially if there are drawings and step by step instructions), but the benefits are obvious.
" Potato
Smooth lines Potato bushes look very beautiful, showing order and creating comfort for self-hilling or using a cultivator. An unpleasant routine activity with the help of certain devices for self-planting can become a fun, unpretentious and enjoyable activity, and designing your own necessary manual equipment is a process of technical creativity.
Today there are special devices - marker, scriber, hedgehogs, plow for planting and weeding potatoes. They will greatly facilitate the work of the gardener. The work, when using these simple devices, happens much faster, and the result is the same effective and high-quality if it was done by hand.
A marker is a device that is necessary to facilitate manual activities when planting, as well as to ensure that the beds are level, with evenly distributed holes for potatoes. Subsequently, such beds are not difficult to process using mechanized or manual devices.
Today you can buy ready-made markers, but it is better to make a homemade device, then the distance between adjacent plows, for organizing holes for planting, will fully correspond to the distance between the wheels of a motor cultivator or tractor.
Markers can be basic or very complex. You can make them from any material you have at hand:
- Wooden stakes;
- Durable board;
- Special or round pipes made of metal.
It doesn’t matter what the device’s handle or frame is made of, the main thing is the distance between the components that make the holes.
Elementary marker
This is a wooden stake approximately 90 centimeters high and about 60-70 millimeters in diameter. A horizontal rod, which is fixed at a height of about 150 millimeters from the base, will serve as a support that limits the depth of the hole. Before you start working with this device, you need to mark out future holes using twine. It is stretched along the length of the rows at a distance of approximately 40, 50, 60, 70 or 80 centimeters between the beds.
The distance between the beds depends on the subsequent method of tillage, manual or mechanized. The gap between the pits in a row is about 30 centimeters, depending on the size and variety of potatoes that will be planted.
Mittlider Marker
This is a more complex version of the marker, which is made from a pipe with an external diameter of 21 millimeters. The distance between the holes will be 29 centimeters. The cone with which the holes are made is made from a pipe Ø 55-65 millimeters. It must be welded to the frame.
On the initial row, the frame is placed parallel to the twine and, applying the necessary force, is immersed in the soil. Then we place a cone in the hole that we have marked, and continue like this. In another row, holes are made like on a chessboard. A marker made using this method allows you to plant potatoes on small areas , while obtaining a high yield.
Three holes at once
This model consists of metal pipes and 3 cones.
The welded frame of the marker is made from a special light and strong pipe measuring 25x25x2 millimeters. To do this, you can take a regular steel pipeØ 32 millimeters, which is used for water supply or gas pipelines. Cones are made of aluminum or acacia wood, oak.
A hole is made in the cylindrical part and an M8 thread is cut. Three such through holes Ø 9 millimeters are made in the pipe. Through these holes the cones are attached to the frame with M8 bolts. Using bolts measuring 40-80 millimeters, you can adjust the depth of the hole. The distance between the cones is 45 centimeters. To avoid injury, plugs must be placed on the open ends of the supporting pipe. The height of the bolts may vary. This will depend on the depth of the hole required. The larger the bolt, the wider the possibilities.
Wooden cones must be sanded, varnished or drying oil applied so that soil does not stick to them when working. All metal components must be treated against corrosion. The height of the frame must be adjusted to your height. The values indicated in the drawing are suitable for a summer resident with a height of 175 centimeters.
Scribbler for planting potatoes
Planting potatoes using a scriber will shorten this process several times. Everything is done easily and without straining. It is not difficult to make; any man can do it and it will take no more than 2 hours.
To make it you will need two stakes Ø 10 centimeters and two boards one and a half meters long. The stakes are made from dried bars or thin spruce trunks. They need to be processed, edges sharpened and handles made. Then nail wooden crossbars to them.
It is necessary to make the required distance between the stakes. If subsequently the potatoes are processed with a mini-tractor, then the distance should be approximately 65-70 centimeters; if with a cultivator, then a distance of 60 centimeters would be rational. When processing manually, the stakes must be placed at intervals of 45-55 centimeters.
The board from below must be nailed with a margin on which you need to install a note from a narrow strip. It is done at the same distance as the stakes. With its help, the beginning of the pits is determined.
You need to make handles for yourself so that there are no problems when working later. The board from below must be installed so that, when pressing on it, a hole is formed, approximately 10-15 centimeters deep.
The idea of working with a scriber is as follows: When placing it on the edge of the area, you need to hold it with your hands by the handles in front of you. Then press on the board from below, while the stakes sink into the soil, and the mark leaves a mark. Then they move it with their hands, making movements back and forth, in order to enlarge the pits. There should be two ridges of holes, and the third ridge will be a mark from which you need to follow, but in the other direction, placing a stake on the mark.
At the same time, behind the marker a man is walking who plants potatoes. The whole process is quick and easy. Use this technique and make your work on the site easier.
Homemade hand plow
When the time comes to plant potatoes, summer residents act according to the following scheme: they make markings for planting, dig holes with a shovel, put potatoes in them and then fill them with their hands. While the potatoes are growing, they need to be hilled, More often this is done with a hoe. This takes a lot of time and effort. Today this process can be simplified as much as possible.
The hand plow is very simple device, with which 2 people work simultaneously. It consists of:
- 2 dump bodies for operation, with a knife for trimming;
- Front pull, in order for one person to pull it forward;
- Handles at the back to control a second person.
It also performs work on cutting rows for planting, helps with hilling potatoes, and also loosens the ground.
In order to make such a device you will need:
- Hollow pipe for vertical stand Ø2.5 centimeter, about 1 meter long.
- A piece of hollow pipe Ø3/4 inches for making traction front and rear;
- Section of sheet rod 2 mm thick, for making dumps;
- To connect the front rod to the vertical post a lanyard will be needed, which can be replaced with a metal plate with holes to adjust the angle of attack;
- Blowtorch or gas-burner for heating metal on bends;
- Welding equipment;
- For processing joints you will need a grinder.
The long pipe must be bent at a distance of about 30 centimeters from the beginning, the angle should be 10-15°. A pipe bender will help to make bends. If it is missing, you can make a bend using the following technique:
- Filling the pipe sand;
- We put it on the edges of the pipe stubs;
We heat the intended bending area with a blowtorch and begin bending.
The smaller pipe, like the perpendicular stand, must be bent. To adjust the height, we make holes on the top edge and the same holes on the vertical section of the proposed fork.
By changing the location of the bolt in the holes, you can change the height of the stand for the comfort of the summer resident.
The pull rod at the front looks the same as the one at the back, but is different in size. The height of the handle should be such that the person walking in front can easily stand between the handles, grasping them.
The height of the vertical part should be 60 centimeters, it must be made flat at the ends and holes must be drilled to connect to the vertical section.
At a distance of 30 centimeters from below to vertical rack attach the foreshortening for front traction. Then, at a distance of 25 centimeters from this hole, the same corner measuring 25x25 is welded to the fork. A hole is also made in it, and it is welded to the stand above the first corner.
2 moldboard plow
You will need 2 identical plates 2 millimeters thick. We round the bends on them. Using welding, using even seams, we attach the 2 halves of the plow to the perpendicular stand. We sand them with a grinder so that they are sharp.
Pruning knife
We take the most durable carbon steel. We cut the knife in the shape of an arrowhead and sharpen it at an angle of 45°. This angle will make the knife sharper long time. Using welding, we attach it to the vertical post from below and sand it.
The manual plow is ready for work on the site!
Hedgehog cultivator for weeding
They remove grass with roots, unlike flat cutters, which only cut the stems. Hedgehogs rake the soil between the rows, which creates distinct rows and beautiful beds. Loose soil allows oxygen and liquid to pass through well, which increases the growth of potato roots, and this is a guarantee of an excellent harvest.
Weeding with a walk-behind tractor is done using certain paws or a rotating cutter. The cutter is rotated by the power take-off shaft. The advantage of the paws is ease of installation and thoroughness in loosening the soil. They loosen the soil at a depth of 4-7 centimeters, depending on its condition.
To operate, the presser feet need to be secured in certain fasteners at a distance equal to the width of the row. The fastener should have a slight overlap that will cover both legs. Devices can be either single-sided or double-sided. If the device is one-sided, then the legs must be attached so that the blades are located towards the row spacing.
The paws, which have one-sided blades, can be installed in another way, which makes it possible to process the bed on both sides simultaneously.
There is another device for manual weeding called a weeder. This is a frame, with a knife and a drum. Its wheels are placed between the rows, the knife chops the grass, and the spinning drum catches it and throws it back.
There are manual and electric cultivators with a gasoline engine. For weeding, devices with 2 knives are used, which are attached at an angle of 45°. It is best to carry out weeding with a cultivator, which has three-pronged mini forks installed instead of knives.
For comfort, these devices are installed on wheels: the summer resident pushes him, pressing him as close to the garden bed as possible.
Using a device with a hedgehog attachment, they immediately weed and hill up the potatoes. The hedgehog consists of 2 cones mounted on a frame. The cone is made of 3 steel wheels of different diameters. Pointed spikes are welded onto the wheels. 2 hedgehogs are attached to the frame, spinning, they hook the grass in parallel and rake the soil from row to row.
Electric cultivators more dynamic, they are used for small vegetable gardens. Their main drawback is the need to pull the cable from the outlet, which is not always comfortable. It is more rational to use cultivators with a gasoline engine. But such cultivators are less dynamic than manual ones, but the most productive. All types of cultivators are equipped with hedgehog attachments. The strength of the engine is selected depending on the condition of the earth; the heavier it is, the stronger the device.
Weeding attachments using a trimmer
For weeding, use a trimmer with an electric motor located on top. Between the rows they are often weeded with a trimmer head and fishing line.
It happens that a knife with 3 blades is used to remove grass. Steel knives are mounted on a trimmer with a level stand. If the stand is crooked, then plastic attachments are attached. If the knife hits any obstacle, the device will be thrown back or broken.
You can buy it at the market or in a store trimmer attachments with earth cutters, which have the shape of disks with curved blades, and are mounted on a single axis. More often there are 4 cutters in one attachment.
The size, diameter and number of cutters depend on the power of the brush cutter engine. The instructions for use for the attachment indicate which lawn mowers it is suitable for.
You cannot make the attachment yourself, because... it is difficult to choose the width and diameter so that it does not break the device. You cannot weed with a trimmer on difficult, clayey soils.
Before using the trimmer, professional summer residents treat all rubbing elements with silicone lubricant.
Rules for processing potatoes using a trimmer:
- Before processing you need protect your eyes and s, since during weeding the cutters rotate at high speed, raising dust and dirt into the air.
- You need to treat the area for weeds when the grass is still small. Treatment should be done once every two weeks.
- It's better to weed in the morning, then during the day the grass will dry out and turn into straw.
- No need to immerse cutters to a depth of more than one and a half centimeters. With this technique, the land is cultivated, and the soil receives oxygen and nitrogen, which has a great effect on potatoes.
- You can’t immerse cutters also because it may damage the device.
- If the engine on the device is not very powerful, then you need to take a break every quarter of an hour.
- Upon completion summer season nozzles must be treated with a disinfectant, to remove all germs.
A broken cutter can be replaced with a cutter made by yourself. To do this you need to cut a circle from steel sheet, and bend the cavities. The diameter cannot be larger than that of the cutters used. It is prohibited to put additional cutters on the trimmer axis.
How to make hedgehogs with your own hands, drawings
If a summer resident likes to work with tools and save a lot of money, then you can make hedgehogs for weeding with your own hands or order them from a metal working organization. First of all, you need to understand how the hedgehogs will work, draw a few drawings. They can be used both on a cultivator and for manual work..
Hedgehogs for manual work can consist of a loosening device, a frame and a holder. The ripper is a hollow pipe with steel teeth welded to it. It is secured to a spacer frame and a wooden handle is attached. Using it you need to roll the soil back and forth, which requires certain physical strength.
There are many versions of hedgehogs for walk-behind tractors and cultivators. Many developers have made their own individual devices. The traditional version of the hedgehog is made using steel discs. You will need 3 disks of various diameters:
- 100, 200, 300 mm;
- 240, 180, 100 mm.
The device is assembled on a pipe Ø25 millimeters. Using jumpers, steel disks are fastened together, starting with the largest and ending with the smallest. There are developers who use 5- and 6-sided disks instead of disks. The distance between them should be 18 centimeters, and the maximum disc Ø 36 centimeters. For the teeth, a steel rod is used, cut into 40 pieces.
Approximately for the design you will need 5 pieces of spikes for a small disk, 10 pieces for a medium one, 15 pieces for a maximum one. It happens that welding of auxiliary studs onto the axle is required. The length of one spike is 14 centimeters.
Today there are several varieties of hedgehogs:
- Rotary. The main task of such hedgehogs is weeding and hilling. They will suit any device.
- Conical. Required to remove grass before germination.
If we summarize the results, it can be noted that the use of devices for planting, harrowing, weeding and hilling potatoes summer cottage will make this process easy and not labor intensive. Applying various samples, we can say with confidence that the harvest will be abundant and will please the gardener.
Before you find out what The best way planting potatoes, you need to familiarize yourself with general rules and recommendations. So, when planting root crops, you should take into account the climate zone and soil type. The main recommendation here is the following: the heavier the soil and the colder the climate, the shallower the potato planting depth should be. For example, when working with chernozem, the depth should be about 15 cm, on loams - about 8-10 cm.
- Potatoes have high requirements to lighting, and therefore the beds should be located in the north-south direction.
- You should not add fresh manure to the soil - root crops respond best to mineral supplements.
Now you can move on to existing methods landings - you yourself have to decide which one suits you best.
Methods of planting potatoes - what to choose?
Exist various methods planting potatoes, each of which has its own characteristics. Before choosing, check out the most well-known methods.
- Using black film. This option is considered quite easy, since you don’t have to dig up the garden - just loosen the soil by 7-10 cm, immediately adding fertilizer to the soil. On the dug up bed we lay a black film or dark non-woven material. We secure the edges of the material, and make small cuts on the film for planting root crops. After this, we plant the potatoes using a scoop: carefully make small holes in the ground through the holes and place the tubers there, sprinkling them with soil on top. The advantages of this method are that the film, which does not transmit Sun rays, creates the microclimate necessary for potatoes. In addition, the material does not allow weeds to develop, and there is no need to loosen the soil. Thus, all you have to do is deal with pests. Gardeners who choose this method usually harvest their crops about a month earlier.
- Using straw. We plant potato tubers in pre-loosened and moist soil. In this case, the planting should be shallow - about 5-7 cm, and lay a layer of straw about 15 cm on top. After the shoots appear for the first time, increase the layer of material to 25 cm. The main thing is to lay the straw so as not to crush the plants. It is important to follow a few basic rules here. So, for example, the layer of material should not be too thick immediately after planting root crops, otherwise this will lead to the fact that the soil simply will not warm up. The ease of harvesting in this case is also pleasing - carefully lift the straw and take out the tubers. The only negative is that mice can grow in the straw, which means you will need to think about how to get rid of them: install mousetraps or use mouse poison.
- Use of barrels. This method landing is suitable for those who are limited in space. To do this, you will need any barrel - plastic, iron or wood. It is advisable to prepare a container without a bottom or make several holes. We lay soil up to 20 cm thick at the bottom of the barrel and put 7-10 sprouted potatoes there. When the sprouts have sprouted a little, compost is placed in the barrel: the barrel needs to be filled two-thirds full. Water your potatoes as needed, checking the soil. Do not forget about the need for fertilizing - it is better to use ash.
- Square-cluster method of planting potatoes. To do this, divide the garden into several squares and make a hole in each of them. The nests should be located about half a meter from each other. Before planting root crops, fertilize the soil thoroughly by adding a bucket of humus to each of the dug nests.. During the season you need to carry out approximately three hillings. Water the garden bed only with water that has been previously heated in the sun.
As you can see, there are different ways planting potatoes - choose the appropriate one, focusing on your strength and time that you can spend on planting. So that planting potatoes and caring for them becomes a pleasant job for you, and not a boring necessity.