Fertilizer for potatoes when planting: the choice of preparations

What fertilizer to choose

Potatoes love complex fertilizers of organic origin, although mineral supplements, with the right selection, will give no less result. Experienced gardeners recommend paying attention to wood ash first of all in the spring. This substance is rich in phosphorus, potassium and calcium. The ash scares off one of the main enemies of the potato – the wireworm. These pests live in the soil and spoil the tubers themselves.

So that the wireworm does not get to the seed mother tuber, it is carefully wiped with wood ash. And the future young potatoes are protected by sprinkling ash into the pits. The wireworm is also afraid of calcareous soils, so eggshells or chalk are laid in the holes when planting. In advanced cases, you can resort to radical methods of destroying the wireworm. For this, superphosphate granules are used. Also, the wireworm does not tolerate antiseptics, so in the spring, before planting under potatoes, a solution of potassium permanganate is poured.

Nitrogen fertilizers must be applied with caution, exceeding the norms can lead to excessively violent growth of the ground part, which will accordingly affect the development of tubers. If you follow all the rules, then ammonium sulfate and ammonium nitrate will give excellent results in the form of strong bushes and large potatoes. The introduction of nitrogen agents is best planned for early spring.

The best food for potatoes is manure. Organic top dressings contain sulfur, potassium, phosphorus, magnesium, nitrogen, manganese, boron and other trace elements. Organics, being in the ground, release carbon dioxide, so potato tubers grow large and healthy.

Organic fertilizers such as chicken manure, compost, humus are suitable for this crop. The main thing is to follow the proportions and do not lay fresh clean manure in the ground. It can burn potatoes.

Video “Soil fertilization”

Application rate

Any fertilizer for potatoes will give a result when planting only if all proportions and application rates are observed. The lack of organic or mineral substances, just like bust, will negatively affect the growth of the plant.

Before use, chicken manure is poured with water in a ratio of 1:15 and infused for 2-3 days. The finished product is applied in the amount of 1 liter for each bush. Ash, which protects potatoes from wireworms, is poured at the rate of 5 kilograms per 1 hundred square meters. For a solution of potassium permanganate, take 5 grams of the drug per 10 liters of water. 500 milliliters of the product is poured into each well before planting.

If you have fertile land in the garden, then for 1 acre of land you will need to apply 2 kilograms of organic fertilizers, 2-2,5 kilograms of superphosphate and about 1-1,5 kilograms of potash supplements.

The soil with average yields is fertilized with 3 kilograms of manure, 3 kilograms of nitrogen fertilizers, 3 kilograms of phosphorus and 2,5 kilograms of potassium. Problematic and depleted areas require special care. For 1 acre of such land, it is better to add up to 1 centner of humus, 1 kilogram of ammonium nitrate and 3 kilograms of superphosphate.

Soil fertilization technology

First of all, you need to pay attention to the localization of the impact of top dressing. Experts recommend fertilizing directly under the potatoes when planting. The required amount of the product is poured or poured directly into the hole. This is due to the peculiarities of the structure of the potato root system. The roots of this culture do not grow deep into the soil, remain in a compact position next to the mother tuber.

Complex mineral fertilizers are applied before the formation of ridges, during the spring digging of the site. Do not apply fertilizer to the top ridge after planting the potatoes. In this case, the crop may be close to the surface and the tubers may turn green. For easy application of fertilizer into the wells, use measuring spoons so that the same amount of nutrients gets into each hole.

As for organics, you must remember that fresh manure is not good for plants. Humus must be carefully prepared. At the same time, even high-quality manure can cause the development of scab, so it is brought in on the same day as planting and the furrows are immediately closed up.

Video “Planting potatoes the right way”

How to plant potatoes correctly so that they give the best harvest? How to choose fertilizer for potatoes when planting? Watch our video below.