Contents
There are many different ways to plant potatoes. Each of them has its own advantages and disadvantages. You can choose the appropriate method based on the recommendations of experienced potato growers. Having given preference to the new method, it is advisable to use it first on a small area.
Landing “under the shovel”
Another name for the method is smooth landing. The easiest and most common way to plant potatoes. Holes are made in the ground to a depth of 20 – 25 cm, humus, rotted manure and ash are covered. Between the beds leave a distance of at least 50 cm, so that you can freely care for the bushes. Pre-sprouted and processed potatoes are placed in a hole, covered with earth. The earth is leveled with a rake.
The advantages of this landing method:
- Ease of use;
- Does not require additional materials;
- There is no need for additional technical devices.
The disadvantages of the method:
- Relatively low productivity;
- Labor-intensive planting and care process;
- Potatoes are not protected from adverse weather factors;
- Not suitable for heavy clay soils.
Potato care consists in timely watering, hilling, processing from pests.
Some vegetable growers fill the holes with water during planting.
Meatlider Landing
A relatively new way of planting potatoes. Suitable for all types of soil.
Advantages of planting potatoes:
- Saving time in soil preparation;
- Opportunity to get a good harvest;
- Care during the growing season is minimal;
- Improved soil structure.
The disadvantages of the method:
- Be sure to use crop rotation;
- Mulch needs to be taken care of;
- Removal of weeds between rows is required.
For this method of planting potatoes, narrow beds are made with a large distance between them. The width of the beds is 70 – 80 cm, the row spacing is at least a meter.
The beds are dug up in the fall, clearing weeds. Aisles are not dug, only if necessary, weeds are removed. When digging, fertilizers, humus and ash are introduced into the ground.
Many summer residents are mistaken, believing that with this method, row spacing and weed removal are optional. This is not so, perennial weeds develop very quickly and, as a rule, have a branched, massive root system. Weed roots quickly spread to the potato bed, robbing the potatoes of nutrients. In addition, many roots can grow through the tubers, significantly reducing the quality of the crop.
Weeds can be controlled in the following ways:
- herbicide treatment;
- Manual weeding;
- Mowing grass.
Herbicide treatment is the easiest and easiest way, but many do not accept it, considering the use of chemicals harmful and dangerous.
Weeding by hand is quite difficult, requires a lot of time and effort.
Mowing grass is relatively easy, using an electric scythe speeds up the process considerably. Mowed weeds can be left in place to prevent new weeds from growing.
In the spring, holes are made for planting. The depth should be about 30 cm, the distance between them is at least 40 cm. The holes are placed in a checkerboard pattern. After planting potatoes, the soil is mulched.
Most often, permanent beds are used for this method, to understand how to arrange it, you can watch the video.
Plant care consists in the timely watering of potato bushes and the processing of tops from harmful insects.
Chinese way
This is a relatively new way of planting potatoes. With this method, all possible methods of stimulating potato yields are used simultaneously.
Advantages of the Chinese way:
- High yield;
- Space saving;
- The ability to quickly propagate the variety;
- Potatoes do not suffer from heat;
- Can be used on any soil.
The disadvantages of the method:
- Labor-intensive process of planting and growing;
- Not suitable for northern regions;
- Requires a high level of agricultural technology;
- Cannot be used in wet areas.
The soil for planting potatoes is prepared in advance. Since autumn, they dig holes for potatoes, measuring a meter by a meter. Organics are placed at the bottom of the pit – food waste, leaves, potato peelings, hay, cut grass. For each pit add 2 – 3 cups of ash. The excavated earth is left in mounds.
In the spring, when the soil thaws, the pits are inspected, if they are covered with earth, they are deepened. For planting, the soil should warm up to 7 – 8 degrees. Before disembarking, it is necessary to deposit funds from the bear.
For planting choose a large, healthy tuber, weighing at least 200 grams. A transverse incision is made in the middle of the tuber, after which it is treated with a disinfectant to avoid rotting of the tuber. This activates sleeping eyes, sprouts are obtained 2-3 times more.
Potato tubers germinate in the light for 2 weeks, when the sprouts reach 10 cm, they are planted. The tuber is placed at the bottom of the pit, covered with prepared soil from above. To do this, the earth from the garden is mixed with humus, sand, rotted manure and wood ash. The layer of earth above the potatoes should be at least 30 cm.
When sprouts appear, they are treated with potash fertilizers and again covered with 30 cm of fertilized soil, the procedure is repeated until the pit is completely filled. Treatment with potassium and magnesium fertilizers is repeated weekly, alternating them.
Nitrogen fertilizers should be applied carefully. An excess of nitrogen in the soil causes plants to grow green mass at the expense of tubers.
After the pit is full, the potato sprouts are allowed to grow up to 30 cm, after which they are gently bent to the sides, fixed and added dropwise. The lower leaves on the stems are removed. The mound above the sprouts is sprinkled as the bushes grow. Fertilizer spraying continues.
In the northern regions, it is difficult to get a good harvest using this method, the soil at a depth of 80–90 cm does not warm up well, numerous tubers grow small.
Square-nest method
The basic principle of the square-nest potato planting method is that the potato bush is given a large space for nutrition and development.
The advantages of this method of planting potatoes:
- High nest yield;
- Suitable for any cultivated soil;
- Does not require hilling;
- Bushes do not obscure each other.
Disadvantages of this method:
- Weeding required;
- A large amount of humus is needed;
- Requires frequent watering;
- Bushes take up a lot of space;
- Not suitable for uncultivated soil.
The site is divided into squares, the width of which is about 70 – 80 cm. Holes 40 by 40 cm in size are dug in the corners of the squares. Each hole is covered with humus, one or two potatoes are planted.
When the sprouts reach 20 – 30 cm, they are carefully bred to the sides, forming a nest, humus is poured into the middle of the bush so that a hill is formed. As the bush grows, the sprinkling is repeated three times.
Humus does not retain moisture well, so you need to carefully monitor the moisture content of the soil.
Landing in a barrel
For this method of planting potatoes, it is advisable to choose a barrel without a bottom to avoid stagnant water. If there is no such barrel, be sure to make good drainage.
Advantages of planting potatoes:
- Saves space;
- Gives you the opportunity to get an early harvest;
- Plants are protected from many pests;
- There is no need to fight weeds.
Disadvantages of landing method:
- Not suitable for summer cultivation in southern regions;
- Planting and care require a lot of manual labor;
- There is a danger of waterlogging the roots.
Particular attention should be paid to soil preparation. If there are not enough nutrients for potatoes, you should not count on a good harvest. A good primer should be light, breathable and resistant to compaction. In heavy clay soil, be sure to add sand and humus.
At the bottom of the barrel, 20 – 30 cm of drainage are covered, which is covered with 30 cm of prepared soil. Potatoes are placed in a barrel, sprinkled with 20 cm of soil. As the growth grows, the sprinkling with soil is repeated until the barrel is full.
Care consists in watering and processing from pests.
Ridge landing
The old, proven method of planting potatoes is recommended for the northern regions, since potato tubers planted in ridges receive more heat and oxygen. In the southern regions, there is a danger of overheating of the potato root system.
This planting method has many variations, which are often referred to as new methods. They differ only in the distance between the rows, the use of mulching, different periods of fertilization.
The advantages of this method of planting potatoes:
- Can be used for wet soils;
- Suitable for heavy clay soils;
- High yield;
- Harvesting does not require digging;
- Opportunity to get an early harvest.
Disadvantages of this landing method:
- Not suitable for southern regions;
- Planting and care require manual labor;
- Requires a well-cultivated area.
The soil for planting potatoes is prepared in the fall, digging the soil to a depth of 20 cm. During digging, the necessary fertilizers are applied.
Beds are laid out in the spring. The distance between them should be at least 70 cm. If the bed is two-line, the space is increased by 10 cm.
Sowing potatoes is carried out in the spring on dry soil. Wet soil is difficult to form into ridges.
Potatoes are laid out in rows, if necessary, treated with insecticides. Cover the potatoes with soil, forming a small comb. To fall asleep potato tubers, most summer residents use a hoe. Sometimes a shovel or plow is used.
When the potato sprouts grow up, hilling is carried out, lifting the earth from the aisles up to the ridge. This procedure is repeated three more times until the ridge reaches 40 cm. The video shows the process of forming the ridges.
To save space, potatoes are often planted in two rows. To do this, the tubers are laid out in a checkerboard pattern, at a distance of 20 – 25 cm. The rows are combined with a common comb.
Landing under black film
The method is suitable for various types of soil, except for those on which moisture can stagnate.
The soil is prepared in the fall, dug up and fertilized. Be sure to choose a dry, sunny site. Can be used in areas heavily overgrown with perennial weeds. The black film does not allow them to develop, most of them will die during the season.
The main advantages of planting potatoes:
- Does not require complex care;
- Soil crust does not form;
- The soil is freed from perennial weeds;
- Suitable for regions with dry summers.
Disadvantages of landing method:
- Poor soil aeration;
- The film is easily damaged;
- Requires financial investment;
- The need for drip irrigation.
In the spring, beds are laid out along which tapes for drip irrigation are laid out. The places where the tapes are located are marked outside the site.
A film is laid out on top of the tapes, its edges are added dropwise or fixed. To plant potatoes in the film, cuts are made crosswise, about 30 cm long. A hole is dug in the resulting hole, a tuber is placed in it, covered with excavated earth or humus. The edges of the film should be slightly wrapped in the hole. The distance between bushes in a row is 20 cm, between rows – 40 cm.
Care consists in the treatment of pests.
Different ways of planting potatoes require a different approach to care and fertilization. To get a good harvest and not be disappointed, you need to soberly assess your strengths and capabilities.
