High-quality seed potatoes want to be used not only by large farms, but also by competent summer residents and gardeners. After all, if it is possible to grow potatoes with your own hands on your site, then you will try to do everything as best as possible, because this is for yourself, and not for sale.
Therefore, let us give some advice on how to handle our seed material in "home" conditions. To get the maximum yield, seed potatoes need to be properly and well prepared for planting.
Selection and preparation for planting healthy potato tubers
You need to sort out the seed potatoes you have for planting in advance - before planting the tubers and even before laying them for germination.
Ugly tubers that suffocated during storage, frostbitten, severely damaged by various pests and affected by dry rot, common scab, as well as those that did not sprout after germination or have filamentous sprouts, are rejected.
Careful selection and preparation of healthy tubers increases the yield of potatoes from 8 to 36%.
Ways to prepare potatoes for planting
The most effective ways to prepare potatoes for planting are:
- selection of healthy potato tubers;
- tuber size and weight calibration;
- cutting large tubers;
- germination in the light (vernalization) and growing sprouts;
- germination of tubers;
- heating tubers;
- wetting of tubers with solutions of fertilizers, other protective substances.
Cutting large seed potatoes in preparation for planting
When preparing for planting potatoes, it is worth knowing that whole tubers and their halves of different size and quality will give sparse seedlings, different growth and different productivity of potato bushes. But it is necessary to cut potato tubers not only because of the size larger than the rest. When planting, it makes sense to cut large tubers so that an equal number of sprouts remain on each half. Tubers weighing 160-200 grams are cut into 4 parts, and larger ones into six parts, each such part should weigh about 40 grams.
Most often, seed potatoes are cut a week before planting, but it is also possible to do this 1-1.5 months in advance. Of course, manual cutting is not as efficient as machine cutting, because it is difficult to do everything evenly by hand, plus it is a very laborious process. Remember that it is necessary to sterilize the knife in a solution of lysol or lysoform after cutting each tuber! It is also practiced to treat the cut surface with ash. Only 40-50 hours after cutting, the protective film forms on the cut surface on the potato, after which the material can be stored in the container.
Reasons for cutting planting material related to cultivation:
- cut large planting material is well suited for planting with fewer gaps;
- cut oblong potatoes provide a more even distribution of plants in the ridge;
- mother tuber rots better;
- due to the cutting of the tubers, there is no preferential germination from above, resulting in the greater number of sprouts / stems / tubers. This can provide a higher yield.
- cutting the tuber provides the best growth from sprout to stem;
Germination of seed potatoes
When preparing seed potatoes for planting, it is necessary to remember the main stage, on which the future harvest as a whole depends. This is, of course, the germination of potatoes. This is a highly effective, necessary agricultural technique: it allows you to identify diseased tubers and remove them, causes faster growth and development, earlier ripening of potatoes, and increases yield by 15-20%. It is necessary to organize this business in such a way that landscaping and germination of seed tubers is carried out in a place specially designated for this. Especially highly effective germination occurs under the influence of scattered sunlight. This is how most of the eyes on the tuber germinate./p>
n the first half of the germination process - before the sprouts are indicated on the tubers - light is not necessary. In the light, tubers and eyes undergo qualitative changes. Chlorophyll accumulates in the tubers, this enhances the development of the root system, on the power of which the yield depends. However, not only the development of the root system is affected by chlorophyll in planting tubers, the development of the leaf surface is also enhanced. While the germinating tubers are under the influence of light, strongly rooted shoots with many tiny leaves almost do not increase in mass, firmly adhere to the tubers, and therefore do not break off during planting in the soil.
Of course, preparing potato seeds in the open area is not always possible. You can effectively germinate potatoes indoors, put seed tubers in wooden boxes with wide gaps, you can even put them in stacks, and hang fluorescent lamps vertically between them at the distance of 2.5 m from one another. No wooden crates, no problem! We put the seed potatoes in transparent plastic bags, it is convenient if they are 4-5 kg each. Along the entire length of the package, at the uniform distance from each other, we make holes with the diameter of 1.5 cm, through which air enters and carbon dioxide, which is formed during the respiration of tubers, exits. In order to prevent the development of diseases on tubers in bags, potatoes are treated with the 5% solution of the preparation of tetramethylthiuram disulphide before being filled into bags. Packages (bags) are filled with tubers by 2/3 of the volume, the ends are tied or clamped with something. Hang the bags so that each half of the bag contains about half the seeds and let them be well lit from all sides. Before the appearance of sprouts, lighting is not necessary and the elevated temperature is acceptable - up to 20 ° C.
Further germination proceeds well with sufficient light and the temperature of 12-15°C. The humidity in the room should be around 85%. With the decrease in humidity, the tubers will lose their water, with the increase in humidity above 85%, conditions favorable for the development of pathogens will be created. In warm weather, you can also germinate potatoes in bags under the canopy on the street in diffused light. But remember, in the completely open area, tuber burns through the film are possible! In case of bad weather, frosts, it is necessary to provide shelter.
To increase resistance to late blight, it is recommended to spray the seeds during preparation for planting every week with a solution of copper sulfate (2 g), or boric acid (50 g), or potassium permanganate (10 g) per 10 liters of water.
Wetting tubers with fertilizer solutions, other protective substances
Soaking seed tubers in the solution of ammonium nitrate and superphosphate is also effective. Each of these fertilizers is taken at 4 kg per 100 liters of water, the solution is well mixed. Tubers are immersed in the homogeneous solution. The seeds are soaked in the solution for an hour. During this time, they absorb the active ingredients of the solution. Nitrogen promotes the growth and development of sprouts, phosphorus causes rapid growth and development of the root system, and in general, the action of the solution contributes to the earlier growth and development of the potato plant (by 5-7 days), the bushes grow powerful, the yield becomes 10-15% higher.
When preparing potatoes for planting, the tubers are immersed in the solution for 2-3 hours before planting. Soaking lasts 1 hour, it takes 1-2 hours to dry the tubers. You can replace the soaking of tubers with spraying. Tubers germinated in the light 1-2 days before planting potatoes are sprayed with the same solution as during soaking, spending 80-100 liters of solution for every 3 tons of tubers. In order for the seeds to more fully absorb the solution, they must be covered with a film for 2 hours after spraying. In sunny weather, the plastic film should be shaded so that the rays through the film do not burn the tubers.
So, the treatment of tubers with nitrogen-phosphorus fertilizers causes earlier ripening of the crop (by 5-7 days) and the increase in yield by 7-10%. There is another good way to prepare seeds to increase yields.
Dusting potato seeds with ash
Dusting the tubers with ash before planting potatoes. The ash of birch firewood is good for this purpose. But in the absence of wood ash, you can use the ashes of other burned plants. The ash contains all the trace elements that determine the proper metabolism of the potato plant.
The use of ash increases the starch content in tubers by 1-2% and improves the taste of potatoes. The ash contains the sufficient amount of boric acid, which, on unlimed soils, is a good prophylactic against common scab, the common potato disease. A very high effect is obtained by dusting potato tubers with ash at the stage of preparing seeds for planting, if you dust green tubers germinated under diffused sunlight, when more than half of the eyes have sprouted on the tubers, including the eyes of the lower part of the tubers, when the sprouts are well rooted on the tubers and do not break off when transportation and landing.
The tubers must be dry when dusting and the ash must be evenly distributed over the tubers. Dusting seed tubers with ashes before planting does not require large labor and financial costs, which is especially convenient in small gardens and summer cottages, but the agrotechnical and economic effect of this technique is high.
Free consultations of Adelaide FE on any issue
In order to receive a high payment by the harvest for the labor and funds spent on preparing the tubers for planting, they must by their nature be of high quality: zoned varieties for a specific purpose, high reproductions. Familiarize yourself with the varieties offered by Adelaide FE, call, ask sales managers all your questions! Every customer is important to us!
