Land owners there are many worries in the spring... It is necessary to plow the land that has rested during the winter, apply fertilizers, plant crops, huddle, weed, harvest and plow the land before the first frosts. The advent of the walk-behind tractor has solved many problems. Labor-intensive gardening work can now be done on it. This saves time and makes planting potatoes more efficiently.
Preplanting tubers
Preplanting root crops takes time and effort. On standard plot in 6-7 hectares, you will have to plant it in a shovel all day, but by connecting the equipment to work, you can do it in three hours. For small-sized plots, motoblocks Neva, Forza, Sadko, Don, Hooter, Champion, Carver are popular.
To begin with, seed is prepared. Preference is given to zoned varieties that yield good yields in certain regions. Sorting is done in order to select good raw materials. The potatoes are selected of the same size.
Small tubers give a small yield. Large ones need to be cut into pieces, and this provokes various diseases and provides direct access to pests. Germination takes about a month. For this, the seed is placed in a warm (+ 12-15 degrees), bright room.
If fresh sprouts appear dark spots, this indicates a disease. Affected tubers are discarded. Before planting, soaking is carried out in stimulating and etching substances. It is not recommended to place tubers in the solution for a long time.
Better put them on flat surface, spray with preparations and let dry. Plant root vegetables can be when the ground will warm up to +7, +8 degrees (in the landing hole).
Soil preparation
Presowing work begins with the laying of mineral or organic fertilizers in the fall.
Stages of preparation for sowing in spring:
- Immediately before planting, it is necessary plow the soil to the depth of a shovel bayonet(12-15cm). For this you need a nozzle - cutter.
- When planting potatoes under a walk-behind tractor Neva, the wings are removed from the unit before work. The equipment installed on the walk-behind tractor should be properly adjusted. This will ensure that the machine runs smoothly and requires a minimum of effort. A well-plowed field does not need harrowing.
In more detail about planting potatoes with a Neva walk-behind tractor, you can watch the video online:
- Bury, for saturation with oxygen and moisture. In a well-loosened layer of soil, crops sprout more amicably. At this stage, the walk-behind tractor will greatly facilitate the process of preparing the soil before laying the seed.
- Complete set of the walk-behind tractor.
For plowing, you will need wheels with lug elements, a set of rubber wheels, wheel extensions, a milling cutter, a universal hitch, hillers or a plow. If you are going to purchase additional attachments, first of all you should buy a hitch. The rest of the elements are selected for it.
Technology of planting potatoes with a walk-behind tractor
Tips for correct fit motoblocks Profi, Viking, Krosser, Patriot, Cayman:
- The row spacing when planting potatoes with a walk-behind tractor should be from 55 to 65 centimeters.
- Furrows need to do even, this will make it easier to care for the root crop.
- Before disembarking, you can fertilize the soil.
- Distance between tubers 25-30 cm.
Depth planting potatoes under a walk-behind tractor 10-12 cm.
When planting potatoes with a walk-behind tractor, make the distance between the rows the same. Pay attention to the track width, it should be even. When cutting furrows, try to keep them straight. If necessary, stretch the ropes to navigate along them.
Consider the main methods of disembarkation: using hiller, hinged element – potato planters, landing under plow, landing in crest.
How to plant with a hiller correctly, at what distance and depth
For planting with the help of a hiller, wheels with lug elements are placed on the cultivator. The Tarpan motor cultivator is well suited. The grooves are cut. Potatoes will have to be planted manually. Change the lugs to standard rubber wheels after disembarking.
Rearrangement of the wheels is necessary in order not to injure the seed. The track width is left the same - 55-65 centimeters, and walk along the furrows again. The tiller will cover the row with earth and compact the seed.
Planting with a hiller is a less expensive option. The unit should include only metal and rubber wheels, and the hiller itself. The disadvantage is manual planting of potatoes. For large cultivated areas, a mounted planter for a walk-behind tractor is used.
This method is considered the least time consuming. The unit includes:
- Conveyor- a kind of conveyor that feeds seed.
- Furrower, for laying a furrow.
- Distributor, for serving potatoes at regular intervals.
- Disc hiller, paving and filling furrows.
How to plant with a potato planter
Thanks to planting potatoes with a planter for a walk-behind tractor, you can save three times more time, than when planting with a hiller. The process is fully mechanized. The potatoes are planted and huddled at the same time. The potato planter has its drawbacks.
First, the seed should be selected more carefully. The tubers must be the same size. Young shoots are not very long. Otherwise, the seed will be injured during planting. Secondly, this method of planting is more expensive.
Together with a planter for a walk-behind tractor, you can use a special device for simultaneous application fertilizer per hole, together with the seed.
We plant with a plow
It is necessary to install lug wheels and a plow on the walk-behind tractor. The soil is prepared by loosening, using a cutter. The plow for planting is inserted into the ground to the depth of the shovel bayonet.
It is more efficient to land two people. The first manages the walk-behind tractor, and the second puts the potatoes into the furrow. The work is done promptly. At the first passage of the row, the seed material. And during the return passage, the sown furrow is covered with earth from the newly plowed one.
Ridge landing
Planting potatoes in the ridges with a walk-behind tractor is practiced in areas where groundwater located very close to the surface. To do this, use a walk-behind tractor to form ridges with a height of 15 - 20 cm. The tubers are planted in the ridge. This option is only acceptable for well-moistened soils.
Potato processing
Weeding
A week after planting, you should loosen the soil. During this time, a dense crust formed on the ground, interfering with the germination of plant stems and the access of oxygen. Weeding is carried out weekly... This helps to control weeds that negatively affect root crops.
Trailed grain harvesting equipment refers to agricultural and is used to collect grain and grain legumes... The trailed combine harvester is reliable, high quality and productivity.
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Tracked and wheeled tractors challenger are used in work in difficult terrain conditions in large areas for land cultivation. The Challenger tractor is a reliable and smart work assistant.
For weeding work, a rotary or mesh harrow, tines and a weeding machine are used.
Hilling
Seedlings appear in 3-4 weeks. Now, after planting, you need to spud the potatoes. The walk-behind tractor will help with this. Suitable for hilling one, two or three rows
But you can get by single row hiller, which will raise the earth and the potatoes will lie along the edge of the ridge. It remains to go through and collect the potatoes. Planting and processing potatoes with a walk-behind tractor are far from all areas of its application. Technical innovations have greatly facilitated the work of summer residents.
The motoblock has now turned into necessary tool for cultivation land plot... The unit is well worth the investment. How you can use motoblocks, in addition to planting potatoes, you can see on the sites "Tips of the old plowman".
The choice of attachments depends on the requests of the owner. The example of planting, hilling, weeding and harvesting potatoes shows how makes life easier use of a walk-behind tractor for gardeners.
Potatoes are a popular and widely used crop that does not lose its relevance. It is not surprising that many people are wondering how to grow this culture on their own site, spending a minimum of time and effort and getting good results in the end.
Getting ready for landing
Before moving on to the nuances of growing, you need to make sure that the prepared area is suitable for planting - otherwise you risk wasting time and effort. Before planting, you need to pay attention to several important factors:
- Clay or sandy soil. It is not difficult to find out this nuance: we moisten a small lump of earth with water and try to blind something from it. If the wet soil is plastic and easy to mold, it is probably clay, if it crumbles in the hands - sandy. Both are suitable for growing potatoes, but each will need to use a different planting and grooming pattern.
- Soil acid. Pay attention to which weeds prefer to grow on the plot. If buttercup or plantain - the soil has an acidic reaction, if bindweed or sow thistle - neutral. To improve the structure of acidic soil, bringing it closer to neutral, you can add ash, chalk or lime (1–2 kg per square meter).
- Under what crops was this site used during the last year. Potatoes cannot be constantly planted in the same place, so it is necessary to alternate them with other plants so that the crop is less affected by diseases and pests, and the soil is not depleted. It is better to plant potatoes after beets, pumpkins, cucumbers, legumes, sunflowers, lupines or corn. We avoid planting it on the site where it grew before garden strawberry, and do not return to the same place earlier than four years later.
The most common landing patterns
Both the schemes and methods of planting potatoes can differ significantly among themselves - this is due to the composition of the soil and the climatic conditions of a particular region. So, in northern and rainy regions, in areas where groundwater is in close proximity to the soil surface or in excessively heavy soil, it is more expedient to plant potatoes on the ridges. In arid conditions, a smooth landing is used, and in middle lane alternately alternating with the crest.
The mechanical composition of the soil also affects the depth of planting of the crop. The lighter the soil and the warmer and drier the climate, the more planting material buried in the soil, and vice versa. With a smooth planting on loams, the potatoes are buried 6–8 cm, with a ridge planting by 8–10 cm. On sandy and sandy loam soil, it is more expedient to plant a smooth planting to a depth of 8–10 cm or a ridge planting, in which the tubers are covered with soil by 10–12 cm. In the southern regions and the chernozem zone, the depth increases to 10-14 cm.
The standard row spacing is 70 cm and will vary depending on the planting method chosen. Between the tubers, usually 25 to 40 cm of free space is left based on their size: large potatoes are planted after 40 cm, medium ones - after 35 cm, and 25-30 cm is enough for small ones.
When planting potatoes, always place the ridges from north to south so that the plants do not lack sunlight.
Basically, gardeners are guided by the planting schemes, which are listed below.
Row spacing:
- 70 cm - for varieties with a late ripening period;
- 60 cm - for early potatoes.
Distance between tubers of standard size:
- 30–35 cm - for late potatoes;
- 25-30 cm - for early varieties.
Planting depth:
- 4-5 cm - on heavy clay soil, as well as on moist soils;
- 8–10 cm - on loam;
- 10–12 cm - on light, well-warmed ground.
Conservative planting methods
When deciding on the most suitable method, remember that each will only give good results if the soil composition and climatic conditions are suitable for growing the potatoes in that particular method. So, an excessively shallow planting depth is not suitable for sandy soil, and too deep is contraindicated in clay soils. For all traditional methods growing, only the basic requirements remain unchanged.
Shovel landing
The main and most common method, most often referred to as "old-fashioned", is justified on light and loose soils, where groundwater is located quite deep. A significant disadvantage of such a planting is the dependence of tubers on weather whims: for example, if the beginning of the season was rainy, the roots of plants begin to die off due to excess moisture, which has an extremely negative effect on their development. If it rains shortly before the potatoes are harvested, the tubers may become saturated with moisture, as a result of which the keeping quality will deteriorate. In clayey, excessively wet and heavy soil, the use of this method is impractical, since the likelihood of fusarium disease and potato decay is high.
It is much faster and more convenient to plant together: the first will dig holes, and the second will follow him on his heels and lay out the tubers. You can also attach a third assistant to the event - he will level the ground on already planted rows with a rake.
The principle of this planting method is as follows: on the site, after a certain interval, rows of holes are dug into which the planting material is laid. In this case, the earth from the holes of the next rows bury the previous ones.
To make the rows of holes as even as possible, drive in from two opposite ends of the plot on a peg and stretch a rope between them.
With this planting, the beds can be formed in three ways:
- Square-nested. The site is conventionally divided into squares, and a hole (nest) is placed in each, keeping a gap of 50–70 cm between the nests.
- Chess. The holes of adjacent rows are staggered relative to each other.
- Two-line. Two rows of holes (lines) are located almost closely. The gap between the holes is approximately 30 cm, between the double rows - up to a meter. The holes themselves are staggered.
Pour a handful of humus and ash into each of the holes, and then put the potato tuber on top. During the season, be sure to carry out at least one (or preferably two) hilling. Plants should be watered once a week (during dry periods - twice), the first watering is carried out after the emergence of sprouts. Two weeks before digging potatoes, watering is completely stopped.
Landing in ridges
This type of landing is similar to the previous one. The difference is that the potatoes are not planted in holes, but in shallow grooves.
- Two pegs are driven in along the edges of the previously prepared section and a rope is pulled between them.
- A groove is formed under the rope, into which tubers are laid out with an interval of 30 cm and each of them is sprinkled with a tablespoon of ash.
- Then, with a rake (or a hoe - as it is more convenient for anyone), they close the grooves with earth on both sides so as to cover the planting material by 6 cm.
- 65 cm recede from the freshly planted row and proceed according to the same scheme.
Some agronomists argue that it is best to use the double row method for such planting, that is, to reduce the gap between two adjacent rows to 30 cm, expanding the row spacing to 110 cm.The tubers are laid out in the grooves in a checkerboard pattern, observing a gap of 35 cm. further, the double bed is looked after as one row.
Like landing under a shovel, this method not suitable for heavy clay soils, since the likelihood of rotting tubers and infection of plants with fungal diseases increases. But on soils of light texture, it will be fully justified.
Landing in trenches
The main advantage this method in that it increases soil fertility. This method protects tubers from overheating and drying out in hot climates, and is most appropriate in areas with loose soil that does not retain water well.
Trench planting has been a success since the beginning of the last century. This method is considered one of the most productive - provided that the weather is good, you can get up to a ton of potatoes from one hundred square meters. At the same time, the tubers receive proper feeding without chemical fertilizers.
Planting potatoes in trenches helps to increase soil fertility
The site for this method should be prepared in the fall.
- At the site, pull a rope and dig a trench under it with a depth and width of a shovel's bayonet (35–40 cm), laying the removed earth along the left edge. The row spacing is 60–80 cm.
- The bottom of the trenches is covered with plant remains and food waste - weeds, squash and cucumber tops, onion husks, flower stalks, etc. Leaves fallen from the trees are placed on top, sprinkled with earth and left until spring.
- Planting begins at the same time the lilac begins to bloom. First, a little earth is poured into the trenches from the tops of the ridges, then every 30 cm they spread a tablespoon of ash, a handful of chicken droppings and onion husks.
- Planting material is placed on top of the fertilizer and covered with earth.
- To protect the sprouts from frost, they are spud up as they appear. If there is no severe drought, the plants are watered once - during the flowering period.
Potatoes planted in trenches can be fertilized with a solution of sodium chloride at the rate of 800 grams per 12 liters of water. Top dressing is carried out only once a year, combining it with watering.
According to some gardeners, the trench method gives good results on well-aerated soils with a high content of peat. True, in this case, planting will have to be carried out 1-2 weeks later than the standard time, since peat tends not to thaw for a long time in spring. And when using such a planting on loams, both the quality and quantity of the crop are significantly reduced.
Ridge landing
If you are the owner of an area with heavy, excessively moist soil or groundwater is very close to the surface, feel free to choose the ridge method. It is especially good if it is possible to use machinery for processing the soil - for example, a tractor or a motor-cultivator.
Choose ridge planting if you have the ability to work the soil with a tractor or motorized cultivator
- The selected area is prepared in the fall, digging it up with the necessary dressing.
- In spring, ridges with a height of about 15 cm are formed on the plot at a distance of 70 cm from each other and planted in them. As a result, the tubers will be protected from excessive soaking and will be well warmed up by the sun's rays.
Ridge planting is justified exclusively on structured and moisture-absorbing soils. Since loose and light soil tends to crumble under the influence of precipitation, exposing potato tubers, and the sun and wind quickly dry the ridges, in arid climates, plants will need additional watering.
Deep landing (American method)
The so-called American method is suitable for light soils that dry out quickly. Planting is carried out according to the scheme 22x22 cm, while the planting material is buried 22 cm into the ground.When the first shoots appear on the surface, the soil near the plants begins to periodically loosen, but hilling is not carried out. The rest of the care is standard - watering as the soil dries out, preventive treatments and timely treatment if necessary.
The peculiarity of the American method is as follows: in order to reach the surface of the soil, plants are forced to form a very long stem. And since the tubers can be located along the entire length of this very stem, the final yield increases significantly.
Many experimenters claim that the American planting method is indeed effective, but it cannot be used on heavy clay soils.
New planting methods
Of course, conservative planting methods have many advantages, but many gardeners are wondering how to minimize the physical and time costs of planting potatoes and further care. Therefore, craftsmen do not get tired of inventing original methods that require as little time and effort as possible. These methods can be useful for busy people, as well as for those who like experiments, who will not be too upset even if the experience of growing potatoes in a new way turns out to be unsuccessful.
Landing in bags
The main advantage of this method is that it allows you to harvest potatoes in absolutely any area, even where it is impossible to grow it using traditional methods, since it is not the soil from the plot that is used for planting, but a certain soil mixture. However, in dry and hot climates, plants will need very frequent and abundant watering.
The method described below is suitable for tiny areas where there is no room for traditional planting:
- You need to take a regular bag and pour drainage into it, and put potato tubers on top.
- As soon as sprouts appear on the potato, it is covered with a mixture of soil and compost (1: 1). When the tops get taller, more soil is added, repeating this procedure if necessary.
- Watering is carried out as the soil dries out, fertilizing is regularly performed with complex fertilizers according to the instructions.
Landing in barrels
The method is very similar to the one described above, but in this case, it is not bags that are used, but metal or plastic barrels without a bottom.
- Holes are made around the perimeter of each container (so that the soil is better supplied with air and water does not stagnate in it) and a mixture of compost and earth is poured into them.
- Potatoes are laid on top of it and covered with the same soil mixture.
- Subsequently, soil is added to young bushes as they grow until the barrel is filled one meter.
- Plants are watered and fertilized regularly.
If the potatoes are properly cared for, you can get about a sack of crops from each barrel.
For planting potatoes in barrels, use metal or plastic containers without a bottom
Planting in barrels can be done on any site, since the land from the plot does not participate in cultivation, however, under the condition of a very hot summer or in an arid climate, barrels of potatoes will have to be watered more often.
Landing in boxes
Like the two previous methods, planting in a box is quite justified in an area with any soil composition. In drought conditions, plants will also need more frequent and abundant watering.
The principle of cultivation in this case is similar to the American one, that is, it is based on the fact that potatoes can form tubers along the entire length of the stem placed in the soil (accordingly, the longer the stem, the better). A design feature is the extension of the walls of the box and filling them with soil as the young bushes grow. To do this, you can drive stakes into the ground and fasten the walls of the boards to them with wire, or simply stack boxes without a bottom of the same size on top of each other.
Planting in boxes is carried out as follows:
- We install the box on bricks so that the bottom does not touch the ground and is well ventilated.
- We cover the bottom of the structure with a layer of paper and cover it with a layer of light soil (ideally, expanded clay screening with humus in a 1: 1 ratio).
- We put the sprouted tubers on top and cover them with soil. If planting is done early, cover the box with plastic.
- When the potato sprouts begin to rise above the box, add a second floor to the structure and again fill the plants with soil. We repeat the manipulations until the buds appear. To prevent budding from starting too early, water the potatoes with manure and keep the container from overheating.
- Noticing the appearance of buds, we stop building the tank and take care of the crop in a standard way (watering, feeding, carrying out preventive measures, etc.). The easiest way to water is through pipes with holes.
- After the tops have completely wilted, when the crop is fully ripe, you need to disassemble the structure and select the tubers.
To avoid decay of the boards, inside boxes can be sheathed with foil.
Original and unconventional methods of planting potatoes
Usually, non-standard ways plantings are invented by gardeners to facilitate a specific task. For example, a plot for potatoes is completely overgrown with grass, and there is neither strength nor desire to dig it up. Thus, the problem gives rise to an original and inexpensive way to solve it.
Planting potatoes without digging
There are quite a few options for such a planting, but they all boil down to one principle: it is absolutely impossible to dig the soil. In particular, weeds should not be removed from the soil - shortly before planting, they are simply mown, leaving the roots in the ground.
There are no specific requirements for the composition of the soil with such a planting, therefore, you can experiment in almost any conditions, starting from the planting schemes described at the beginning and basic rules cultivation. But on heavy, overly compacted soils, the quality and quantity of the final harvest will be much lower.
One of the planting methods without digging the soil looks like this:
- Carefully remove the soil with a shovel to a depth of about 10 cm.
- We put the prepared planting material in the ditch and sprinkle it with earth or compost by 5 cm.
- During the entire growing season, we shed various plant residues under the bushes - leaves, weeds, etc. At the same time, we try to ensure that the stems of the bush are not gathered together, but, on the contrary, fall apart as far from each other as possible. We do not huddle.
- We water very rarely, only in severe drought. If desired, you can carry out preventive treatments, and if necessary, you need to spray the potatoes with drugs for diseases and pests.
Planting in the grass
When using this method, you also do not need to dig up the area. The potatoes are simply laid out on the ground, directly on the grown grass, in two rows. The gap between the tubers is 25 cm, the row spacing is 40-50 cm. So that in the future the tops are well illuminated by the sun, it is better to spread the potatoes in a checkerboard pattern.
After planting, the site is mulched with hay, dry sedge or leaves. Some gardeners even cover the tubers with torn black and white newspapers. To prevent the layer of mulch from being damaged by the wind, you can cover it on top with lutrasil.
A significant disadvantage of growing under mulch is that a lot of it is required, which means that this method is unlikely to be able to plant a large area. Mulch prevents moisture evaporation, so this method of cultivation should not be used on excessively moist soils in order to avoid rotting tubers and damage to plants by fungi.
Do not use cereals for mulching, otherwise mice and rats will start in the garden.
During the entire vegetative period, the plants are poured onto the bed with torn weeds, grass and hay, making sure that the tubers are well covered, since when overheating, the layer of mulch will settle. No fertilization can be applied. Watering is also not necessary - when the plants overheat, moisture from them will go into the soil, providing the plants with everything they need. When the potatoes are blooming, cut off all the flowers, leaving them on only one bush so you can determine when to harvest. When the flowers on the control bush wilt, rake out the compost and remove the tubers.
Planting in sawdust
This method is similar in principle to the previous two. The planting material is distributed over the site, observing a distance of about 25 cm, and sprinkled on top with a layer of sawdust mixed with peat, ash and plant waste so that the sawdust completely covers the tubers.
Use not fresh, but old, half-rotted sawdust for planting, since fresh sawdust has an increased acidity and can significantly worsen the final yield.
There is another option for such a planting: grooves about 10 cm deep are dug on the site, covered with a layer of sawdust mixed with organic matter, sprouted tubers are laid on top of them and sprinkled with sawdust.
Add sawdust as needed during the growing season to keep the potatoes from bare. There is no need for watering and feeding. After the tops have wilted, rake off the mulch layer and select the crop. The sawdust remaining on the site can be used next year.
Many gardeners note that with this method, the likelihood of freezing of tubers is high, therefore, planting should be carried out only after the threat of late frosts has completely passed. On excessively moistened soils and in very rainy summers, potato rot and a decrease in keeping quality are possible.
Fit under cardboard
This method greatly facilitates not only the planting itself, but also the process of preparing the soil, since before laying the cardboard on the ground, weeds do not need to be removed from it - they will subsequently die off by themselves from lack of air and sunlight. Also, no preliminary digging of the soil is needed. The only thing you need is a large number of cardboard. Always make sure the soil is moist before placing cardboard on the soil. If the soil is dry, be sure to water it.
It is better to use large cardboard sheets, such as those thrown away by furniture stores or home appliance stores.
Planting under cardboard has an extremely beneficial effect on the fertility of the soil, since the weeds that remain under it, decomposing, play the role of fertilizer. The ground under the cardboard holds moisture well, there are many earthworms in it, which make the soil looser.
Of course, this method is hardly suitable for large area, since a lot of cardboard is required. In addition, you will need to constantly monitor so that the covering material is not blown away by the wind. Cardboard is biodegradable and therefore not suitable for repeated use. However, such a planting has a lot of advantages: the gardener will not need to remove weeds and spend time digging the soil, the soil structure will improve, and, accordingly, the final yield. And the plants will have to be watered only during a very severe drought.
This landing method involves two options.
A bed of cardboard
The main advantage of such a planting is that the ridges formed above the bed well protect the tubers from freezing. Therefore, this method is most often used when growing potatoes in cold climates, as well as when planting early varieties. Cardboard prevents weeds from germinating and filling trenches is an excellent fertilizer for plants. In addition, potatoes planted in this way are much easier to dig up, since the cardboard bottom of the trenches prevents the roots from sinking too deep into the ground. This method is justified on almost all types of soil, with the exception of sandy and excessively moist clayey: in the first case, the ridges above the trenches will very quickly collapse under the influence external factors, and in the second case, decay is possible seed material.
- Since autumn, they cover the soil with a layer of cardboard without any preprocessing(that is, digging or removing weeds) and pinning it to the ground to prevent it from being blown away by the wind.
- In the spring, the cardboard is removed and made on a section of a trench with a depth and width of a shovel's bayonet.
- They take the used cardboard and put it on the bottom of the grooves, sprinkling it on top with a layer of humus and semi-rotten grass.
- On top of it, at a short distance from each other, prepared planting material is placed and trenches are filled in so that the distance between them is 60–70 cm, and high ridges are obtained above them.
- Water the beds as needed.
- After the tops are completely wilted, the crop is dug up.
A bed under the cardboard
In this case, the site is completely covered with cardboard before planting. This method can be used on almost all types of soils (except for excessively moistened ones, since the cardboard prevents moisture evaporation), however, it is highly likely that when planting in heavy soil, the quality and quantity of the final crop will decrease. Avoid making beds under cardboard in a rainy climate - an abundance of rainfall will cause the covering material to soak, which will nullify your efforts.
When planting under cardboard, you can cover the soil both in the fall and immediately before planting.
- About every 30 cm, X-shaped holes are made in the cardboard and holes of fifteen centimeters deep are dug under them.
- A potato tuber is placed in each of them and sprinkled with earth. When weeds appear, they are immediately removed.
- Watering is carried out in a very dry time and only under the bushes (to avoid soaking the cardboard).
- After the foliage dies off, the cardboard is removed and harvesting begins.
Since planting potatoes in an area covered with cardboard is not very convenient, you can resort to an alternative planting method: first, dig holes, spread the tubers in them and sprinkle them with earth, and then place the covering material on top and make holes for future bushes.
Landing with a walk-behind tractor "Cascade"
When planting potatoes with a walk-behind tractor, gardeners mainly pursue the goal of making their own work easier, therefore they think little about such nuances as climatic conditions or the mechanical composition of the soil. In principle, this is true, since this method is successfully used on all types of soils, although planting methods may differ somewhat.
With the help of a walk-behind tractor, you can plant potatoes in several ways:
- hiller,
- mounted potato planter,
- plow,
- into the ridges.
The first three are used on light soils, and the last one is suitable for clayey soils, where groundwater is in close proximity to the surface. Planting with a potato planter is justified only when working with a very large planting area, since its purchase requires a lot of money. True, some agronomists find a way out by constructing this unit with their own hands.
This method requires preliminary processing of the soil - the soil must be dug up in advance with the introduction of all the necessary fertilizers. If a potato planter is used, the whole procedure is carried out in one pass, since this unit is equipped with a furrow cutter, a hopper for planting material and a disc hiller for filling the furrows. Instead of wheels, lugs are put on the walk-behind tractor and the parameters of the potato planter are adjusted in accordance with the instructions.
When planting with a hiller, lugs are also installed instead of wheels. The width of the hiller's wings is made minimal, and the track width is 55–65 cm. The tiller is used to make furrows along the track width and the potato tubers are laid out, observing an interval of 20–30 cm. After that, the lugs are changed to ordinary wheels and the furrows are filled up.
Plowing involves the installation of lugs and the plow itself. It is much easier and faster if two people participate in the event: one controls the machine, and the other puts the tubers. The plow is inserted into the soil to the depth of the spade bayonet: this way the furrows for the potatoes are formed. After placing the seed, the previous furrow is covered with soil from the next.
Ridge planting is only suitable for well-moistened soils. With the help of a walk-behind tractor, ridges of 15–20 cm in height are made on the site and potato tubers are planted in them.
Planting in a greenhouse
This growing method has several advantages. Firstly, if you provide the greenhouse with proper heating, you can feast on young tubers almost all year round... Secondly, planting in closed ground allows you to get more harvest, and the plants will be less damaged by pests. And weeds in a greenhouse are much easier to weed than in an open area.
To grow good potatoes in a greenhouse, you will need to carry out the following manipulations:
- In autumn, the soil in the greenhouse is prepared by filling it with manure or humus and carefully digging it up.
- Choose medium-sized potatoes and germinate the tubers in a well-lit and warm (13–17 ° C) room, turning occasionally. To speed up germination, you can put the potatoes in a basket and sprinkle with damp peat or sawdust.
- In the greenhouse, even lines are drawn every 20–40 cm, holes 5–7 cm deep are dug, sprouted potatoes are laid in them and covered with a layer of manure. After a week, the manure layer is increased.
- The first feeding is carried out after the sprouts reach a height of 5–7 cm.
A potato planted in a greenhouse needs very frequent fertilization. Water it abundantly, every 10-12 days. Be sure to loosen the aisles, carry out the hilling procedure and remove pests from the leaves.
Abundant watering of potatoes in the greenhouse increases the yield several times.
Planting under film and agrofibre
Cultivation under covering materials justifies itself on any soil, helps to get a consistently high yield, protect tubers from late frosts, and, if desired, make good money on the sale of young potatoes. At the same time, there is nothing complicated in agricultural technology, and even novice gardeners can easily master it. The use of covering materials increases the yield by 15–20%.
Regardless of what kind of material is chosen, it will be necessary to prepare the site in advance. To do this, in the fall, it is dug to a depth of 22–25 cm with the introduction of organic matter and ready-made complex fertilizers. After the snow has completely melted, you can cover the area with plastic and leave it that way until planting.
To help the snow melt on the site faster, form raised beds in the fall.
For planting, choose medium-sized tubers (70–80 grams) and germinate them at 10–15 ° C. To feast on young potatoes early, choose early or ultra-early varieties.
Features of growing under film
The potatoes are planted in the ground, keeping a gap of 20-25 cm between the tubers. The row spacing is 60-70 cm. The planted area is covered with dense polyethylene on top and its edges are fixed with earth, bricks or water bottles to protect it from gusts of wind.
Before sprouts appear, potatoes do not need ventilation, but young shoots already need fresh air. Therefore, after their appearance, the film is raised from time to time, and when the bushes reach 10-15 cm in height, holes are made in a checkerboard pattern for ventilation every 15 cm.
Control the temperature under the film - if it is too high, the growth of young shoots will stop.
Alternatively, you can install a frame 30–35 cm high above the garden bed and stretch the film over it - then the plants will receive more air. The rest of the agricultural technique does not differ from the traditional one: water as needed, fertilize and make sure that pests do not appear on the bushes.
Growing under polyethylene will help protect tubers from frost, so it is advisable to use it in cold climates.
Growing under agrofibre
Agrofibre, or spunbond, is a non-woven material widely used for covering plants. Its main advantage is that it is moisture and breathable. In addition, good quality light agrofibre is perfectly washable and can be used repeatedly.
Spunbond with a density of 20-30 grams per square meter is suitable for covering potato beds. They cover the plot with them in the same way as with polyethylene, fixing the edges. You can also stretch agrofibre on the frame, so that in the future the bushes will be more spacious. Since this material is highly aerated, it will not need to be removed periodically.
Depending on what purpose you are pursuing, you can use either light or dark spunbond. White is usually wide and suitable for multiple uses. Black is disposable, and it does not transmit light, since it is designed to protect against weeds. If you are using black agrofibre, after covering, make a cruciform incision in it for each shrub.
When planting under agrofibre, keep in mind that it will not be able to properly protect the plants from frost. Therefore, if the temperature drops to -6 ° C, cover the beds on top with polyethylene. Polyethylene film and light agrofibre is removed after stable warm weather is established outside. Dark spunbond is left until harvest.
Hilling begins when the sprouts reach 15–20 cm in height, and watering is carried out once a week. Two weeks after planting, potatoes are fertilized with urea (15 grams per square meter), and before budding they are introduced potash fertilizers... The first harvest can be carried out in May (depending on the timing of planting), and the main harvest is carried out from the end of June to July.
A few more ways to get a good harvest
In addition to those described above, there are several more original ways plantings that allow you to get a good result. These methods are not suitable for everyone, but some gardeners really like it.
P. Balabanov's method
The method was developed by the potato grower Peter Romanovich Balabanov, and its essence is to carry out two hilling even before the emergence of shoots so that as a result the tuber is covered with soil by 20-25 cm. Balabanov argued that this method greatly facilitates the work of the gardener and increases the yield.
The maximum amount of potatoes obtained by Balabanov's method is 119 per bush.
Landing is carried out as follows:
- On a prepared site in the fall or in early spring form ridges 15–20 cm high and sow them with green manure. A couple of days before planting potatoes, the plants are pruned, leaving the root part in the ground. Neither organic matter nor any mineral dressing is applied.
- Exceptionally large tubers weighing at least 100 grams are suitable for planting. The planting material must be germinated, dipped for 10-15 minutes in a protective solution (1 tsp. Potassium permanganate, boric acid and copper sulfate 10 liters of water) and dust with ash.
- The shovel is stuck into the center of a prepared ridge, tilted slightly and carefully placed the potatoes in this gap so that a 6 cm layer of soil remains above it. The gap between tubers is 30-40 cm, the row spacing is up to 120 cm.
Planting operations are carried out after the soil warms up to 8–10 ° С. A week later (but always before the first shoots), the potatoes are covered with a 6 cm layer of earth, and this procedure is repeated after 7 days. During the growing season, the plants will need to be huddled twice more. Watering is carried out at least three times - at the beginning and at the end of budding, and then at the beginning of flowering. According to Balabanov, planting with this method will allow you to get up to a ton of potatoes from one hundred square meters, and the harvest will delight even in the driest years.
Gardeners, who planted potatoes in the above way, argue that it justifies itself only if the summer is not too hot and dry. Otherwise, the tubers are very small.
Please note that only loose, fertile and slightly acidic (pH 5.5-5.8) soil is suitable for using the above technology. For heavy soil, this method is absolutely unacceptable.
Folk method
This method was developed by one of the residents of the Tula region. It consists in carrying out the following manipulations:
- In the fall, the soil is dug onto a shovel bayonet. At the same time, manure is introduced into the soil.
- In the spring, the site is dug up again - this time 15 cm deep, while bringing in Nitroammofosk.
- Divide the plot alternately into strips 20 and 80 cm wide. Sprouted potatoes are laid out at the edges of the strips every 30 cm. From wide strips, they rake the ground onto the tubers, covering them by 2 cm.
- Three times per season, high hilling is carried out (with the threat of late frosts, the sprouts are huddled high).
- When the street stabilizes good weather, carry out the first fertilization with Nitroammofoskoy. Then two more dressings are carried out with an interval of 10 days.
- The stems of two adjacent rows are stacked on top of each other and huddled so that a flat mound is formed, and a couple of days before harvesting, they are mowed at a height of 15 cm from the soil surface. This is done in order for the stems to take root and give more yield.
Gülich method
This method of planting is suitable for owners of large areas, since its meaning is that each bush gets the maximum free space.
- The plot prepared for planting is divided into squares measuring one meter by one meter.
- In the center of each square, a roller of ripe manure is built in a circle, covered with loose soil and large potatoes are planted with the top down.
- When shoots begin to go from the tuber, soil is poured into the center of the ring formed by them.
- As soon as the first leaves appear on the shoots, more earth is added.
- These manipulations are repeated until a multi-tiered bush is formed.
- Water as needed, fertilize several times.
According to agronomists, if all instructions are followed correctly, up to 16 kg of potatoes can be obtained from one such bush.
Peel potatoes
Very original method, allowing you to get a harvest virtually without the use of seed.
- In the spring, the peelings of the potatoes are collected and put in open paper bags.
- As soon as the temperature outside approaches zero, they take the collected into the greenhouse, spill it hot water a small corner, laid out on top of the cleaning, cover them with soil or several layers of newspapers and cover them with snow.
- When the soil warms up to 12 ° C, sprouts will appear from the peel. They will need to be planted instead of regular seed, a handful in each hole. Further care standard.
The experiment with growing potatoes from the peel can be carried out on any soil and in any climate, by setting aside for it small area vegetable garden. Since this method is practically cost-free, you are unlikely to regret it even if it does not pay off.
If you don't have a greenhouse, germinate the cleanings on the site by covering them with plastic wrap on top.
Video: effective methods of planting potatoes
There are a great many methods of planting potatoes - both completely conservative and original new ones, and it is simply impossible to list them all. Each gardener will be able to choose from this list the most suitable method for him, and by providing potatoes necessary care boasting an excellent harvest.
The beginning of May in our area is the traditional time for planting potatoes. So it's time to think about how to plant him this time, because in recent times new, original methods have been added to the usual methods - there is plenty to choose from.
Traditional methods of planting potatoes
There are three familiar methods: smooth fit, ridge and in the trenches... Moreover, this is just the case when an arbitrary choice does not give the best results, because each of the options is designed for very specific conditions and in others it simply may not justify itself. Only the basic requirements remain common: to arrange plantings in the direction from south to north, so that the plants are illuminated evenly and receive a sufficient amount of light; observe distances. Also, don't forget about fertilizing (I usually use ash and compost); useful to add to holes or trenches onion skins, which protects plantings from the Colorado potato beetle. Between the rows of tubers:- for early varieties - 60 cm
- for late varieties- 70 cm.
- for early varieties - 25-30 cm
- for late varieties - 30-35 cm.
It is important to keep the distance between plants. Photo
It is considered optimal planting depth:
- on light soils - 10-12 cm
- on heavy and loamy - 8-10 cm
- on clay soils - 4-5 cm.
In this video, Doctor of Biological Sciences, Head of the Department of Potato Genetic Resources of V.I. Vavilova Kiru Stepan Dmitrievich talks about how to determine the correct planting dates and how to plant potatoes correctly.
Ridge landing
This is a method in which, on the site intended for planting potatoes, ridges are made about 15 cm high with a distance of about 70 cm between them, and then tubers are planted in them.This technology will be expedient where the soil is located close to the surface and suffers from waterlogging. The method will also be useful on heavy soils, which quickly compact, preventing air exchange. In practice, combs are sometimes used simply because there is a tractor.
For example, in the village where I had a dacha, everyone plowed land for potatoes with a tractor. And since the tractor driver also had the necessary devices for hilling, they planted them in the ridges - in order to minimize manual labor. I gave up this idea, even though we have loams: in dry years, moisture leaves such ridges very quickly, and abundant watering is required. And where I live now, the soil is completely sandy - here even the beds have to be made with bumpers, because the earth is crumbling. And moisture in such soil does not linger, so another method is more suitable for us.
Planting potatoes in trenches
These are, in fact, the ridges on the contrary: on sandy soils that do not retain moisture well, as well as in an arid climate, we do not raise the tubers above ground level, but, on the contrary, we deepen them, laying them in trenches laid taking into account all the recommended distances.
Naturally, if you use this method in areas with high humidity or very dense soil, there is a risk that our potatoes will simply suffocate or rot in wet soil.
Smooth fit
If you got a plot on the southern slope, where the soil warms up quickly, and the soil is loose enough and moderately moisture-absorbing, you can plant it using the shovel method. It is most convenient to do this together. Rows of future plantings are outlined, then one of the participants in the process, moving along the planned line, makes small holes (someone simply lifts a layer of earth to lay a tuber under it, someone prefers exactly the holes - then the soil from the next “planting point” is filled up previous). The second follows and lays out the tubers.
We used this method at one time when planting potatoes in the first year on freshly plowed virgin soil. The tractor left behind huge layers of earth - it would not have been possible to depict any ridges or trenches there in any case. Somehow they broke large lumps with a hoe and put tubers under the shovel - just as it is, as it turns out. By the fall, the site had changed - thanks to loosening, hilling, there were noticeably fewer weeds, and large lumps almost gone. The method justified itself, I used it in the future.
Unusual ways of planting potatoes
I think that I will not list all the options in any case - the ingenuity of our summer residents knows no bounds. Usually, new method invented to solve a specific problem (task)... For example, they got an area overgrown with grass, but there was no strength to raise the virgin soil. Or there is not enough space, but you want to grow potatoes. Then, if the idea has justified itself, you can develop it.And planting material and botanical potato seeds for growing your own seed tubers can be selected in our catalog, which combines the offers of large garden online stores. ...
Perhaps you know of other ways of planting potatoes? Or have you tried one of the new methods in practice? Tell us in the comments - in what way do you plant potatoes, are you planning any experiment this season?
In the spring, many gardeners experience an irresistible temptation to plant potatoes thicker: they really want to harvest the maximum yield from the minimum area. But practice shows that the size and number of tubers largely depend on the potato planting pattern and the distance between the rows.
Using any of the popular schemes, the vegetable grower should take into account that the proposed method of placing the beds and holes is not a dogma. It can and should be changed taking into account climatic conditions in the region, type of soil, potato variety, ease of processing.
Any of the schemes involves preliminary marking of the site. This is usually done with two pegs and a cord stretched between them. The pegs stick into the ground along the edges of the future bed. It is convenient to make sure in advance that the height of the pegs is equal to the width of the row spacing: then you do not have to measure the distance between future beds with a centimeter.
Planting potatoes in rows (under a shovel)
Rice. 1. Scheme of planting potatoes under a shovel The simplest and time-tested method is to plant potatoes in rows, under a shovel (Fig. 1):
1. Before planting potatoes, the soil is dug up and fertilized.
2. Pegs mark the edges of the future beds.
3. Make holes with a shovel at a distance of about 30 cm from each other. In order not to think about where the next hole should be, it is better to use a marker. The distance between the holes depends on the type of potato. For early varieties with not too thick tops, 25 cm is enough, for later varieties - 30–35 cm.
If the gardener does not know the characteristics of the variety, how thick the tops will be can be judged by the number of shoots on the tubers: the more there are, the greater the distance between the holes must be. The tops of one bush should not shade the tops of another: in order for the crop to be plentiful, the shoots need as much light as possible for intensive photosynthesis. An exception is the case when seedlings are planted from eyes or single shoots: it is enough that the distance between the holes is 20–25 cm. The heavier the soil, the less deep the holes are made: for sandy loam soils - 8–10 cm, for loamy soils - 5– 6 cm.
4. It is convenient when one person digs holes, and another puts fertilizers and potatoes in them (preferably so as not to break fragile shoots). When planting seedlings from the eyes or shoots, an additional half-liter can of water is poured into each hole.
5. The planted potatoes are sprinkled with soil from the next hole.
6. Mark the location of the adjacent garden bed. In fig. 1 distance between rows when planting potatoes - 70 cm.On small areas, when planting early varieties, the width is sometimes reduced to 60 cm.It should be borne in mind that the potatoes will have to be huddled twice, and the soil is taken from the rows for this. If they are too narrow, then during hilling or processing, there is a high probability of damage to the root system of the bushes.
The main disadvantage of this method: with heavy rains, the potatoes will suffocate.
Planting potatoes in the combs
Rice. 2. Schematic representation ridges in section Planting potatoes in ridges is one of the best options in regions with heavy rainfall. With this scheme, the tubers are located above the soil level, and rainwater flows down the aisles without harming the potatoes. Even in good water retention clay soil the crop will not die.
Method algorithm:
- The ridges are cut with a cultivator or plow. The distance between them is determined in the same way as in the case of landing under a shovel. The height of the combs is 15 cm;
- On the tops of the ridges, at a distance of 30 cm from each other, they dig holes 5–6 cm deep, put one tuber in them and cover them with earth.
The disadvantage of this method is that if the soil is sandy or sandy loam, the ridges dry out quickly, so the potatoes have to be watered frequently.
Planting potatoes in trenches
Fig. 3. Planting potatoes in trenches In arid regions good harvest can be achieved by planting potatoes in trenches. In the fall, dug trenches 20–30 cm deep and put organic matter in them (a mixture of compost, manure, wet hay, sometimes ash is added). The distance between the trenches is 70 cm.
In the spring, when the humus settles, the depth of the grooves will be about 5 cm. When planting, the tubers are laid out at a distance of 30 cm from each other, then sprinkled with earth. With this method, you do not need to additionally fertilize the potatoes: everything you need is already in the compost layer. The humus warms up the tubers, and they sprout faster.
With heavy rainfall, potatoes planted in trenches are in danger of rotting. Therefore, if there is a danger of heavy rains, grooves 10-15 cm deep are cut along the edge of the beds, intended for water drainage.
Another disadvantage of the method is its high labor intensity: for arranging trenches and mulching, you need a lot of compost and straw.
Planting potatoes in double beds
Fig. 4. Schematic representation of double beds in section With the help of pegs, double beds are marked:
- the distance between the rows in the beds is 40 cm;
- the distance between the beds is 110 cm.
Potatoes are planted in staggered holes. The distance between the holes in a row is 30 cm.When the potatoes sprout, they are piled up in such a way that a trapezoidal ridge with a base width of 110 cm is formed.
With this planting method root system potato gets more space, and the tops - more light, therefore, the yield also increases. Moreover, 2 beds of 2 rows of potatoes take up as much space as 4 single rows. But it is much easier to process potatoes. The scheme is used for planting in the usual way, in ridges and in trenches.
Planting potatoes according to the Mittlider method
Fig. 5. Schematic representation of a bed, broken down according to the Mittlider system Dr. Mittlider's system is extremely effective, but some gardeners feel that too much land is wasted using this method. In fact, potatoes planted according to the above scheme develop into optimal conditions, thanks to which it gives record yields.
The plot is divided into beds 45 cm wide. Potatoes are planted in two rows, in a checkerboard pattern, the distance between the holes is 30 cm. On the sides of the beds, sides are formed with a height of 8-10 cm. In the center of each bed, a groove is made where fertilizers are poured: classical method- mineral, but many vegetable growers replace them with organic matter. The distance between the beds is 75-110 cm.
Fig. 6. Scheme of a plot with beds laid out according to the Mittlider system Despite the fact that at first considerable effort is required to form the beds, in subsequent years there will be no problems with weeding: weeds do not grow in the trampled aisles, and they are easy to remove from loose beds.