Basic rules for growing potatoes

Planting potatoes directly affects getting a rich potato crop

Soil preparation.

The depth of plowing of the land should be no more than 30 cm. It affects the yield and starchiness of potatoes. Tillage should be started in the fall. Dig up, remove all weeds.

In the spring, before planting potatoes, the soil should be dug up again.
The soil should already dry out and crumble well. Such soil fixes moisture well and prevents weeds from germinating.

Planting potatoes and fertilizing the soil

The acidity of the soil pH should be 5.5-6.0, not lower and not higher. Strongly acidic soil needs to be limed a little. Only a little! Otherwise, there may be a scab defeat.

For every 100 centners of grown tubers, a certain amount of fertilizers is introduced into the ground: 40-60 kg of nitrogen, 15-20 kg of phosphorus, 70-90 kg of potassium.

When applying fertilizers, you need to maintain clear doses. Excessive nitrogen will cause delayed tuber set and a large amount of tops.

It is best to apply mineral and organic fertilizers together to obtain a large yield. But first of all - nitrogen and nitrogen-phosphorus.

Together with manure, it is recommended to apply peat mixed with compost. The manure is applied in the aisles.
Early potato varieties should be fed with mineral fertilizers in higher doses.

What types of soils affect the effectiveness of fertilizers.

On leached chernozem soils, a good effect is obtained from the use of nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizers. On chernozem soils, phosphorus is the best fertilizer.

Nitrogen is less effective. The introduction of overestimated doses of other fertilizers affects the complete assimilation of potassium.

Potash fertilizers are most commonly used on peat soils.
Sandy and sandy loamy soils prefer nitrogen fertilizers, followed by potash fertilizers.

In addition, potatoes must be fed with organic matter. Approximately 30-40 tons per hectare of land. Manure is loved by all types of soils, except for chernozems. On chernozem soils, manure can be applied, but in very small quantities, about 15-20 tons per hectare of land.

Planting potatoes

The potatoes are planted in rows. If the planting area is sloping, then the rows should be done across the slope. This will improve nutrition and moisture retention. Many gardeners start planting potatoes when the bird cherry blossoms.

It is necessary to plant potatoes in warm soil. Later planting potatoes leads to a loss of its taste and to a lower yield. If the method of vernalization of tubers was used, then they can be planted at ground temperatures up to +5 degrees.

On different soils, a certain planting depth of potatoes should be adhered to. In cold areas on loose soils, the planting depth should be 10-12 cm, on dense soils - 8-10 cm, on soils with a predominance of peat - 6-7 cm.

In arid regions, the planting depth increases to 14-16 cm to make it easier for the tubers to feed on water. It is enough to plant 450-500 tubers per one hundred square meters.
When planting, fertilizers are applied directly to the wells - superphosphate and nitrogen.