Potato is called the second bread for its useful properties and the content of all necessary substances. This crop has long been classified according to various characteristics, and primarily by varieties, which are determined depending on the timing of potato ripening.
Historical background
At present, potatoes are not only a common food product, but also the main vegetable on our table. It was brought to Russia by Peter 1 from Holland, where the emperor tried a huge number of dishes from it. They pleased him, and Peter 1 ordered a bag of potatoes to be delivered to Russia. Here she gained incredible popularity. It began to be used instead of bread. She saved people from death in lean years of grain.
Ripening dates
What varieties of potatoes are better to plant in your garden, the owner decides. Moreover, the choice is very large: there are three and a half thousand of them. Varieties are subdivided depending on the ripening time of the tubers.
- Early varieties of potatoes produce mature root crops in 50-60 days.
- Medium-early enough 65-80 days to ripen.
- Mid-ripening gives a harvest in 80-95 days.
- Mid-late varieties are harvested 95-110 days after planting.
- Late potatoes mature in four months.
Potato varieties are selected depending on many conditions. Their growth is influenced by soil and climatic conditions. So, for example, late varieties are more productive, tubers taste great. However, these potatoes are more susceptible to various diseases. While early varieties of potatoes are characterized by poor yields and practically do not contain starch.
How to choose seeds?
In order to get a good harvest, you need to prepare seed tubers for planting. They should be without any signs of disease. The size of the potato variety does not matter, but it is better to take medium-sized tubers, 20-50 g. It is not recommended to cut them, unless there is a shortage of seeds. But in this case, there is another way to propagate it. You need to germinate the tubers in the light. When they sprout, they are planted in a mixture of sawdust and sand and watered with complex fertilizer. Seedlings will appear very soon, they are separated from the tuber and planted in the soil. They continue to germinate further, and the procedure is repeated. During the season, one tuber can give up to a hundred seedlings.
Seed potatoes are selected immediately when they are dug out of the garden. For 2-3 weeks it is placed in a dark, cool, well-ventilated room. After that, the seeds are washed and dried in the sun for3-5 weeks. Once a week, the tubers of this potato variety need to be examined, turned over, and the unhe althy ones removed. Now you can lay planting material for storage. It can be a cellar or basement with an air temperature of 1-3 degrees above zero. In early March, seed potatoes rise from the cellar to a warm, well-lit room with temperatures up to 15 degrees. Here it warms up and germinates. It is planted in the ground by the end of April.
Potato Nevsky: description
This vegetable is famous for its good harvest and unpretentiousness to the soil. The potato variety Nevsky is characterized by a medium early ripening period. Therefore, it grows everywhere in our country. The bush is small and compact. White inflorescences are formed on numerous straight stems. The plant blooms profusely for a short time. Under each bush grows up to 15 large root crops weighing 130 g each. Tubers have an oval shape and small pink eyes on a yellow peel. The Nevsky potato variety has cream-colored flesh, which does not darken when cut, does not boil soft when boiled and has a good taste.
It does not reduce yield even in drought and rainy weather. Nevsky potatoes are resistant to various diseases of this type of crop. It is well stored in rooms with a low temperature. For better germination, seed tubers are heated and germinated. But cutting them, picking off the sprouts and planting them in unheated soil is not recommended. Hence the conclusion: Nevsky potatoes are valued for the excellent taste of root crops, highyields, attractive tubers and many other benefits.
Yellow potatoes
This vegetable is a valuable and indispensable product in the traditional cuisine of the Russian people. The most favorite is considered yellow potatoes. The flesh acquires its color due to the content of carotene in the tubers, which are well boiled soft, sweet in taste, without acid and bitterness. The root crop is good for cooking any dishes that always look appetizing and aesthetically pleasing. Varieties of yellow potatoes are very diverse, consider some of them.
- Veneta is an early variety with yellow tubers and pulp. The skin is mesh-like. Starch accumulates early, and it contains 13-15 percent in a vegetable. Veneta is the most delicious potato. Drought tolerant variety.
- Symphony is a vegetable crop with a mid-season ripening period. It has an exquisite taste and attracts attention with an aesthetic appearance. The tubers are red in color and have yellow flesh. They are not very large in size, but they have enough starch, up to 19 percent.
- Temp is a late variety with yellow tubers and creamy flesh. The starch content in it is the highest - 22 percent. This variety is more resistant to infectious diseases than others and therefore suitable for long-term storage.
Red potatoes
This vegetable provides the human body with all the necessary substances. It contains vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates and amino acids. Red varieties of potatoes are especially useful. They are ideal for diet food and havebalanced composition and low fiber content. The tubers of the red vegetable of this crop remove toxins from the body, slow down its aging, and reduce the risk of cancer.
- Borodyansky pink - an early variety. It has tubers of a rounded shape of the corresponding color with numerous small eyes. However, their flesh is creamy or yellow in color. They are large, the weight of some reaches 140 g. The starch content is from 14 to 19 percent. For information: the less starch a potato contains, the less it boils and becomes more crumbly.
- Simply Red is a late variety with red tubers. The flesh is creamy in color and contains up to 19 percent starch. Medium-sized tubers have an excellent taste, do not boil soft when cooked.
The best varieties of potatoes
The taste of a potato directly depends on the content of various compounds in it. The best varieties have more amino acids, the ratio of which determines the taste quality of the tuber.
- Rosalind is one of the best early vegetable crops. It is characterized by excellent taste and friendly maturation. The oval tubers are covered with a smooth red skin. The flesh is yellow and contains 17 percent starch. The tubers are even, there are few eyes, and this makes them easier to process.
- Romano is a mid-early Dutch potato variety. The flesh of large oval tubers is creamy white and contains 19 percent starch. This variety has a high yield regardless of weather conditions. Witheach bush can be harvested up to a kilogram of vegetables. Their surface is even, and the taste is beyond all expectations. For many, Romano is the most delicious potato. The variety is very popular in our country.
Potatoes for winter storage
This vegetable is not perishable. But improper storage of root crops in winter will bring additional trouble. Potatoes quickly react to moisture and, with its increased content, begin to rot. High or low air temperature does not make storage conditions comfortable. In order to better preserve the crop in the winter, you need to responsibly approach the choice of potato varieties. Here are some of them that are ideal for wintering in storage.
- Lorch is a mid-late variety, has a high yield and is slightly susceptible to diseases. But scab and cancer can harm him. Beige tubers are smooth, their light flesh has good taste. Lorch is the best potato for the winter. Late maturing varieties are ideal for long term storage.
- Asterix is a mid-late vegetable. Red tubers are elongated and medium in size. The pulp is light yellow in color and pleasant to the taste. This potato variety is suitable for the production of chips. It does not have a high yield, but is resistant to many viral diseases. This feature allows you to use Asterix potatoes for long-term storage.
- Olev refers to late-ripening fruitful varieties of potatoes. White tuberscolors are distinguished by a high content of vitamin C and excellent taste. There are few eyes on them, the flesh is yellow, crumbly. This variety is resistant to scab and blackleg. Great for winter storage.
- Bryansk reliable - medium-late potatoes with light beige tubers and white flesh. It tastes good, gives a good harvest and is resistant to viral diseases and beetles. Tops and tubers are moderately susceptible to late blight. Scab is almost not affected. This attracts gardeners, and they are happy to grow potatoes for storage for the winter.
Pests
Pests and diseases cause a lot of trouble, they reduce yields. To prevent this, it is necessary to regularly carry out preventive measures aimed at protecting plants from damage and diseases.
Wireworm, living in the ground, damages roots and tubers. Its larvae are brightly colored. Digging up the soil, they need to be collected and burned. This pest likes wheatgrass grass, in which it breeds quickly. Therefore, we need to fight this weed. To do this, beds with potatoes should be more often weeded and loosened. After each digging - lime.
Colorado potato beetle harms tops and tubers. Beetles and larvae feed on leaves and young shoots, and when they eat all the greens, they switch to tubers. To combat this pest, you need to collect and destroy it. With a strong spread of the beetle, the plants are sprayed with chlorophos for technical needs. All spraying stops one month before harvest.
Diseases
Late blight is the most common fungus of any potato variety. You can see a photo of a potato affected by a fungus below. It covers the defeat of the vegetative part of the plant and tubers, which become infected from diseased leaves and stems during the digging of potatoes. If a disease is detected, it is better to cut the tops immediately, and spray the plant with a solution. Now in stores there is always a large selection of chemicals. Potato processing stops two weeks before harvest.
Common scab is a disease of tubers when they become covered with ulcers and warts. Sick vegetables are poorly stored and have an unsightly appearance. Scab is transmitted through soil and infected tubers. It spreads quickly when a large amount of humus is introduced into the hole. A good prevention is to change garden crops in the garden.
Blackleg is one of the potato diseases. It is easily distinguished by its yellow and curled leaves. The root, stem rot and blacken, and the plant can be easily pulled out. Potatoes are infected from other diseased plants with strong soil and air moisture. The disease manifests itself during storage or after planting tubers. To combat this disease, diseased plants are promptly removed from the garden. Before storage for the winter, the tubers are well dried.
