Potato is not in vain called the second bread. After the flour product, it is the next most popular one found on our table. And finally, it's planted. Many amateur gardeners stop there, hoping for "maybe" and "give me a year" in anticipation of a good harvest. In fact, everything is in our hands, and now the potato needs care no less than in preparation for planting. But not all gardeners know how to care for potatoes after planting. Proper care of a vegetable throughout the growing season is simply necessary for abundant harvests.
We loosen - we fight the main enemy of the planted potatoes
Potato care after planting should begin with loosening the beds trampled during the initial process. This procedure will also allow you to destroy the first enemy of the potato that has not yet sprouted - a weed that always and everywhere, under any weather conditions, sprouts first.
Not yet rooted weeds during this period are easily removed, whilethe root part, if it remains in the ground, dies. An important role is played in this procedure and timing. After all, if you tighten and wait for friendly weed shoots and then start harrowing, then most likely the weed will not die, and will soon turn green again.
It is advisable to carry out the first - pre-emergence - harrowing a week after planting the tubers in the soil. Loosening can be done with a harrow or a heavy rake. Hold the tool and work the soil diagonally to the beds to avoid accidental release of potato tubers to the surface.
Such care for potatoes after planting, but before the first shoots appear, not only helps to fight weeds, but also improves soil aeration, helps to maintain moisture reserves in it.
Protect the first shoots from repeated frosts
In many regions of the country, the return of frosts in early May and even in its middle is quite common. By this time, the tubers are usually already planted, and the care of potatoes after planting in the ground in this case will include procedures that can protect the plant from such a scourge.
In order for the frosts not to damage the crops, the first shoots should be covered with loose earth. The layer should be from 3 to 5 centimeters. If this is not done, the crops, of course, will not die, the uterine tubers will subsequently be able to give new sprouts, but the yield will noticeably decrease.
Hilling up as a way to strengthen bushes
Hilling up as a care for potatoes after planting is necessary not only to protect the bushes from frost, but also toso that the bushes bent under the weight of the earth begin to divert sprouts in different directions. This will make the bush more spreading, underground shoots will begin to grow more intensively on young stems, on which an additional crop will subsequently form. Hilling will protect young bushes from defeat by the overwintered Colorado potato beetle. The first egg-layings of this potato-eater will also die in the soil.
Spud should be several times a season, even very early and early varieties. It never hurts. But do not be zealous with sprinkling bushes to form additional stolons when growing early and mid-early varieties. Such a technique for increasing the amount of yield is acceptable only for medium-late or late-ripening varieties. Otherwise, the bushes will spend all their energy on the formation of tops and will not form a sufficient number of tubers.
The tubers of the plant will not face such a problem as landscaping and accumulation of corned beef if potatoes are spudded in time after planting. Care should be carried out during the period of budding. In this case, the soil must be moist, otherwise the procedure will not bring any benefit.
Potato flowering period and caring for it
The first buds should be a sign that hilling up the soil should be over. During this period, it is no longer desirable, since the coarsened stem loses its ability to form stolons. Plants are now able to protect themselves from weeds on their own, because by this time the bushes are already closing in the aisle and inrows.
So taking care of potatoes after planting during flowering will be good mulching. For these purposes, you can use humus, rotted sawdust or needles. Mulch protects the soil from overheating and excessive evaporation of moisture.
Chemistry wisely
To completely protect the plant from chemical treatment, of course, will not work, but it is possible to reduce the amount of chemical “pressure” if fungicides, insecticides and growth regulators are correctly and skillfully combined in a solution. Together with pesticides in one container, you can dilute mineral fertilizers for foliar feeding.
Foliar feeding is carried out twice a month. Approximately 30 days before the start of harvesting, such potato care after planting (after flowering) should be completed by spraying with superphosphate infusion, which will contribute to the maturation of tubers, improve their quality, starch content and keeping quality.
Growth regulators advertised today should be treated carefully and selectively. It is worth initially choosing one drug and using it only in difficult periods for potatoes, or rather, before planting in the ground, during germination and immediately before flowering. We should not forget that the use of stimulants will require additional enhanced nutrition.
Feeding ensures a good harvest
Potato care after planting in the open fieldimplies basal feeding of bushes. During the growing season, the procedure is performed three times. It is best to do this on wet ground. The first dressing is done during the growth of the tops, if the bushes do not develop well enough or the leaves are pale in color. The second root dressing falls on the period of bud formation. This will speed up flowering. The third root dressing will speed up the process of tuber formation.
It is advisable to use fertilizer solutions if the potato plantation is not very large. But how to care for potatoes after planting and how to fertilize them if the plantation is more than 100 m²? If the dimensions have exceeded one hundred square meters, then it is better to use dry fertilizers, placing them under each bush.
Watering potatoes
Potato care after planting for the first time excludes watering. Since this can damage the proper formation of a good root system. Waterlogged soil will lead to the fact that the roots are not deep enough, and subsequently it will be more difficult for the bush to get moisture and develop normally. The first watering should be timed to coincide with the first emergence of seedlings. Watering should be moderate. During the formation of the bush, the need for water will increase. If the lower leaves on the bushes begin to fade, this is the first sign of a lack of moisture.
Most moisture is needed for potato bushes during the formation of buds and during flowering. Not enough liquid in thisperiod will negatively affect yields.
Potatoes should be watered with sun-warmed water. It is best to do this early in the morning or in the evening.
Careful with watering
How to properly care for potatoes after planting and how to water properly, not all gardeners should be told. These simple rules for people seeking to harvest a good harvest are well known. However, one unwritten rule is still worth recalling: wetting the leaves of a plant will only lead to the development of green mass late blight. This means that the stream of water must be directed from below and so that it does not erode the ridges resulting from hilling, but into the aisles.
Do not forget that you should water before the next hilling procedure.
This concludes the article on how to properly care for potatoes after planting. The tips presented above will help you deal with the timing, sequence and nuances of all processes. And this, in turn, will be embodied in a bountiful harvest.
