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POTATOES ON HIGH SEEDS - MY GARDEN SECRETS

Agrotechnology, adherence to deadlines, top dressing - all this, of course, is good. But we must not forget about one more important condition.

I live in a region that is considered a zone of risky farming (one might even say, risky and uncertain). I remember that once in the summer the plastic containers lying on the shelf in the greenhouse warped from the heat, and in another year, on June 4, in the same greenhouse, tomato seedlings were completely frozen - and to the point of ice crunch. Therefore, the lot of the local farmer is to constantly keep a finger on the pulse of the Hydrometeorological Center and at the same time not to lose sight of the behavior of our smaller brothers and the surrounding nature.

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With all the wealth of choice ...

All this has a direct bearing on growing potatoes. For it, I have allocated two high beds measuring 3 × 4 m. This area is quite enough, since I use the planted potatoes only in the summer for food, when I spend most of my time on the site.

Therefore, it is possible to safely experiment with planting this culture. I tried to do this both under a shovel, and under a hoe, and in a barrel, I grew it up, and in a box, and under hay, and under a black film, and under a cardboard cover, and in vegetable nets and nylon stockings, and in a pit, and by the method laying out the growing shoots along radial lines, and by the method of Galina Kizima, and whole tubers, and cut into pieces, both small and large, and one thing in a hole, and two each, and green, and cleanings, and sprouts ... As a result, I came to the least expensive way.

Since I do not select seed tubers for storage, in the spring I buy several pieces of different varieties for food in different stores. I boil them, taste them, compare them, and then get a couple of kilograms of the varieties I like. When stored in the refrigerator, sprouts appear on the tubers. When I peel the potatoes, I cut them from the tops of the tubers along with the pulp and set them aside.

Reference by topic: Cultivation of potatoes under straw and on high beds - my responses (Rostov region)

Then I bathe this stuff in a weak solution of manganese and lay it out to dry and "lignify" the slices. It takes up a little space - everything fits on the windowsill.

Several years ago, I got hold of boxes from under packages of baby milk in a store. This container is so good that it can be easily disassembled for storage (photo 1) and folded back before use (photo 2). So, I collect the boxes, line the bottom with black thin garbage bags, pour over the sawdust, spray them with a spray bottle, lay out the potato scraps with sprouts, cover them with the same sawdust and spray them again from the spray bottle. I put the boxes one on top of the other (in order to save space) and remove them from sight until the potatoes germinate, but periodically checking the moisture content of the sawdust.

Everything. When the shoots reach a height of 10-15 cm, it’s time for planting in the ground. The most important thing is that by this time the sprouts already have voluminous root systems in the form of a beard (photo 3).

Growing potatoes in bed-boxes

Time to dig in the potatoes

How do I prepare the beds? Very simple. Since the aisles during the summer I mulch with weeds and mowed lawn grass, then in the fall, after the final harvesting of potatoes, I embed organic residues in the soil. In the spring, I scatter the ash from the bathhouse and barbecue that has accumulated over the winter over the beds, sprinkle it with urea, spill it abundantly with water from a hose, cover it with a non-woven cloth and leave the soil to "ripen" before planting potatoes. A nearby birch tree tells you when to start acting. I believe that all gardeners already know that when the leaves on this tree reach the size of a penny, the time has come.

"Scare" potatoes, ie digging in, I start on Peter's day, which is also called breaking the fast (July 12). I should note that when planting potatoes with eyes, the bushes grow into one trunk.

This means that there is no struggle between plants for space and nutrition. At the same time, the bushes are compact, do not block each other from the sun.

Therefore, I do not complain about the harvests: they are stable and generous (photo 4), there are practically no small tubers.

And now I would like to ask all the gardeners for help. A relative from the Primorsky Territory reported that there is an unusual potato variety Salblu (photo 5). So I want to ask: maybe someone has already planted it and can tell about the secrets of cultivation, properties and taste?

It remains for me to wish my fellow summer residents inexhaustible optimism and fruitful implementation of a huge number of plans in the coming summer season!

I have my own small forest park area, 5 × 10m in size. There I grow mushrooms, which are enough both for food and for harvesting. But that's another story.