Why Plant Potatoes In Summer? Benefits And Features. Planting And Leaving. Varieties

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Why Plant Potatoes In Summer? Benefits And Features. Planting And Leaving. Varieties
Why Plant Potatoes In Summer? Benefits And Features. Planting And Leaving. Varieties

Video: Why Plant Potatoes In Summer? Benefits And Features. Planting And Leaving. Varieties

Video: Why Plant Potatoes In Summer? Benefits And Features. Planting And Leaving. Varieties
Video: 15 Vegetables & Herbs You MUST Grow in SUMMER 2024, March
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Most of the plants we sowed or planted in the spring and it seems that in the middle of summer you can already relax. But experienced gardeners know that July is the time for planting vegetables for a late harvest and the possibility of longer storage. This also applies to potatoes. An early summer potato crop requires quick harvesting, because at elevated temperatures, the tubers age quickly. These potatoes are best used quickly and are not suitable for long-term storage. But the second crop of potatoes is exactly what is needed for winter and spring consumption.

Why plant potatoes in summer?
Why plant potatoes in summer?

Content:

  • Benefits of a second crop of potatoes
  • What is needed to grow a second crop of potatoes
  • The choice of planting material
  • Where to plant potatoes for the second harvest
  • Features of care when planting a second crop of potatoes

Benefits of a second crop of potatoes

Having managed to plant potatoes a second time, you get several winning points at once:

  • The second harvest of potatoes, even with incomplete development of root crops, allows you to grow a much larger crop on one farm.
  • Late potatoes last longer and will feed you until spring.
  • The best quality planting material for the next season is obtained from the potato tubers of the second harvest.
  • Tubers planted in summer and harvested in autumn do not germinate, and their regeneration process is much slower, which allows them to preserve valuable potato varieties for longer.
  • For the second harvest, potato varieties are chosen that germinate faster, do not waste energy on long-term cultivation of tops, so the tubers are stronger.
  • Ripening at a lower temperature, potatoes are less susceptible to diseases such as stem nematode. The Colorado potato beetle is already cold in September, the peak of its sabotage occurs at the beginning of summer.

What is needed to grow a second crop of potatoes

To be able to grow a second crop of potatoes, you should take into account your climatic zone. The most suitable for summer planting of potatoes are the southern and central regions of the country, where at least 170 frost-free days a year.

To make the second planting potatoes grow faster, it is better to plant them in high warm beds. Warm beds, among other things, help protect potatoes from unexpected night frosts.

For better preservation of moisture in the soil, after hilling the potatoes, it is covered with a layer of straw. Mulching potatoes planted on hot summer days also protects them from overheating. It is good to use moss for mulching, which also enriches the soil with nutrient microflora.

To protect potatoes from diseases, and primarily from phytophthora, planting material can be treated with Phytophtorin.

To make potatoes of the second planting grow faster, it is better to plant them in high warm beds
To make potatoes of the second planting grow faster, it is better to plant them in high warm beds

The choice of planting material

When planting potatoes in July to obtain a second harvest, special attention is paid to the choice of potato variety and the issue of the quality of the planting material. Disease resistant potato varieties with fewer growing days should be chosen. In super early ripening varieties, harvesting can begin after 60-70 days.

These potato varieties can be:

"Skoroplodny" is a variety of potatoes for winter use, with a long shelf life. Resistant to viral diseases. The ability to grow on any soil.

"Good luck" is a table variety suitable for winter storage. High yield, resistant to late blight. The possibility of ripening in two months with a harvest of 120-150 kg from one hundred square meters of land. The mass of tubers reaches 400 g. It transfers any soil. It grows well in the northern and far eastern regions.

Cleopatra is an excellent high-yielding potato variety with a short ripening period. After 2.5 months, you can harvest up to 140 kg from one hundred square meters. Unpretentious care. Suitable for winter storage.

"Souvenir Chernigovsky" is a mid-early variety. Tubers weighing up to 300 g. Very high yield up to 800 kg per hundred square meters and long shelf life. Rapid growth of tubers in the middle stage of maturity. Resistant to disease. Great taste.

Here are some Dutch potato varieties suitable for summer planting:

"Fresco" is an early maturing variety, resistant to many diseases, hygrophilous. Suitable for growing in the northern regions of the country.

Fambo is a medium-ripening potato variety. Tubers weighing up to 140 g, resistant to many diseases, high susceptibility to late blight.

Agata is a mid-season variety. It is grown throughout the country, not picky about the soil. Differs in high productivity. The growing season is 80 days, but large tubers can be found after 60 days. Very good keeping quality.

Planting material for re-planting (summer) potatoes can be selected from the tubers of last year's harvest, which is most suitable for areas with a short warm period.

If the duration of warm days allows, you can wait for the summer ripeness of the potatoes and germinate the harvested tubers of the new crop.

Potatoes "Luck"
Potatoes "Luck"
Potatoes "Agata"
Potatoes "Agata"

Where to plant potatoes for the second harvest

Re-planting potatoes in parallel with the first harvest

The first planting of potatoes, depending on the region, in this case, is carried out in April-May. Early ripening crops such as greens, radishes, early ripening vegetables are planted in the neighboring area of the site. After harvesting the ripe early vegetables in their place around the end of June-in the middle of July, summer potatoes are planted for the second harvest.

This option is suitable for colder regions, so as not to wait for potatoes planted in spring to ripen. In this case, the potatoes are harvested with the onset of the first frost, in September and early October.

Replanting potatoes at the first harvest

Having planted very early potato varieties in spring, you can already get the first harvest by the beginning of July. Carefully choosing large potato tubers, small ones are left in the ground. Dried and yellowed tops are removed, leaving only green with nodules. Sprinkle the ungrown nodules with compost and earth, and then plant potatoes on top for a new harvest.

Re-planting potatoes between the rows of the first crop

If for some reason the first potato has to be planted later than usual, or if it is a late ripening potato, then when planting it, you need to maintain a distance between rows of about 70 cm.

In this case, to plant summer potatoes, you do not have to wait for the first harvest to ripen. And to obtain a second crop of potatoes, tubers sprouted in June are planted in the same garden in early July between the rows of growing potatoes.

Carefully choosing healthy material for planting, observing crop rotation and choosing potato varieties resistant to late blight, you can avoid it
Carefully choosing healthy material for planting, observing crop rotation and choosing potato varieties resistant to late blight, you can avoid it

Features of care when planting a second crop of potatoes

Before planting, the ground is watered so that it is well moistened to a depth of half a meter. On hot summer days, the soil dries out quickly and the planted potatoes require additional watering.

It is also necessary to take measures to protect young tops from late blight. High temperature and humidity contribute to the rapid development of this fungal disease. Carefully choosing healthy material for planting, observing crop rotation and choosing potato varieties that are resistant to late blight, you can avoid it.

If preventive measures did not help, then already at the initial stage of infection, the potatoes should be treated from phytophthora with some biofungicide or folk remedies against phytophthora should be used.

Conditions for a good harvest of summer planting potatoes:

  • Potatoes can be planted on any soil, but without stagnant water.
  • Potatoes grow best in slightly acidic soil.
  • To feed potatoes, organic fertilizer from rotted manure or compost is enough.
  • An excess of nitrogen fertilization promotes the growth of tops, but reduces the yield of tubers.
  • An additional dose of potassium (25 mg / m2 before or during growing) can significantly increase the shelf life of potatoes.
  • To prevent soil "fatigue", potatoes are planted in the same place no more than once every 3-4 years.
  • Second-crop potatoes are planted at a greater distance - 40 cm from each other and 70 cm between rows.

Second-harvest late potatoes in warmer regions are harvested in October or even early November. Early frosts are not yet strong and will not damage the crop, perhaps only slightly reduce it.

In early frosts, potatoes can be protected by covering them with foil or fleece cloth.

Dear Readers! If you haven't had the experience of planting potatoes in the summer for a second crop, be sure to give it a try. With the right care, you will get an extra crop and provide yourself with your potatoes for a whole year.

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