Potatoes are a favorite delicacy of many people. However, few people know exactly how to grow it properly in order to get the maximum yield. Experienced gardeners understand the importance of such work, and beginners are interested in why spud potatoes and how to do it correctly. In fact, the importance of this procedure is enormous, since only after it you can get a good result.
Did you know? Potatoes - the first root vegetable, which was grown in 1995 in zero gravity. This was done by American cosmonauts on the Columbia space station.
What is the procedure for?
Hilling - agricultural procedure, which consists in raking up a small amount of moist soil to the lower part of the bush. This will help the emergence of additional roots and tubers, increase yields, and also contribute to the preservation of moisture.
Moreover, hilling leads to additional loosening of the earth and its saturation with oxygen. Agronomists know that over time, the potato grows in size and rises to the surface of the earth, and the earth, piled on top during the hilling process, will protect the tubers from the hot sun and other adverse situations.
How to spud potatoes
When hilling cannot be discarded, it is important to perform it correctly. Work should be carried out in cloudy weather in the morning or in the evening, and the soil should be wet.
Important! To protect against sudden spring frosts, as well as weeding and loosening the soil, early hilling is simply necessary. This must be taken into account if you want to get the maximum yield.
Number of times
On average, all gardeners spend at least two hilling during the season. The interval between them is 21 days, however, the process must be monitored in each individual case, since none of the vegetables grows as written in the instructions. Sometimes the number of procedures reaches 4 times.
Did you know? The first to start cultivating potatoes were Indians who lived on the modern territory of Peru 4 thousand years ago. Even then, they bred about 200 varieties of this root.
Timing for the first hilling
Many novice gardeners are interested in when spuding potatoes for the first time. Summer residents, who have planted such root crops for the first time, know that for the first time it is necessary to carry out such works when the seedlings have just appeared. The procedure consists in simply filling young plants with earth.
To combat pests, diseases and weeds on potatoes will help drugs: Bitoksibatsillin, Taboo, Lazurit, Prestige, Quadris.
The secret lies in the fact that such manipulations will allow the roots to improve their development and produce additional processes. If this sleep did not happen, then the following full-scale hilling is carried out when the shoots grow no less than 14 cm.
When to repeat agrotechnical reception
Knowing when and how to properly spud potatoes for the first time, it is important not to miss the time to re-work.
The main pest of the potato is the Colorado potato beetle. You can fight it not only with pesticides, but also with traditional methods (vinegar and mustard).
The ideal time for this is when the shoots will grow to 30 cm. It is important to remove all weeds before such works.
Important! When the flowers appeared on the shoots, any work should be done very carefully, as at this time the tubers begin to be tied. Any careless actions can damage them.
Is it always necessary to carry out the procedure
In areas where the temperature of the soil can rise to +26 degrees and there is no possibility to regularly water the seedlings, it is recommended to refrain from hilling. There is no need to carry out similar measures when planting potatoes under the black agromaterial.
After reading the article, everyone can understand whether to spud potatoes or not, and most importantly, when to do this, so that all efforts are not in vain.
