New method of growing potatoes - in boxes

The traditional vegetable crop for our strip - potatoes - is grown by most amateur gardeners. Not everyone is comfortable with standard care, high labor costs and often disappointing results. Some experiment with soil or planting to achieve greater yields per square meter of soil. Not all research turns out to be successful, but some of them do bring very good results. One such innovation is the cultivation of potatoes in boxes.

Content

1 Method technology
2 Box device
3 Pluses of the way
4 Video "Growing potatoes in wooden boxes-boxes"

Method technology

What is the novelty of this method? Planting material is not planted in the soil directly on the site. For a new cultivation method, any container is used. Anything durable made of plastic or wood is suitable for the experiment. It can be an old barrel, canister, roomy box, etc. The main condition is that we get rid of the bottom of the container, leaving only the side walls, this is done so that moisture does not accumulate in the container, otherwise the potatoes will start to rot. For the necessary air access, holes are arranged in the walls of the structure.

Everyone knows that potato tubers are formed on roots that grow rapidly in the ground. In order for the root system to be more branched, the potatoes are huddled several times during the cultivation process. It is known from practice that the more soil it is possible to screw up, the root system can come out there, and, accordingly, more tubers will be formed. The bottom line is that you have an excellent harvest, all other conditions being the same.

Growing potatoes in boxes is based precisely on this feature: to get the most developed root system as possible. However, as with any method, it also has its own peculiarities - this is the choice of a place to place the structure and the formation of a fertile environment for planting a vegetable.

The usual soil on your site will not be suitable for use, even if you regularly enrich and fertilize it, because we do not form a ridge, but an enclosed space. You will have to prepare the soil yourself. Gardeners who have successfully tested this method advise using peat as a basis because of its porous structure, excellent moisture absorption, good heating by the sun's rays, and the ability to retain moisture during dry periods. Plants in peat are less susceptible to various diseases, which is important when setting tubers. To enrich the mixture, we add sand to the peat for better heating of the layer, it will be about 1/4 of the total volume of soil obtained.

Next, add chalk or lime flour: if the peat is wet, then 70 grams will be enough for every 10 kg, if it is dry, we increase the dose to 75-80 g. her ashes. Ash is recommended to roll potatoes with any planting method in order to protect against diseases and pests. On the use of manure in a mixture, the opinions of gardeners are polar: some advise it to be sure to add, as when growing other vegetables, others categorically do not advise because of the possible presence of plant pests or their larvae in it. Interestingly, both of them got excellent results, so we leave the addition of this component to your discretion.

A place in the sun or in partial shade is better for placing the box. It is better not to use shaded areas, because potatoes there are successfully affected by late blight, which we do not strive for at all.

Box device

As we already mentioned, seedlings can be attached to any box without a bottom. But it will be much more effective to build a special box. Consider the stages of its construction.

We need trimming of not too wide boards and beams. Such building materials are necessarily present at any summer cottage. Materials about a meter long are suitable. The beam is needed for the stability of the future structure. In principle, you can do without it if you think about how to keep the box with earth and potatoes from falling apart.

The procedure for arranging the box for landing

We knock the boards into a frame, where the height is the width of the board. We fill this aviary with prepared soil. We place previously sprouted potatoes in it, evenly placing it around the perimeter, for example, 4 rows of 4 tubers each. Sprinkle the seedlings with earth and a small layer of straw. Further, it is worth well watering our new "bed". For the potatoes to sprout faster, it is recommended to cover the box with plastic wrap. Now we are waiting for shoots to appear. As soon as the height of the plants approaches the edge of the enclosure, the time will come for the formation of a new floor of our structure. We finish off the side in height according to the old principle, carefully fill the shoots with prepared earth, put another layer of straw and water. If the outside is already warm enough, then you can no longer cover the box, if you want to get more intensive cultivation, you can cover the structure with agrofibre.

A similar procedure for building the box will be repeated until you reach the desired height. Usually it is 4-5 tiers. In pursuit of height, try not to overdo it, so as not to end up with a huge length of a stem with a small number of tubers. The final height will be about 50-60 cm, some farmers drive up to 1 meter. The last floor is installed about a month before harvest, so if you dig potatoes in mid-late August, you should add the last boards in mid-July and no longer increase the number of storeys of the box.

Try to let the tops develop normally, you do not need to bury them in the ground to the very top.

We do not let the cultivation of potatoes in boxes take their course. Our structure needs to be watered and fertilized. We water it no more than 2 times a week, fertilize it - as with normal cultivation. To do this, you can use a slurry solution or another top dressing that you usually use.

Pluses of the way

The cultivation of potatoes in boxes we have considered has a number of indisputable advantages:

we are raising the yield of potatoes to unprecedented heights: some managed to collect almost a bucket from one bush;
in a similar way, you can grow young potatoes in a fairly short time and use only your own vegetable to the table;
every meter of the summer cottage is used with great benefit, while the sown area decreases, and the yield becomes higher;
growing in a confined space saves you from weeding and hilling;
harvesting is very convenient: just disassemble the box and empty the contents. All potatoes are clean, not damaged by a shovel or pitchfork. It is easy to pick it out of the ground.

This method will be successful for older gardeners, because the labor costs for it are much less, and in old age health does not always allow achieving the desired result.

Video "Growing potatoes in wooden boxes-boxes"

The video tells and shows how to grow potatoes in boxes: soil preparation, planting material, planting technology.