How to increase your potato yield using vernalization

Potato yield is influenced by many factors: soil preparation, fertilization, care, as well as the variety and quality of the seed. Experienced gardeners know the secret of getting tasty early young potatoes - vernalization of potatoes. This procedure accelerates the emergence of plants and, accordingly, promotes an earlier harvest. It has been proven that tubers grow 15-20 days faster when compared to planting non-vernalized potatoes. It is important that by carrying out the procedure, it is possible to notice and discard diseased tubers in time.

What is vernalization for?

Vernalization of potatoes is a relatively labor-intensive, as well as an affordable set of measures that can significantly increase the yield of potatoes. This process consists of agrotechnical methods: heating tubers, processing with nutrients and disinfection of seed material, germination in the light. It follows from this that such measures allow you to choose a better planting material, since you will immediately see damaged potatoes or one that did not sprout and therefore is not suitable for planting. Treatment with disinfectants allows you to prevent various plant diseases, among them late blight - a disease that is also called the "plague" of potatoes. Treatment with growth regulators and nutrients accelerates stem emergence and tuber formation.

Action plan

Vernalization of potatoes is a complex set of measures and it is quite troublesome to follow absolutely all the recommendations. Therefore, there is a so-called minimum program, that is, a minimum set of techniques that must be performed completely.

Firstly, it is imperative to warm up the potatoes, as well as germination in the light. If at the same time you see diseased tubers or those that did not sprout, they must be discarded. In case of insufficient heating, the potatoes will lie in the ground for a long time and not germinate. As a result, you will get uneven seedlings. Also, a long stay in the soil contributes to infection with fungi or other diseases. We must not forget about the weeds that grow very quickly. In the absence of potato shoots, weeds will grow much faster and then it will be difficult to get rid of them. While weeding at this time, it is easy to damage the plants.

Before starting to warm up the seed, it must be removed from the storage. It is best when the potatoes are heated for 20-30 days before planting. The most optimal temperature is considered to be 15-20 degrees. If some circumstances do not allow you to get the tubers so early (for example, the frosts are not over yet), then you can start warming up 15-20 days before planting. In this case, it is necessary to provide conditions with a temperature of about 20-35 degrees. For this, heating devices are used. The optimal indicator of air humidity will be 85-95%; for this purpose, the tubers are sprayed with water. With the given data, vernalization will go well.

When bulkheading potatoes, you should throw out not only obviously sick, but also just suspicious tubers. If you have been planting one variety for many years, then even visually you can determine the characteristics typical for this variety and, based on your own knowledge, choose a high-quality seed.

It is important to select tubers of the same size for sowing. Calibration will allow you to achieve a uniform stem, and identical plants need the same illumination and soil nutrition.In order to save planting material, you can cut the tubers, but it is important - there should be sprouts on each part. The cut must be treated with ash or chemicals to prevent the development of diseases.

Germination should take place in the light. In the dark, brittle, thin shoots are formed that will break off when planting. It is best to place the potatoes in shallow boxes so that the light shines on each tuber. For this reason, seeds should not be germinated in deep baskets and boxes.

What if the potatoes have already sprouted long before planting? Long shoots should be broken off as they may dry out or break off during transfer and planting. If there are short shoots without spots and blackened tops, they should be left, but moistened with water. In the light, the potatoes will sprout new, high-quality sprouts.

For spraying potatoes with dressing agents, it is necessary to make a working solution. For 1 liter of water, 60 mg of Prestige and 50 mg of Maxim are used. The resulting product can be used to process 70-80 kg of tubers. Spraying is carried out immediately before planting. Do not forget that if you intend to eat young potatoes, then you cannot use such a solution. Together with the dressing agent, it is possible to carry out treatment with a growth regulator, microelements, which contribute to the development of the plant. This simple exercise can increase yields by 50%. Among the most popular growth regulators are El-1, Fumar, Immunocytophyte, Epin and others. The trace elements necessary for potatoes can be obtained together with the preparations Reakom-Sr-potato, Ecolist-standard, Nutrivant plus.

There is also a drug called Reakom-potato, which contains chelates. The solution can also be made with your own hands before visiting the hardware store. To do this, you will need 1 liter of tank mixture, 0.15 g of boric acid, 0.2 g of copper sulfate and 0.2 g of potassium permanganate.

If you faithfully follow all the instructions for vernalization of potatoes on time, then you will be guaranteed a wonderful harvest. Already at the beginning of summer you can enjoy the pleasant taste of homemade young potatoes.

Video "Preparing potato seeds for planting"

The video tells. how to properly germinate (vernalize) potatoes before planting, and what measures to take to protect the crop from diseases.