Preparing potatoes for spring planting

Preparing potatoes for spring planting is a rather complex and time-consuming process. However, it's important to start early to ensure they're planted before the hot weather sets in. This is also one of the keys to a good harvest.

Seeds must be of high quality, and this is no secret to every gardener. The best tubers for planting are those weighing between 60 and 100 grams. They are not too small and not too large, germinate perfectly, and adapt quickly to new conditions.

Selection of seed material

You don't even need to go to a special forum. for preparing potatoes Before planting in the spring, to get a feel for the seed material. These are ordinary tubers that we simply eat for food most of the year. If your tubers are small enough to select a sufficient number of tubers weighing 60 grams or more, you'll need to plant several small potatoes in one hole.

Further preparation of tubers

So, you've selected your seedlings, how do you prepare them? First, warm the seeds at a temperature of at least 25 degrees Celsius for three days. Next, lay them out in rows on a flat surface, ensuring each potato has its own space. Place them so that each potato receives sufficient light. Ensure the light is even.

If you're preparing your potatoes for spring planting, and it's already late in the season and very close to summer, you'll need to vernalize them. This process helps speed up the emergence of seedlings and can be done dry or wet.

Dry vernalization option

Can lay out the potatoes The room shouldn't be too warm; a temperature of 14 degrees Celsius is sufficient. However, daylight should be provided consistently throughout the month. The light affects the tubers in such a way that dark green shoots appear, which may also have a purple tint. Care should be taken to ensure that the shoots don't grow more than two centimeters.

When light levels are low, your tubers will be long and the shoots themselves will be white. This is poor quality material, as the plant will grow weak and lacking vitality. To ensure your potato seeds remain beautiful and strong, you need to rotate them every five days to ensure even light distribution throughout the tuber.

Preventive treatment

When preparing potatoes for spring planting, they are treated with potassium permanganate or other solutions. What's the purpose? This is to prevent diseases common in our climate, such as late blight, nematodes, and others. Rather than treating the plant later (which is extremely difficult to cure), it's better to take proper preventative measures in advance.

You can dilute a teaspoon of copper sulfate in three liters of water. Spray the tubers with the solution. For deeper treatment, submerge the tubers completely in the solution for a minute, then return them to daylight.

How to speed up germination

A week after the prevention, you can prepare the tubers for faster germinationSpraying can also help here, but the solutions will be different. At least five and no more than six days should pass between treatments. Use the following solutions in rotation:

• A spoon of nitrophoska is diluted in three liters of water;
• A spoon of Effekton fertilizer is diluted in three liters of water;
• A small spoon of urea is also diluted in three liters of water;

Important! Every day after treatment and in between, the tubers should be sprayed with clean water.

Tubers prepared according to the above procedure will be ready for planting in as little as a month. Large potatoes may require up to 35 days. The key is for the sprouts to be green or purple and no more than two centimeters long.

Wet vernalization option

You can replace the dry vernalization method described above with a wet method. Use baskets or boxes in which you can arrange the potatoes in two rows, but space them three centimeters apart. The eyes should face upward. Sprinkle with sawdust, monitoring its moisture level throughout the germination period.

This is a cost-effective way to treat tubers before planting because they lose virtually no water or nutrients. Moreover, the tubers develop not only sprouts but also a root system. With this method, germination takes just two weeks, almost doubling the process.

This is how long and deliberately prepare potatoes for spring planting. No matter how much work lies ahead, preparation is essential. This significantly reduces the risk of poor germination, pests, and diseases, increasing overall yield. With this treatment, your potatoes will be delicious and last the entire winter.