Potatoes are a favorite food in Russia, so it comes as no surprise that they are grown everywhere. To get a good harvest, tasty and at the same time healthy, you need to feed it regularly. This procedure is important because there are not enough useful microelements in the soil. Foliar feeding is most commonly used because potatoes receive nutrients through the root system and leaves. But fertilization should be done correctly.
The value of foliar spraying
If you feed a vegetable crop through the soil, then trace elements are distributed unevenly. The assimilation of the introduced substances is assimilated by plants in liquid form, therefore, in the case when the fertilizer is dry, the effectiveness of the procedure is noticeably reduced. Therefore, sheet processing is advisable. Its advantages:
- the desired effect is achieved quickly – top dressing is absorbed for several hours, then immediately begins to take part in the metabolic processes occurring in the culture;
- profitability – with this method of processing, the yield increases markedly;
- the ability to control the intake of nutrients and adjust it if necessary;
- plants become resistant to various “surprises” of the weather and parasites;
- the content of vitamin C rises;
- a wide range of fertilizers.
Foliar feeding is not difficult. You only need a sprayer and a ready-made solution.
Foliar dressing of potatoes
Top dressing of potatoes by the foliar method greatly affects the growth and productivity of the root crop. Under the influence of solutions, useful elements located on the leaves enter the tissue of the culture and are better absorbed. Therefore, the plants receive vitamins and minerals.
The basic rule to follow when applying fertilizer is to choose the right product. Most of all, potatoes need nutrition during the period of intensive growth, when the tops are growing, and the tubers are forming and growing.
Top dressing before planting
Many growers believe that fertilizing potatoes is necessary after planting. In fact, the procedure is possible before it. In this case, the benefits of feeding will be even greater. There is nothing surprising in this, since in addition to obtaining the necessary elements, the potatoes will be protected from possible frosts and insect pests during the entire period of growth and maturation.
This method is also more economical as there is no need to spread dry fertilizer all over the area. When choosing a foliar dressing, it should be applied to a hole or a furrow prepared in advance.
Attention!
A handful of soil must be added to the fertilizer mixture. This approach will avoid damage to the planting material, because there will be no direct contact of the root crop with the applied top dressing.
If you use organic fertilizer, then add dry humus (700 g) and wood ash (5 tablespoons) to each hole. For agrochemicals, the recipe is as follows: 1/2 tbsp. bone meal and 1 tbsp. mix nitrophosphate. This mixture is sufficient for one potato hole.
The use of ready-made fertilizer is not excluded.
After planting
Potato bloom lasts 80 to 140 days after planting. It depends on the variety of the vegetable, the care and the climate of the region where it grows. Basically, the planting and ripening period lasts from May to September. Throughout it, you should monitor the condition of the root crop and fertilize it. After planting, the potatoes need to be fed three times.
For the first time, it is necessary to fertilize a vegetable crop after the emergence of shoots. This occurs mainly 14 days after planting. During this period, the plant needs nitrogen, the amount of which affects the rate of development of the bush and flower mass.
If you notice that the seedlings are pale or the development has stalled, then you need to apply additional fertilizing, since the culture does not have enough nitrogen. For this you need:
- mulberry – 500ml;
- urea – 15 g;
- water – a bucket (10 l).
Attention!
In the case when there is no mullein, then bird droppings can be used. It will need 15-25 g per bucket of liquid. Ammonium nitrate can also be a substitute
For one bush, you need 0,5 liters of the resulting solution.
The second time you need to fertilize is during the growth of the root crop. This period is important in the development of the vegetable and the harvest. In this case, the main emphasis should be on potassium and phosphorus. They are the ones that potatoes need during ripening.
To prepare the solution, you need to mix:
- potassium sulfate – 15 g;
- wood ash – 125 mg;
- double superphosphate – 15 g;
- water – 10 liters.
For one bush, vegetables need 0,5 liters of the resulting fertilizer.
The third feeding is carried out about 20 days before digging out the tubers. This requires mineral and organic fertilizers. For the composition you will need:
- superphosphate – 30 g;
- liquid manure – 250 ml;
- liquid – 10 liters.
Add 500 lm of the resulting mixture to one well.
For fertilization, the best time is morning or evening.
Rules for foliar dressing of potatoes
Nutrients are absorbed by potatoes, depending on the weather and the chemical composition of the soil. Therefore, it is not surprising that even on well-fertilized soil, a vegetable crop may be deficient in one of the elements:
- at low temperatures, cloudy weather and insufficient lighting, the assimilation of nitrogen, phosphorus, sulfur, manganese and zinc is worse;
- in case of drought in the soil, there is a deficiency of potassium, calcium, boron, copper;
- if the soil in which the root crop grows is acidic, then phosphorus and molybdenum are poorly absorbed. In the case of alkaline soil – boron;
- the lack of copper and molybdenum is felt on acidic sandy and peaty soils.
Attention!
Foliar feeding will help to fill the deficiency of useful minerals and vitamins. The vegetable of early varieties needs it more, because the early flowering period does not allow obtaining the necessary substances from the soil.
To carry out foliar feeding, you should adhere to the rules:
- do not use concentrated solutions – this will damage the leaves. An excess of fertilizer also harms the plant;
- at least 10-14 days should pass between dressings;
- the best time for the procedure is late evening. It is better to spend it during the day only in cloudy weather;
- it is forbidden to apply fertilizers before frost;
- so that the plant absorbs the fertilizing faster, you need to add laundry soap to it – 50 g per bucket of liquid;
- the solution should be on the reverse side of the leaves;
- drops should be small;
- to create a solution, settled or rainwater is needed.
If the leaves turn yellow prematurely, they will not turn green after receiving the fertilizer. But the new leaves will grow healthy and strong.
Top dressing of potatoes before flowering
When the first shoots have sprouted, trace elements must be added to the vegetable crop. Before the growing season, ovaries are formed, and the tubers are poured, so additional vitamins are needed.
When buds form on the potato, fertilize with a solution of potassium sulfate (1 tablespoon), wood ash (3 tablespoons) and a bucket of liquid (10 liters). Bushes can be treated with urea: dilute 30 ml of this substance in 300 ml of liquid. Superphosphate will also not be superfluous. It should be diluted with 3 tbsp. of this substance in a bucket of liquid.
To prepare a complex top dressing, you need to mix:
- ammonium nitrate – 2 g;
- potassium chloride – 2 g;
- superphosphate – 20 g;
- copper sulfate. – 0,1 g.
Pour the components with warm rainwater and let it brew for at least 3 hours.
Mix the resulting solution with liquid in a ratio of 1 to 1. Such a mixture can be sprayed on the crop before the growing season, due to which growth will accelerate and increase resistance to various diseases.
You can also fertilize with nettles. For this purpose, grind the upper part of the plant, pour water in a barrel and insist for 7 days. Strain the resulting solution and sprinkle with tops. It will saturate potatoes with potassium and nitrogen.
Complex feeding during the flowering period of potatoes
During the growing season, it is better to feed the root crop with folk remedies. This will help not to harm the crop and maintain yields.
You need:
- onion peel;
- walnut leaves;
- tobacco;
- leaves from poplar.
Attention!
The application of fertilizing will be safe and effective if it is specially designed for a particular crop. In this case, the likelihood of an overdose is minimized.
Mineral fertilizers of complex action should be applied at the root.
Top dressing of potatoes after flowering
In the process of tuber formation, it is important to apply foliar dressing. They are needed twice for the vegetable to be large and ripen well:
- For the first time, fertilizers are needed to improve the palatability of potatoes. Therefore, they should be introduced at the beginning of tying tubers. For this, boron (improves the quality of the product) and manganese (improves the taste) are used. The use of ready-made dressing is allowed.
- Around a month before harvest, another superphosphate fertilizer should be applied. It can be used in two ways: spread the granules under each bush or prepare a spray solution. For the second option, dissolve 100 g of the product in a bucket of liquid. This is enough to process one hundred square meters of the site. As a result, the yield of potatoes will increase.
After the growing season, the potato tops begin to be attacked by parasites. Ash and tobacco ash will help to get rid of them and saturate the soil with potassium, magnesium and phosphorus. Ash solution is also allowed for use. It is necessary to stir 1 g of ash in 100 liter of water. One potato bush will need 1,5 liters of the prepared product.
Foliar dressing with mineral fertilizers
Before the growing season, the root crop grows tops, so during this period it needs nitrogen fertilizers. Often used are urea. It is not difficult to prepare them: dissolve 10 g of urea in 50-liter water. You can replace it with complex dressings: dissolve 50 g of nitrophoska in a bucket of liquid. …
The first treatment should be carried out 14 days after the emergence of sprouts, and the second – even after such an interval. You can add 75 g of potassium monophosphate and 5 g of boric acid to the mixture.
Attention!
In the case when the seedlings are caught by frost or hail, zinc and molybdenum must be added to the soil.
The first feeding should contain a growth stimulator and amino acids.
In the process of bud formation, potato beds should be fertilized with phosphorus, nitrogen, potassium and copper.
After the end of the growing season, the plant needs potassium. With its help, potatoes accumulate water, which is important during drought. Some growers replace potassium with potassium chloride. But in this case, the growth of tubers slows down.
How to determine which element is missing
Top dressing in a leaf way is necessary to nourish the culture with the necessary microelements with vitamins, with a deficiency of these substances. The appearance of the plant will help determine which element is missing.
Element missing Feature
Nitrogen
Leaves turn yellow
Phosphorus
Potato leaves become dark with a purple tint, the growth of the root crop and root system stops
potassium
Photosynthesis is disrupted, the edges of the leaves dry out, the growth of potatoes slows down
Calcium
The assimilation of nitrogen becomes more difficult, the fruits grow ugly, covered with mucus
Magnesium
Growth stalls
Sulfur
The amount of the crop is markedly reduced
Chlorine
Susceptibility to fungal infections
Attention!
Potash and phosphorus fertilizers should be applied at the same time – together they work much more efficiently.
If even one of these elements is not enough, then not only the potato yield will decrease, but also its quality.
Reviews
Oleg, Ivanovo
I have been growing potatoes for a long time and have already become a professional in this. I have a large plot of land allocated for a vegetable, so I use foliar dressing throughout the entire period of crop growth. Therefore, I always have a good harvest, and the root crops are large and beautiful.
Anna, Saratov
Before planting potatoes, add ammonium nitrate and wood ash to the hole. As a result, the culture is not afraid of frosts and insect pests. I also spray the tops. For this, I purchase a ready-made fertilizer.
Ivan Alekseevich, Rostov-on-Don
I use top dressing all the time, because otherwise the potato crop leaves much to be desired. Proven from personal experience. When planting, I add to each hole, and then spray the tops.
