Every year around the world, potatoes are becoming an increasingly popular crop. And this is not surprising, because vegetable breeders in many countries work tirelessly to improve the quality of potatoes. Over the past few years, many varieties have appeared that meet all modern requirements: early ripening, containing a large amount of useful substances, immunity to many diseases, well stored for a long period.
This is the kind of potato variety Leader, bred by breeders of the State Scientific Institution of the Ural Research Institute of Agriculture in 2002. This is an early ripening variety for dining purposes, which fully justifies its name. The leader has a high yield, it is unpretentious to conditions, suitable for industrial use.
Leader potatoes: description
Delicious tubers of this variety fully ripen 65-80 days after planting in the soil. Young juicy potatoes can be dug in and cooked as early as 45 days. The yield is quite high – 200-240 kg / ha. The mass of one tuber ranges from 80-120 g. 12-20 pieces are formed in the bush. This is a very good indicator. Moreover, all tubers are even, have an excellent presentation.
The bushes are high (up to 1 m in height), erect, do not spread out. Leaves of a rich green hue, medium in size, with slight waviness along the edge of the leaf blade. The flowers are small, white. Since the variety is early maturing, fruits with seeds are extremely rare.
The Leader variety can be propagated either with whole tubers or in parts with a minimum number of eyes – up to 3 pieces. It is grown both for individual consumption at home and on an industrial scale. For example, for the production of snacks or chips. It is also suitable for processing to produce starch.
Potato Leader: characteristics
How are the tubers of this variety different from others? Several distinctive features can be distinguished. It:
- roundish-oval shape;
- smooth dense skin of rich yellow color;
- a few finely set eyes;
- white pulp;
- high starch content – 12-13%;
- excellent taste;
- versatility in application.
Like other varieties, the Leader has its own strengths and weaknesses.
Positive characteristics:
- Wide range of applications. The leader is used for both table and industrial purposes, due to its good starch properties, its pulp does not darken so quickly when cut.
- High productivity and multi-tuberity. From one bush, you can get up to 20 potatoes with an average weight of about 100 g.
- Excellent transportability. These potatoes are excellent for long-distance transportation, so they are often grown for export.
- High keeping quality. The tubers are covered with a thick, strong skin, so they are stored for a long time in basements and cellars, without losing their presentation and taste.
- Disease resistance. The leader is not afraid of such common diseases as late blight, black leg, spotting and gray rot.
Cons:
- Poor resistance to pest attacks. Colorado beetles, nematodes, wireworm, and bear loves to feast on this variety. To prevent insects from spoiling the crop, timely processing with the use of strong means is necessary.
- Watering. The leader is successfully grown almost throughout Russia, but in arid regions, vegetable growers have more trouble with him. In such areas, crops need additional watering, especially during the flowering period. Lack of moisture negatively affects the size of the potatoes, their quantity and quality.
- Hilling requirements. Since the variety is multi-tuberous, you need to take the hilling process seriously. In order for the tubers to form in large numbers and reach the optimal size, you have to form a decent pile of land under each bush.
Against the background of the above advantages, the disadvantages are not so critical, therefore, the Leader variety can be safely grown in gardens and summer cottages.
Peculiarities of growing
The Leader received reviews in all corners of the Russian Federation, and all thanks to its unpretentiousness. He came to the liking of many summer residents and farmers.
In warm regions, planting of this variety is carried out at the end of April, and in the northern parts of the country – in early May. By this time, the earth will warm up to the required temperature indicators (+ 8-10 degrees). Before planting, Leader is recommended to germinate by selecting medium-sized tubers with the largest number of eyes. They are left in a warm, lighted room for 2-3 weeks.
The variety is not picky about soils, but some recommendations are still worth considering. In light soils, seed material is laid 15-20 cm from the surface, and in heavy soils it is better to plant it in pits of shallow depth.
After planting, standard agrotechnical measures are carried out. This includes:
- loosening of the soil;
- weeding to get rid of weeds;
- hilling;
- watering;
- application of fertilizers;
- control of insect pests and diseases of culture.
If the Leader is left without proper care, his yield will noticeably decrease, and the quality of the tubers will not be up to par. Competent organization of work and compliance with all the rules of agricultural technology will allow you to grow a large crop of this potato with high taste characteristics.
World leaders in potato cultivation
Since potatoes are the second bread that is grown all over the world, and today we are talking about a variety with the loud name “LEADER”, the reader will be interested to learn about the countries leading in the production of potatoes. Researchers have unveiled the top 10.
10th place – Poland… This country collects 6,33 million tons per year. Previously, these indicators were much higher, and Poland deservedly occupied the second position in the ranking. But this was at a time when pigs were actively bred in the country and they needed to be fed with something. It was the potato that was the main food for these farm animals. Unfortunately, agriculture is not held in high esteem here now, so potatoes are grown only for human needs.
9th place – the Netherlands. The Dutch harvest 6,80 million tons of potatoes per year. Most of it is grown exclusively for processing at local enterprises. But this country is considered the main supplier of seed potatoes of various varieties. In the Netherlands, rather modest areas are allocated for potato fields, but thanks to competent agricultural technology, the crop yield is recognized as the highest in the world.
8th place – France. The French are also the leaders in potato production, as they harvest as much as 6,98 million tons of tubers per year. Although recently the indicator of domestic consumption of this product has slightly decreased, compared with some other vegetable crops, potatoes are still in demand here.
7th place – Bangladesh. They love potatoes in this country, which is confirmed by the annual harvest of 8,60 million tons. Bangladesh has skyrocketed in the rankings due to its high population density. For its inhabitants, potatoes are one of the staple foods.
6th place – Germany. 9,67 million tons of potatoes are harvested here per year. When the vegetable appeared in this country, it was used only as animal feed. But 1770 changed everything, delicious tubers forever entered the diet of the Germans. Now many fields have been allocated for culture, and its application has expanded significantly.
5th place – USA. American farmers grow 19,84 million tons per season. About half of the harvested crop is eaten, processed into starch, used for animal feed, used for the production of chips and other products. Everything else is exported. Idaho is the leader in potatoes in the United States. Washington is “breathing down his neck.” The potatoes grown in these states are sold to Mexico, Canada, Japan and several other countries.
4th place – Ukraine. Ukrainians grow about 22,26 million tons of potatoes a year. Here it is one of the most important food products, which is confirmed by statistics. According to research, during the year, 1 resident of the country eats up to 136 kg of potatoes. A large percentage of the crop goes to alcohol and starch factories. Some of the tubers are sold to large distributors. Chernozems prevail in Ukraine, so the vegetable yield is very high here.
3rd place – the Russian Federation. We collect up to 30,20 million tons of potatoes. Agricultural enterprises specializing in it operate throughout the country and provide 13% of the total harvest. Almost 80% are owned by private individuals. Most gardeners grow potatoes for personal consumption, the rest sell tubers to farms.
2nd place – India. This country produces 45,34 million tons of potatoes per year. The potato industry in India is gaining momentum very quickly, hence such high rates. The vegetable is cultivated mainly by small farms located in the western part of the country. It is there that the optimal conditions for growing this crop are.
1st place – China. This country is the leader in the collection of potatoes. The Chinese annually harvest up to 88,99 million tons of the product. This love for potatoes can be explained by the fact that the Chinese government is interested in growing it, because this vegetable brings more profit than legumes and grains. About 85% of the total harvest is consumed by the population, and the remaining 15% goes to the production of chips and frozen fries. The culture is grown in the western and northern regions of the country, mainly on large farmlands. Her productivity here is not very high, but this does not prevent China from being a leader.
