How to fertilize the soil for potatoes when planting?

How nice it is to eat potatoes from your own garden! But to get a good harvest, you should periodically fertilize the potatoes, and this is best done when planting. In this case, you need to know the properties of dressings, the classification, with what frequency they are introduced.

Potato fertilizer classification

According to the structure and state of aggregation, liquid fertilizing, solid granular fertilizers and loose substances of natural origin (manure, peat, etc.) are distinguished. But such a classification does not give an idea of ​​the composition of potato dressings, therefore, more often all fertilizers are divided into the following categories.

• Organic - contain organic matter in a form accessible to plants, most often of natural origin. This includes manure and slurry, bird droppings, peat, humus, green manure, etc.
• Mineral - contains micro- and macroelements necessary for the development of cultivated plants. Such feedings are produced in chemical plants, but some can be obtained independently (for example, wood ash). For feeding potatoes ammonium nitrate, urea, etc. are widely used.
• Mixed - consist of a mixture of fertilizers from the two previous groups.

With the annual planting of potatoes in the same place, the yield decreases, since a large amount of nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus and other elements necessary for the growth and formation of tubers passes from the soil to the tubers. Therefore, it is necessary to improve the properties of the soil by applying top dressing. The application rates and the effect on cultivated plants are different for different fertilizers, so we will consider this issue in more detail.

Organic fertilizers for potatoes

Most organic fertilizers are waste products of living creatures - plants and animals, therefore they are sometimes called biofertilizers. They not only enrich the soil with nutrients, but also improve its structure: make it lighter and more porous.

Experienced gardeners recommend applying for potatoes:

1. manure and slurry;
2. chicken manure solutions;
3. green manure.

For each type of biofertilizer, there are nuances for preliminary preparation and application.

Manure and its derivatives

Cow and horse manure is just a treasure trove of trace elements! It makes the substrate looser, promotes the formation of a humus layer and increases the yield of potatoes. Most often, manure is used during autumn or winter digging, embedding it in the soil to a depth of 30-40 cm. Biofertilizer, decomposing, releases heat and warms up the crop, which is especially important when growing potatoes in northern latitudes. The application rate for plowing is 400 kg per hundred square meters.

Manure is also used as fertilizer for potatoes when planting. At the same time, about 150 g of rotted biofertilizer is placed under each tuber. It is not recommended to use fresh manure, it may contain parasites and pathogenic bacteria, and evaporating ammonia will poison the life of soil microorganisms.

If you only have fresh fertilizer available, it is better to prepare slurry by pouring 1 part of it with 9 parts of water. Pour 1 liter of infusion into each well.

Advice

Do not fertilize the soil with manure every year, as this can reduce fertility. The optimal application interval is once every 3-5 years.

Chicken droppings

This is a concentrated biofertilizer for potatoes when planting in a hole, which is used only in a diluted form.

The infusion is prepared as follows:

1. take 700 g of poultry droppings and dissolve in 10 liters of warm water;
2. the container is removed for 3 days in a warm place for fermentation;
3. filter the solution;
4. pour 1 liter of infusion into each well.

The optimal ratio of manure to water is 1:15. But it is better to make the infusion a little weaker than to exceed the concentration.

Green manure

Decayed and fermented plants can be used as biofertilizer. But what herbs are suitable for creating such a top dressing? Yes, any! When weeding and mowing the area, a lot of grass remains. This is what you can use.

Green biofertilizer recipe

1. Place all weeds together with the soil on the roots in a barrel.
2. Add a few handfuls of urea if desired.
3. Pour warm water up to the edge of the barrel.
4. Stretch the polyethylene to enhance anaerobic fermentation.
5. Insist 2 weeks.

You can apply such fertilizer when planting potatoes without diluting. Just pour 1 liter of green biofertilizer into each hole.

Mineral fertilizers for potatoes

Some gardeners are afraid to fertilize the soil with chemical products, fearing an excess of nitrates in the crop. But you can also season the land with dung so that nitrates in vegetables go off scale. With strict adherence to the norms, it will be possible to grow a bountiful and healthy crop.

What mineral fertilizer is considered the most popular for feeding? Of course, it's urea. In addition, as a fertilizer for potatoes when planting in a hole, they use azofosku, saltpeter, superphosphate, and from natural - wood ash.

Urea

It is used on soils with an alkaline reaction. Application rate - 1.5 kg per 100 m²... When planting, you can spill the holes with a urea solution (40 g / 10 l). Some gardeners apply urea granules directly to the soil. The norm is 1 small handful per well.

Advice

Do not place the tuber directly on top of the urea granules. It is better to sprinkle the fertilizer with soil, and put the seed on top.

Ammonium nitrate

A very economical concentrated top dressing that can be used in small doses every year. This mineral fertilizer is produced in several variations, differing from each other in composition and ratio of components. Ammonium nitrate is used dry, as well as solutions for dressing. In combination with fungicidal agents, it is used to soak tubers before planting.

The application rates depend on the degree of fertilization of the substrate. On neglected soils, it is better to place 20 g of ammonium nitrate granules in each well. And for well-groomed areas, this rate is 2 times less. After pouring into the hole, the fertilizing is mixed with the substrate and only then the seed is laid.

Azofoska

Another mineral fertilizer containing a lot of nitrogen in a form available to plants. Also, the composition of the dressing includes potassium, sulfur and phosphorus. Azofoska strengthens the roots of potatoes, promotes heap formation and rapid growth of tubers. It also has protective properties: it prevents the development of fungal infections on tubers.

Azofoska is used for the preparation of mineral mixtures and as an independent feeding. It can be applied in spring when planting tubers in rows or holes. The norm for one fossa is 3 g.

Superphosphate

Top dressing is rich in phosphorus, as well as sulfur, calcium and other elements. This mineral fertilizer stimulates the growth of tops and the storage of substances in the tubers. Gardeners note that superphosphate is the best phosphorus-containing top dressing when planting tubers. It is ideal for acidic soils, alone or in combination with phosphate rock. Application rate - 2 kg / 100 m² for well-kept areas.

Advice

Do not use superphosphate in a mixture with other mineral fertilizers! It works best when applied alone.

Ash

Wood ash has long been used to improve soil properties and increase yields in the garden. This natural top dressing is used dry, in solutions or in combination with other organic and mineral fertilizers.Great for acidic soils.

To increase the yield of potatoes, wood ash is poured directly into the hole. Consumption rate per 1 hundred square meters - from 5 to 10 kg (200 g in each hole).

Complex fertilizers

Many gardeners use special complex fertilizers to fertilize the soil for potato ridges. It is better to bring them during spring digging, but you can also directly into the hole.

What are the most popular organomineral supplements?

Name	Benefits	Consumption rates
"Kemira" potato	Promotes the formation of large tubers, increases the keeping quality of the crop	20 g for each tuber. After hilling can be applied in furrows (30 g / m2)
"Gumi-Omi"	Improves soil and crop quality	12 g for the bottom of each well
"Bionex"	Can be used both dry and as a solution	20 g for each tuber

You can prepare nutritional mixtures to increase yields yourself. Here are some recipes to help fertilize the soil for potatoes.

• Organic feeding: Mix humus (500 g) with dry wood ash (3 tbsp. l.) - in each hole.
• Mineral dressing: under each tuber, pour a mixture of bone meal (100 g) and nitrophoska (1 tbsp. l.).
• Organomineral mixture. You will need white moss (sphagnum). Prepare a mineral solution to it from the following components: water (12-liter bucket), urea (10 g), copper sulfate crystalline hydrate (1 tsp), azofosk (5 g), potassium chloride (10 g). Dissolve all ingredients in water and dip moss in this mixture. Place the impregnated sphagnum on the bottom of the hole and sprinkle with soil, and put the seed on top. Such organomineral feeding will not only increase yields, but also protect tubers from some fungal infections.

Complex solutions and dry granules are used not only during planting, but also in the summer to feed the plant. The main thing is not to overdo it with nitrogen, otherwise all the nutrients will go to the tops, and not to the tubers.