Growing potatoes in bags: technology

In European countries, farmers have been using this growing technology for a long time, as it allows you to get early potatoes right near your home. In Russia, the cultivation of potatoes in bags is only gaining popularity. Those who tried this method appreciated its effectiveness and simplicity, as well as significant space savings in the summer cottage.

Description of cultivation technology

Growing potatoes in bags (technology):

1. We prepare the necessary materials: soil, planting tubers and a container. A food (from flour, sugar) or potato bag, special containers designed for this method (with an opening pocket for harvesting), large shopping bags can act as containers. Holes are made in special bags for ventilation. When using ordinary bags, small slots should be made at the bottom;
2. A third of the bag (about 0.3 m) is filled with universal soil mixed with humus and compost or special nutrient soil, which is already saturated with fertilizers. If the structure of the bag allows air to freely enter the soil, then a drainage layer is not necessary. If the cultivation takes place in plastic bags without air access, then it is imperative to lay out drainage (for example, expanded clay), 10 cm thick;
3. Potatoes are laid at an equidistant distance from each other. The optimal amount of potatoes at level 1 is 4 pieces;
4. A layer of earth, 10-15 cm thick, is poured. Be sure to water the planted potatoes abundantly;
5. As the potatoes develop, layers of earth are poured in the same thickness until the bag is 70% full. The total thickness of the soil layer should be 1 m or more to ensure normal nutrition and development of plants.

Potatoes in a bag

Strengths and weaknesses of the method

How to plant and grow bagged potatoes

In order to plant potatoes in bags and get a decent harvest, you need to follow a certain sequence of actions.

Step-by-step instruction:

1. Preparing potatoes for planting. Not all potato varieties are suitable for this growing method. It is recommended to choose the most unpretentious varieties with large tubers (for example, Bellarosa, Sante or Slavyanka). As with traditional cultivation, the tubers must be germinated. Since the area of ​​the bag is limited, and the placement of the tubers must be done in a certain way, it is worth choosing approximately the same potatoes, weighing about 100 g;
2. You can plant potatoes when the average air temperature is set at + 10 ... + 12˚С.It is also worth making sure that there is no threat of frost in the coming days. Most often, such conditions occur in early May;
3. Determination of the location of the landing bags. It is worth growing potatoes in bags in well-lit areas;

4. Planting seed in the ground according to technology;
5. Throughout the entire growth period, it is necessary to provide abundant watering with settled warm water (you can leave a container with water in the greenhouse). On average, watering is carried out once a week, but it is always worth considering the weather conditions, depending on which watering may be less or more frequent;
6. Top dressing. The most important stage of care, since the amount of soil in the bags is limited, and the plants (especially in the active growth phase) take up all the nutrients. The first feeding is needed when the tops grow by about 20 cm, the second - during the setting of the buds, the third - during the flowering period. Poultry manure or mullein diluted with water in a ratio of 1:10 is suitable as fertilizer. In order for the tubers to fill well, you need to apply potash fertilizers in the proportion indicated on the package. It is worth abandoning nitrogen fertilizers, since they affect the development of the tops, thereby preventing the tubers from ripening;
7. Ants love stationary areas with warm, soft, moist soil. Therefore, the bags are very attractive for them to move in. They do not do much harm, but they fill the entire volume of the bag. Therefore, it is worth carrying out prevention:

• Use of drugs (such as Anteater) around the bag;
• Application of bulk products: ash or ground pepper, both in the bag and around it;
• Loosening of the soil and a small change of container location. Ants settle where no soil manipulation is performed.

8. Mulching can be carried out. This allows you to retain moisture, which evaporates so quickly with this growing method and loosens the soil. Peat, ash are suitable;
9. If the cultivation technique is observed, the crop ripens by the end of August. The signal for harvesting is drying and yellowing of the tops. Harvesting is done by turning the bag over and spilling its contents onto the ground. The potatoes are harvested, shaken off and stacked in a sunny area to dry. Average yield is 5 kg per bag.

How to grow potatoes in barrels and crates

Potatoes in a box

A similar growing method is to plant potatoes in a barrel or
box. The difference lies in the way of stacking - in a barrel, potatoes are stacked in diameter, and in a box - in a checkerboard pattern. A barrel, as a rule, has a large volume, and it is quite difficult to create good ventilation in it. You have to drill a lot of holes in the walls. In addition, harvesting is inconvenient - the barrel needs to be turned over and the contents shaken out, and the weight is large enough, and a lot of effort is needed. The main advantage of a barrel over a bag is its durability, it can be used for many years in a row.

Drawers are a lightweight option. They are more mobile and do not require additional air exchange. However, with this method of cultivation, you need to organize even more frequent watering and constantly monitor soil moisture.

The method of planting potatoes in bags is very simple and suitable for inexperienced summer residents. It does not require much labor. It is only important to water and feed the potatoes on time, and a good harvest is guaranteed.

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