Growing potatoes in boxes: process features

Growing principle in boxes

Potato growing is of great importance in Russian agricultural production.

The yield depends on several factors:

• Potato variety;
• Soil condition;
• Agrotechnical measures for the care of the crop.

The number of potatoes on a bush depends on the length of the underground part of the stem: the larger it is, the better the yield. Hilling potatoes increases the underground stem area.

Method of growing potatoes in boxes

The effectiveness of growing potatoes in boxes is that the stems of the bush grow in length. The boxes are gradually "built up" in height, stacking or nailing additional boards. It is necessary to add soil as the potatoes grow - this stimulates the growth of new stolon shoots. The process is repeated until the bush is fully grown.

The method of planting vegetables in boxes is productive. If you follow all the recommendations for planting potatoes and the rules for caring for the plant, you can get a big harvest. Up to 5 kg of vegetables can be grown from one potato.

Box device

As we already mentioned, seedlings can be attached to any box without a bottom. But it will be much more effective to build a special box. Consider the stages of its construction.

We need trimming of not too wide boards and beams. Such building materials are necessarily present at any summer cottage. Materials about a meter long are suitable. The beam is needed for the stability of the future structure. In principle, you can do without it if you figure out how to keep the box with earth and potatoes from falling apart.

The procedure for arranging the box for landing

We knock the boards into a frame, where the height is the width of the board. We fill this aviary with prepared soil. We place previously sprouted potatoes in it, evenly placing it around the perimeter, for example, 4 rows of 4 tubers each. Sprinkle the seedlings with earth and a small layer of straw. Further, it is worth well watering our new "bed". For the potatoes to sprout faster, it is recommended to cover the box with plastic wrap. Now we are waiting for the shoots to appear. As soon as the height of the plants approaches the edge of the enclosure, the time will come for the formation of a new floor of our structure. We finish off the side in height according to the old principle, carefully fill the shoots with prepared earth, put another layer of straw and water. If the outside is already warm enough, then you can no longer cover the box, if you want to get more intensive cultivation, you can cover the structure with agrofibre.

A similar procedure for building the box will be repeated until you reach the desired height. Usually it is 4-5 tiers. In pursuit of height, try not to overdo it, so as not to end up with a huge length of a stem with a small number of tubers. The final height will be about 50-60 cm, some farmers drive up to 1 meter. The last floor is installed about a month before harvest, so if you dig potatoes in mid-late August, you should add the last boards in mid-July and no longer increase the number of storeys of the box.

Try to let the tops develop normally, you do not need to bury them in the ground to the very top.

We do not let the cultivation of potatoes in boxes take their course.Our structure needs to be watered and fertilized. We water it no more than 2 times a week, fertilize it - as with normal cultivation. To do this, you can use a slurry solution or another top dressing that you usually use.

Advantages and disadvantages of the method

Growing potatoes in bags: technology

The method of planting potatoes in an unusual way has its pros and cons.

Gardeners note the benefits of growing vegetables in boxes:

• A large harvest from each bush, it is easy to grow a vegetable;
• The method does not take time and effort for hilling, weeding. Straw serves as an excellent layer of mulch;
• No planting bed required;
• Allows you to more effectively use the area of ​​the garden plot, which was previously occupied by a potato field, potatoes are placed in boxes in the beds;
• You can start planting in early spring, the box is easily covered to protect against frost;
• Thanks to the cultivation of potatoes in boxes, the soil is not depleted;
• The method is suitable for arid regions;
• The bushes are not attacked by the Colorado potato beetle;
• Harvesting is easy and convenient. You don't have to dig up the site, for this you only need to disassemble the box on the day of collection and collect clean and large potatoes in a bucket.

Easy harvesting

The disadvantages are:

• Preparing boxes for planting. They are either made on their own or bought in stores. Wooden pallets can be used;
• The soil for planting potatoes in boxes will have to be formed by mixing peat and sand. Regular ground will not work;
• Slugs can lodge in boxes;
• Constant control of soil moisture is necessary; it is important to constantly water the potato tuber during the dry period.

The new cultivation of potatoes in boxes raises doubts among gardeners, but knowing the basic rules of the method, the method will be within the power of even beginners. The disadvantages of the new method of planting potatoes are few. If you know how to do everything correctly, then by the fall the gardener will reap a decent harvest.

Growing potatoes in the tower

To make such a device, you will need:

• reinforcement mesh rectangle;
• wire;
• well-ripened compost;
• straw.

1. Roll up the mesh to make a kind of pipe with a diameter of 70 cm, a height of about a meter. Put straw 15 cm downwards, sprinkle 30 cm high compost on it. To prevent it from spilling out of the mesh cells, put straw on the sides.
2. Place the potatoes on top of the compost in a circle with a distance of 15 cm between the tubers. Lay them sprouts up, spill this layer well from a watering can or from a hose spray.
3. Sprinkle the soil on top with a layer of 40 cm, lay out the tubers, sprinkle them with water, sprinkle them with soil to a height of 8 cm. You can make such a "nest" even higher. Lay the potatoes on the top layer not only around the circumference, but also in the center.
4. In the process of growing root crops, you will need to add soil, so make a “tower” of such a height that when planting potatoes, the compost is 15–20 cm below the top level of the net.
5. Potato sprouts, which are located in the lower layers of this structure, will break through the side of this nest. The last row of tubers will grow upward.

Growing potatoes this way has many advantages:

• there is excellent drainage, so the water will not stagnate;
• the bed is well warmed up by the sun;
• I will not bother pests;
• saving space;
• it is practically not necessary to weed such plantings;
• convenient to harvest.

The compost has enough nutrients for the growth of potatoes, but for the formation of tubers, it is better to add 1 glass of ash and 1 tbsp. To this soil when planting on 3 buckets of soil. l. crushed double superphosphate. During the growing season, you can periodically feed the potatoes with potassium humate, but with a weaker solution than what is written in the instructions.
If you do not have straw, replace it with moss, it perfectly regulates the water balance, prevents water from stagnating and drying out the soil.

Conditions for landing

Growing potatoes in a barrel

Choosing the right potato variety is the key to successful work.

For planting in a box, varieties are suitable:

• Nevsky;
• Youth;
• American;
• Reliable;
• Shante;
• Belarossa.

It is recommended to select the planting material well. Potatoes for planting should weigh between 50 g and 80 g.

On a note. If you plant low-quality, small potatoes, then the harvest will be small. Strongly large tubers contribute to the active development of the aerial part. The green tops will take up the main food, and the yield will grow medium

For cultivation of a vegetable, you can leave the variety you like, which was used earlier.

It is recommended to germinate the tubers before planting. To do this, they are laid out in a bright place until small seedlings appear.

What is required for disembarkation

You need to either buy or make wooden boxes yourself. It is important to correctly position pallets or boxes without a bottom. Pegs are driven into the ground, boards are attached to them or pallets are placed on them. The box can be built from planks and pine blocks.

The site for planting should be chosen sunny, on an elevated flat surface.

In the place where the boards are attached, small holes are drilled for screws. Such boards can be used for several years.

Planting soil

To grow potatoes in boxes, the gardener should prepare a special soil. The basis of the soil is a peat mixture. It has a loose structure, absorbs well and retains moisture. In the sun, peat is able to fully warm up. Plants growing in a peat mixture are less susceptible to attacks by pests and diseases.

Planting soil

You can enrich the peat mixture by adding a layer of sand. It should make up ¼ of the soil. Limestone or chalk is mixed into peat, at the rate of 70-75 g per 10 kg of soil.

On a note. If there is no peat mixture, then you can replace it with soil from the site, which must first be mixed with compost and ash.

Ash is used in any method of planting potatoes to prevent diseases and protect tubers from pests. It is undesirable to use manure as fertilizer before planting potatoes in boxes. In it, insect larvae reproduce, which can harm the plant.

You cannot reuse the soil in which the potatoes grew. Often, pathogens of tuber diseases remain in the ground. This soil can be used to grow other horticultural crops, and new soil is prepared for the potatoes.

It is not recommended to expose boxes for growing potatoes on the shady side of the site - the bushes are affected by late blight.

How to grow

From an economic point of view, the boxes are more profitable to make yourself. Also take note of the rules for preparing seed potatoes, planting it and caring for the plant.

How to make a box

For work, you will need pine beams (4 pieces up to 2 m high) and boards, you can use wooden pallets. It should be borne in mind that 50 cm of the box will sink into the ground, and 1.5 m will remain above the ground, that is, the boxes should not have a bottom.

For the walls, boards of 15x2x150 cm are needed. About 10 boards are taken on each side, the exact amount is calculated depending on the material that is used. The purpose of such walls is to hold the ground.

Advice

To use the boards for more than one year, you first need to make holes for the screws in them. In this case, they will not split.

It is recommended to drive the stakes on a flat or elevated surface. The site should have been well lit.

Tuber preparation

The future harvest depends on the correct preparation of the planting material. It is necessary to choose quality potatoes without damage.

Attention!

Before planting, the tubers must be germinated in a dark room or in any available way. Due to this preparation, an earlier harvest can be obtained, since the germination period is shortened.

If necessary, cut large potatoes in half. Each part must have at least 2 sprouts. But it is best to plant whole potatoes. In this case, it should be medium in size.

Landing

It is recommended to place boxes on the south side of the house. The bottom is covered with spunbond and filled up to half with compost. Several medium-sized tubers need to be planted in one container. Next, sprinkle the potatoes with soil or compost. The last step is mulching with straw, dry leaves or moss.

For cultivation, it is recommended to use only prepared soil: weed-free and rich in nutrients. Mulch helps to retain moisture and nutrients.

How to care for a vegetable

Growing in bottomless boxes is no different from caring for a crop in a regular garden bed. When the tops grow to 12 cm, a new layer of soil can be added. The sprouts fall asleep at ⅓ of their height.

Adding layers of earth is carried out to the very top of the box, this lasts until mid-July. Then the bushes grow without bedding.

It is important to regularly water and fertilize the soil. During flowering, the plant must be treated 2 times from phytophthora. The interval between treatments is about 10 days.

When and how to harvest

In central Russia, the potato harvest from the box is carried out in mid-September. Weather permitting, it can last until early October. A week before digging, the tops are cut off.

For harvesting, the container must be freed from the moss and the remains of the tops must be removed. The soil in the place with potatoes is simply poured onto the ground, it remains only to choose the tubers.

reference

Moss can be used to plant potatoes next year. It is recommended to store it in a barn.

The soil in which the potatoes grew is poured out onto the compost heap. All nutrients and useful substances are stored in it, therefore it is well suited for feeding other plants.

Step-by-step actions for growing crops in boxes

Dutch potato varieties

Growing potatoes in boxes is an unusual way, so there are special care options.

Technology how to grow potatoes in boxes:

• The bottomless box should be on the bricks. This contributes to normal aeration of the soil, since it will not be possible to loosen the soil;
• Lay paper on the bricks under the bottom and sprinkle with a layer of expanded clay screenings with humus, you can lay out a layer of straw;
• Prepare sprouted tubers, lay on the bottom of the structure, sprinkle with peat mixture;
• If the disembarkation is carried out in early spring, then the box is covered with agrofibre or film;
• After the appearance of the first shoots, the structure is increased, the second floor is completed. Sprinkle the sprouts on top with a prepared mixture of peat and sand. The procedure is repeated until the buds are formed, until about July;
• To prevent early budding, the soil is watered with compost and protected from excessive exposure to direct sunlight;
• Caring for the bushes consists in regular watering, feeding, protection from possible pests;
• The end of September is harvest time. 7-10 days before harvesting potatoes, you can cut off all the tops, this will allow the skin to become denser.

Harvest potatoes from the box

You can plant potatoes in a wooden box if the area is small, or the usual method does not bring the expected harvest.

Sequencing

First of all, you need to wait for the onset of warm days, when the danger of recurrent frosts has already passed. For areas of temperate climate, this period begins from the end of April or the beginning of May. It is also important to know the basic nuances of crop cultivation for the region in order to grow a good harvest.If the summer resident has the opportunity to keep the bags indoors, then potatoes should be planted earlier. The sequence of actions will be as follows:

1. As soon as the planting time has come, lay a layer of nutrient soil of a loose structure on the bottom of the bags. The mixture should contain more humus than garden soil. The soil layer is calculated based on the depth of the planting tank. Usually it is 10 cm ... 35 cm.
2. Put the previously selected tubers on top of the layer. For growing, healthy specimens of medium size are chosen. Some summer residents use pieces of potatoes with eyes.
3. Cover with a layer of light loose soil about 15 cm thick.
4. Moisten the "bed".

The first shoots appear in 10-14 days. It is necessary to monitor the condition of the soil, water the seedlings on time. When the height of the stems reaches 10 -15 cm, fill up the earth to the level of the first leaves. An agricultural technique makes the potato form new roots, on which additional tubers will form.

Repeat adding soil several times. The soil layer should not be more than 2/3 of the height of the bag. It should not be done above, otherwise the potatoes will not have enough strength to form a crop. The entire supply of energy and nutrients will be spent on the growth of the tops. This is the main mistake that potato growers make when growing a crop in bags.

Care

The most important procedure is watering. The moisture from the bags evaporates more strongly than with soil cultivation. Therefore, you will have to water the potatoes on a different schedule - more abundantly and more often. The main attention is required to be paid to the period of flowering and tuber formation. Vegetable growers advise to water the garden so that the entire soil is moistened. This raises one complication. It is necessary to ensure a good drainage of water, so that there is no stagnation, and access of air for ventilation. It is most convenient to make small cuts at the bottom of the bag and a valve for removing tubers before planting. This option is only suitable for bags made of dense material. Thinner material can be pierced with an awl.

Fertilizing potatoes when growing in bags is needed in moderation. In addition, one should not get carried away with nitrogen fertilizers, which stimulate the growth of green mass and prevent the formation of a dense peel. It is more useful to add potassium sulfate, a little superphosphate. This will improve potato quality and yield. Top dressing must be combined with watering.

When the tops begin to turn yellow, the potatoes are ready to harvest. The time depends on the ripening period of the variety. With a good agricultural background, up to 5 kg are harvested from 1 bag, this is provided that 4-5 tubers are planted.

Basic rules of care

The cultivation of a vegetable crop is reduced to performing the following manipulations:

• Watering;
• Fertilize;
• Carry out preventive measures.

Watering growing potatoes in crates is inconvenient due to the confined space. Before completing the construction of the second floor, it is necessary to dig in 4 metal pipes with through holes at different heights for water supply.

Feed the potatoes in the same way as for a normal planting. Spraying the bushes from pests is carried out as needed. In boxes, bushes are less likely to be attacked by the Colorado potato beetle and other diseases.

Planting potatoes in boxes will allow you to grow a good potato crop. By following the planting instructions and care rules, the gardener will appreciate the simplicity and effectiveness of this method.

A new method of growing potatoes in a barrel

This method is also very original and has all the advantages that plants in nests or towers have.

To grow potatoes using one of these technologies, take:

• a low plastic barrel or plastic;
• jigsaw or saw;
• compost;
• fertile soil;
• sprouted potato tubers;
• nitrophosphate.

Then follow this plan:

1. Mix the compost with light soil by adding 1 tbsp. l. nitrophosphate.If you have a tall barrel, cut it across the floors, remove the bottom, you will have 2 containers in which you can grow potatoes.
2. If there is one, you also need to saw off the bottom so that excess moisture leaves through the bottom. Or you can do it at the bottom of the hole without removing the bottom.
3. Put a soil 50–70 cm high in a container, spread the potatoes on top, cover it with a 10 cm layer of soil. When the emerging seedlings grow a little, add 5 cm of soil to the barrel. Do this several times during the growing season, as if hilling the stems.
4. Keep the soil moist as it can dry out quickly.
5. When the time comes to harvest the potatoes, it will be enough just to turn the barrel over and extract the fruits of your labors from it.

If you do not have such unnecessary capacity, but have tires from wheels, they will also make an excellent vertical garden for growing vegetables. Put 2-3 tires one on top of the other, pour fertile soil here a little over half, lay out the potatoes, sprinkle 10 centimeters of earth on top of it.

If you have a tall barrel and tires without holes, then the roots may not be getting enough oxygen to grow. To fill this gap, make holes in the side of the container just above ground level.
Some gardeners are building a ventilation device. They take the old hose and lay it at the bottom of the container in a spiral, the upper end is brought out. A pump is inserted into it, with the help of which air is pumped into the container. For this, cuts must first be made in the hose.

In order for the compost to mature faster, it also needs air flow. To do this, when laying it down, place tubes with holes at different heights, as shown in the next photo.

After all, in order to plant potatoes in vertical beds, compost is needed, but it must be well ripened, similar to crumbly black soil. If this substance contains non-decayed plant residues, such a mass is not suitable for growing this root crop.

Preparing potatoes for planting

It is best to start the selection of planting material already at harvest. So it is possible to choose ready-made tubers from fertile bushes, which will not show any signs of disease, damage, and approximately the same size (about the size of a chicken egg).

It is categorically not recommended to set aside small potatoes that are not for food as future planting material. Planting potatoes of this size will significantly impair the expected yield. She will initially lose her fertility.

Selected potatoes should be greened a little after harvest. To do this, he is laid out on a sunny place for a day. Under the influence of sunlight, the tubers begin to turn green. The purpose of this action is reliable storage (such potatoes are not eaten by rodents, do not infect diseases, and it tolerates wintering more easily).

In early spring, potatoes should be checked for premature sprouting. If possible, they should be carefully broken off. Some summer residents, broken off sprouts are planted in the ground, located in seedling boxes. Thus, ready-made seedlings germinate.

Tubers can also be germinated before planting. This process takes a little longer, but the ripening period is reduced by 14-20 days. The potato harvest is also better.

Such potatoes for planting are laid out in layers in wooden boxes, plastic bags with slots or in wicker baskets. When germinating, air access to the planting material is very important. Each layer of potatoes is covered with a small amount of sawdust, earth with humus or peat. The temperature in the room where the planting material is located should not exceed 14 degrees Celsius. Germination of potatoes before planting begins a month before planting potatoes in the soil.

When the first shoots appear, their condition should be checked.Potatoes on which poor-quality, sluggish, dry sprouts were found should be removed from the box.

Immediately before planting, the planting potatoes are carefully removed from the container and the tubers are treated with a remedy for pests, diseases and insects. For this, Prestige or Matador may be suitable. They are also excellent growth stimulants, and are completely harmless to the soil and young crops. Processing potatoes before planting is a very important process, thanks to which you can forget about the problem of the Colorado potato beetle, locust, wireworm, and viral diseases (powdery mildew).

The number of potatoes grown in the "multi-storey" method

In order to roughly calculate the amount of the yield obtained, it is necessary to determine the dimensions of the box: its width, height and length will be equal to 150 cm.The height of the soil mixture with a completely filled box is 140 cm, and 16 bushes can fit in such a box (four rows of four) ...

The approximate amount of harvest from one bush reaches 40 kg (although more is possible, about 80 kg). So, from sixteen bushes you can harvest 640 kg of potatoes. If you grow potatoes in the usual way, then this will require three to four hundred square meters of a vegetable garden.

At the same time, the costs of manufacturing the container are minimal, since they can be found among the materials at hand, and even if you buy them, they will pay off in one season. With proper care, a container made of high-quality materials can last about ten years.

Landing methods and basic schemes

Together with the alternative methods of planting potatoes, which were mentioned above, three traditional ones are also used. Their choice depends on the type of soil and its moisture content.

Smooth way

Potatoes are planted under a shovel. Suitable for dry areas. With this method of planting, moisture from the soil evaporates less.

The site is being dug up in the fall. With a twine fixed on pegs, set the direction of the rows 70 cm apart. Dig holes with a distance of 25-30 cm, the depth is half a shovel bayonet, put seed material in them, cover the previous hole with earth from a new hole. After the entire planting, the ground is leveled with a rake.

Advice! In this way, it is more convenient to plant together. The first farmer digs holes, the second plants potatoes, adds fertilizer. Then the first one fills up the hole, digging a new one.

Ridge landing

The method is used with a close location of groundwater on heavy loamy soils. The ridge planting method provides air access and warming up the soil.

The combs are cut with a plow in the fall after fertilization. The distance between the ridges is 70 cm, the height is 12-15 cm, the depth of planting of tubers is 6-8 cm, the distance between the holes is 25-30 cm. Large tubers are planted at the maximum depth, smaller tubers - by 5 cm.

Trench way

With this method of planting, it is not necessary to huddle the bushes and loosen the soil. The land is prepared in the fall: they dig trenches up to half a meter deep along the entire length of the garden bed, fill them with leaves, compost, peat, humus, straw.

In the spring, the trenches are covered with a black film, so the earth will warm up faster. The heated soil in the trenches is sprinkled with ash and soil 3–5 cm. Sprouted tubers are planted at a distance of 25–30 cm, covered with peat-mixture, mowed grass, compost at 8–10 cm, and covered with foil.

After the emergence of seedlings, the film is removed, the seedlings are covered with compost 10 cm in height and covered again, the procedure will be repeated again. When the third seedlings appear, holes are cut in the film for them.

Weed growth is mechanically stopped, and tubers grow in warmth and moisture due to the decomposition of plant residues.