Sweet Potato Planting Methods and Tips for Choosing Growth-Control Chemicals

Sweet potato is a very common food ingredient in our lives, and it is currently distributed in many parts of our country. Sweet potato has high edible value, so it is deeply loved by people. Now many people have also started to plant it, but before planting, most people probably want to have a comprehensive understanding of its planting methods.

How to plant sweet potato

1. Seed selection. Although sweet potato planting looks simple, choosing good seeds is also the basic condition for high sweet potato yield, and it is also the basic requirement for its rooting and sprouting. When selecting seeds, we generally choose relatively large sweet potatoes. First, observe whether the sweet potato seed tubers have any defects, or whether any part has been bitten by insects or rats. If not, then continue to see whether the sweet potato has many sprouting points and whether its vitality is vigorous. In this way, it is basically fine.

2. Sowing. When sowing, soak the sweet potato seed tubers in a Duolingjun solution for about ten minutes. This can effectively prevent some diseases, and can also prevent the seed tubers from being stolen and eaten by rats before they sprout. Then proceed with sowing. When sowing, we must distinguish the head from the tail, otherwise the seedlings will not grow out later. If you really cannot tell them apart, you can also place them diagonally. Finally, cover the seed tubers with a layer of withered grass and rotten wood, and then cover them with a thin layer of soil. If you are worried that the temperature has not reached the requirement, we can cover them with a layer of plastic film. When the sweet potato seedlings grow to thirty or forty centimeters, we need to cut them off, then cut them into small sections with three leaves as one section, and then they can be used for cuttings. When cutting, generally keep a spacing of about thirty centimeters per plant.

3. Fertilizing. After planting, the first fertilization is needed. This fertilization is mainly to let the cut sweet potato seedlings grow new roots, so human excrement and urine water is generally used. The second fertilization is after the sweet potatoes survive, because the growth is uneven, so they look irregular. This time it is mainly to even out the seedlings, and urea is generally used. The third fertilization is seedling-promoting fertilizer, also urea, but a little compound fertilizer needs to be added. The last is the most important fruit-strengthening fertilizer, generally potassium fertilizer and boron fertilizer.

4. Vine arranging. In order to facilitate subsequent harvesting and prevent unnecessary branches and leaves from consuming nutrients, we need to arrange the sweet potato seedlings in the field, straightening the sweet potato vines in one direction so that they grow in one direction. This will make harvesting much easier later. Secondly, when arranging the vines, just remove some excess branches and leaves.

What chemical is best for sweet potato growth control

There are many chemicals for sweet potato growth control, and the general efficacy is very good, such as: Yijianing growth-control preparation, sprayed Beiduofeng, and so on.

When is the best time for sweet potato growth control

First growth control: during the first expansion period of sweet potato, when the vines are about 35-45 cm long and the potato vines have begun to hang down from the ridges, commonly known as “xia liangzi”, elegantly called “two ridges seem to hold hands but do not hold hands”. At this time, it is the branching and tuber-setting period of sweet potato, with branching above ground and tuber formation below ground, so it is very critical.

Second growth control: generally about 65—70 days after planting, when it is entering the “rainy season”, with high temperature and high humidity. This is the season when sweet potato stems and leaves grow fastest, during the common growth period of vines and tubers, but the tubers expand relatively slowly, so heavy control is needed at this time.

Third growth control: generally about 85—90 days after planting, when the growth of sweet potato stems and leaves reaches its peak. In order to prepare for the arrival of the second expansion period of sweet potato, growth control should also be carried out in time at this time. In the second expansion period of sweet potato, when the vines are about 60-80 cm long, the ridges are basically closed. At this time, it is the golden period of sweet potato development, and heavy control should be applied.

Common sweet potato diseases and control

What generally harms sweet potato growth is leaf roller worms, aphids, white grubs, and field mice. Leaf roller worms and aphids generally harm sweet potato leaves and affect photosynthesis, while white grubs and field mice generally prefer to eat the sweet potatoes in the field, and they will bite and damage the sweet potatoes one by one. Generally, for pests that harm branches and leaves, spraying with trichlorfon solution is enough, but for things like field mice, spraying is not very effective, so trapping is generally used, placing field mice's favorite food mixed with rodenticide in the field to trap and kill them.

When planting sweet potatoes, be sure to pay attention to seed selection work, and then sow at the appropriate time. Management after sowing is also very important. Sweet potatoes also need good prevention and control work, which can be carried out in three time periods. Only by doing these well can the growth of sweet potatoes be ensured to be good.