Detailed Explanation of Key Points of Potato Cultivation with Plastic Mulch

Potato is also called "potato", it is an important food crop and can also be used as a vegetable, and many people eat it regularly. Potato cultivation also has technical requirements, so what are the potato cultivation techniques with plastic mulch?

1. Potato growth habits

Potato is an annual herbaceous plant of the Solanaceae family, Solanum genus, and its tubers are edible. Potato has many alternative names, such as "potato", "potato", "potato", "potato", "potato", "potato", "potato", "potato", etc.

The main potato producing countries include China, Russia, India, Ukraine, the United States, etc. China is the country with the largest total potato production in the world.

The growth and development of potato is also cyclical and can be roughly divided into four stages:

1. Mature tubers can only be sown as seed potatoes after a period of dormancy, that is, the dormancy stage;

2. After sowing, roots and sprouts grow by relying on their own nutrients to produce seedlings, that is, the autotrophic stage;

3. After emergence, organic matter is produced through photosynthesis, and the root system is used to absorb water and inorganic elements, forming a complete plant growth system until flowering reaches the maximum lushness of the plant, that is, the heterotrophic stage;

4. After flowering, the aboveground part stops growing, the tubers expand rapidly, and nutrients accumulate until maturity, that is, the tuber formation stage.

2. Potato cultivation techniques with plastic mulch

1. Choose a suitable sowing time. In mountainous areas, sow from mid-March to early April; in plain areas, sow from late January to early February. When sowing in mountainous areas, be sure to sow only after the ground has thawed.

2. Choose suitable planting land. For direct ridging, sow while there is moisture after ridging; if the underlying soil moisture is insufficient, supplement moisture.

Plant two rows per ridge, planting in the middle of the ridge. It is strictly forbidden to plant on the edge or even the slope of the ridge. When sowing, sow evenly in a “pin” shape. For furrow-opening and ridging, ridging, sowing, and mulching should be completed in one go, and be careful not to sow too deep, so as to prevent difficulty in emergence.

3. Plant according to a reasonable density, then cover with plastic mulch, pressing the plastic mulch into the soil and keeping it close to the ridge surface, which serves to raise temperature, preserve moisture, and eliminate weeds.

Density: row spacing on the ridge 30cm-40cm, plant spacing 25cm-30cm, sowing depth 5cm-8cm. Generally, the seed quantity is 100kg-150kg per 667 sq m.

Mulching: choose plastic mulch with a thickness of 0.005mm-0.006mm and a width of 80cm-100cm. Use 3kg-4kg of plastic mulch per 667 sq m. When mulching, open furrows on both sides of the ridge, spread the mulch flat along the length and width directions so that it fits closely to the ridge surface, and at the same time compact both sides with fine soil, pressing it into the soil 5cm-8cm. On the ridge, press some crushed soil every 1m to prevent strong winds from tearing or blowing away the mulch.