Key cultivation points for potatoes (Solanum tuberosum) yielding over ten thousand jin per mu

Potato, also known as Solanum tuberosum, is a common staple food in our country. Because of its high food value and the fact that it can be planted simply by preparing potatoes you already have at home, it is grown in many places. Currently, in some areas, one mu of land can produce over ten thousand jin. So how is it grown? Here is a brief introduction to the technique of planting with plastic film mulch.

I. What are the benefits of planting with plastic film mulch?

1. In suburban areas of cities, industrial and mining areas, and places with convenient transportation and sales markets, using plastic film mulch to grow potatoes can not only make the potatoes mature earlier and reach the market sooner, increasing returns, but also increase yield and raise the proportion of large tubers. Generally, yield can be increased by 20%-70%, and the proportion of large tubers can increase by about 25%.

2. Growing potatoes with plastic film mulch is relatively labor-intensive, so it is suitable for places with little land, abundant labor, and a planting area that is not too large.

II. How do you plant with plastic film mulch?

1. Selecting and preparing the land:

For growing potatoes with plastic film mulch, the site selection requirements are: flat terrain, with gentle slopes within 5-10 degrees; deep soil, reaching more than 50 cm; loose soil texture, preferably loam or light sandy loam, with strong fertilizer and water retention; a water source, with convenient irrigation and drainage; and a plot with medium or higher fertility. Steep slopes, gravelly land, sandy pockets, barren land, and waterlogged lowland should not be chosen. For growing potatoes with plastic film mulch, land preparation requirements are relatively strict. On the basis of deep plowing to 20-25 cm with uniform depth, the soil should be finely prepared and harrowed so that it reaches the requirements of being deep, loose, level, and clean. Specifically, it should be level with no drainage furrows, with fine soil and no clods, clean with no stones, no stubble, and no debris, and with good soil moisture. If necessary, you can irrigate first to increase moisture, and then prepare the land.

2. Applying fertilizer and pesticide:

For potatoes grown with plastic film mulch, topdressing during the growing period is too labor-intensive, so sufficient base fertilizer must be applied all at once before mulching. The fertilizer should be mainly farmyard manure, with more than 4000 kg of farmyard manure applied per 667 sq m (1 mu). Then, according to the requirements of formula fertilization, use chemical fertilizers to supplement nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, and trace elements. Based on the current fertilization level of farmers, apply 15-20 kg of diammonium phosphate, 8-10 kg of urea, 20 kg of potassium sulfate or potassium chloride, and 1.5-2 kg of zinc silicate per mu, or apply 30-40 kg of a three-element compound fertilizer with 15% each of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, or 50 kg of special potato fertilizer. To control soil-dwelling pests, apply 1.5-2 kg of carbofuran per mu.

There are two fertilization methods: one is to evenly spread farmyard manure, chemical fertilizers, and pesticides on the soil surface before making the beds, then harrow them into the soil so that fertilizer, pesticide, and soil are fully mixed; the other is, while making the beds, to spread farmyard manure and pesticides into the sowing furrows and chemical fertilizers into the fertilizer furrows, then cover them with soil when making the beds.

3. Making the beds:

After preparing the land, make the beds. The bed bottom width is 80 cm, the top width is 70-75 cm, the bed height is 10-15 cm, and the distance between two beds is 40 cm. One bed plus one furrow forms one strip, and one strip is 1.2 m wide. In actual operation, use the “five-plow, one-rake” bed-making method. That is, the first plow opens the first furrow 40 cm from the edge of the field, with a furrow depth of about 15 cm, and the second furrow is opened 40 cm from the center of the first furrow. If fertilizer is to be spread beforehand, spread farmyard manure and insecticide into the bottom of the furrows, keeping the furrow depth at about 12 cm. If sowing before mulching, first sow the seed pieces into the furrows, with a plant spacing of 22-25 cm. Then open the third plow furrow 35 cm from the other side of the first furrow, and similarly open the fourth plow furrow on the other side of the second furrow, and have these two plowings throw soil toward the first and second furrows. Finally, between the first and second plow furrows (the sowing furrows), open a shallow fifth furrow (6 cm deep) specifically as a fertilizer furrow, apply the full amount of chemical fertilizer into the furrow, and form the bed blank. After that, use a rake to smooth it finely, level the first, second, and fifth furrows, rake the bed surface well, and shape the bed shoulders so that the bed surface is level, fine, and clean, slightly raised in the middle, forming a flat ridge shape. The bed shoulders should be level and uniform in height so that herbicide can be sprayed and plastic film can be applied. The first furrow of the next bed is 80 cm from the center of the second furrow of the previous bed, and the second furrow is still 40 cm from the first furrow. By analogy, this forms mulched beds in strips 1.2 m wide. After the seedlings emerge, this becomes a large-and-small ridge form with a large row spacing of 80 cm and a small row spacing of 40 cm.

4. Spraying herbicide:

After the beds are made, immediately spray a herbicide that kills weed seedlings. Tests have shown that herbicides with good weed-killing effects include acetochlor, trifluralin, and pendimethalin. The usual dosages are: per 667 sq m (1 mu), 100-130 ml of acetochlor liquid at 90% concentration, or 130-200 ml at 50% concentration; 100-150 ml of trifluralin at 48%; and 120-130 ml of pendimethalin at 72%. Dilute the above amounts in 30-40 L of water respectively and spray onto the beds and bed furrows. If only the beds are sprayed and not the bed furrows, the dosage can be reduced by 1/4.

5. Laying film and sowing:

The plastic film used should be ultra-thin film 90-100 cm wide and 0.005-0.008 mm thick, using 4-5 kg of film per 667 sq m (1 mu). When laying the film, pull it tight and close to the ground. The film at the bed ends and bed edges should be buried about 10 cm into the soil, covered and pressed firmly with soil, and stepped down firmly with the feet. When covering with film, grasp the essentials of “tight, firm, level, and wide”: the edges must be pressed firmly, the film must be stretched tight, the film surface must be level, and the exposed light-receiving surface must be wide. To prevent the film from being lifted off by the wind, make a small soil ridge on the bed surface every few meters. If the film is laid before sowing, sowing can begin a few days after mulching once the temperature inside the bed rises. When sowing, on the mulched bed along lines 20 cm on each side of the centerline (that is, a small row spacing of 40 cm), use a small transplanting trowel or a specially made punching tool to break the film and dig holes. The holes should not be too large, with a hole spacing of 24-26 cm and a depth of 8 cm, and the depth should be uniform. The sown seed pieces or small whole seed potatoes should be covered firmly with moist soil, tapped lightly, and the film holes sealed so that the holes do not leak air.