Latest Potato Seed Prices and Planting Methods

The potato is the world's fourth most important food crop, with the scientific name Solanum tuberosum and also known as the Irish potato, earth egg, potato and so on. It is a perennial herbaceous plant in the genus Solanum of the family Solanaceae, native to the Andes region of South America. Its tubers are edible, and together with wheat, rice, corn and sorghum it is known as one of the world's five major crops. Let's take a look at potato seed prices and planting methods below!

How much is a jin of potato seeds?

The price of potato seeds is about 1 to 2 yuan per jin, but prices vary greatly depending on seed quality, variety, place of origin and market. The potato was introduced into our country only a little over three hundred years ago, but there are very many cultivated varieties, including purple, red, black and yellow potatoes, rainbow potatoes and so on. At the same time, our country is also the world's largest producer of potatoes by total output, with the main producing areas being Dingxi City in Gansu, Guyuan City in Ningxia, the southwest, Inner Mongolia and the northeast region.

The potato's growth cycle

1. Dormancy period: After the potato is harvested and placed in an environment suitable for sprouting, it cannot sprout for a long time. This is a physiological natural dormancy. Its duration is related to the storage quality of the tubers, to whether seedlings can emerge in time after sowing, and therefore to the level of yield.

2. Sprouting period: From bud emergence to seedling emergence is the sprouting period, during which the first section of the main stem grows. Growth in the sprouting period focuses on bud elongation, root formation and stolon formation. Nutrients and water mainly come from the seed potato and are supplied in the order of stems and leaves and then roots.

3. Seedling period: From seedling emergence to the flattening of the sixth or eighth leaf, that is, completing the growth of one phyllotaxy, is the second section of main stem growth and is the potato's seedling period. The seedling period is relatively short, lasting only a brief half month whether in spring or autumn cultivation.

4. Vigorous growth period: From the rosette stage to the unfolding of the twelfth or sixteenth leaf, with early-maturing varieties flowering at the first inflorescence and late-maturing varieties flowering at the second inflorescence, is the potato's vigorous growth period. It lasts about 1 month and is the third section of main stem growth.

5. Tuber formation period: After the vigorous growth period is completed, the potato enters the tuber formation period, dominated by tuber growth. The organic nutrients in all parts of the plant are continuously transported to the tubers, and the tubers then expand faster, especially fastest in the 10 days after the flowering period, generally lasting 30 to 50 days.

Potato sowing methods

1. Choosing field soil: The potato has strong adaptability. Its main requirement for soil is looseness, and it is not strict about soil acidity or alkalinity, being suitable within a pH range of 5.0 to 8.0. It is best to choose sandy soil or loam with higher terrain, loose soil, deep soil layers, convenient drainage and irrigation, and fertility.

2. Selecting good varieties: For potato cultivation, virus-free varieties that are early-maturing, high-yielding and disease-resistant should be selected. Seed potatoes should have neat tuber shape, moderate size, smooth and tender skin, distinct sprouts and roots, intact tubers, no pests or diseases, and no frost damage, and should be mature tubers, with a size of 25 to 50 grams being suitable.

3. Seed treatment: When planting potatoes, first place the seed potatoes in sunlight for 2 to 3 days, 3 to 4 hours per day, and remove diseased and bad potatoes. Large seed potatoes should be cut into pieces, then evenly mixed with plant ash plus 4 to 8% thiophanate-methyl or carbendazim to promote healing of the cut surfaces and disinfect them.

4. Land preparation and fertilization: Before sowing potatoes, in combination with land preparation, apply per mu 3000 to 4000 kilograms of decomposed farmyard manure, 25 kilograms of diammonium phosphate, 20 kilograms of urea, 15 kilograms of potassium sulfate, 1 to 1.5 kilograms of zinc sulfate, or 50 kilograms of ammonium bicarbonate, 50 kilograms of superphosphate and 25 kilograms of potassium sulfate.

5. Sowing at the right time: Potatoes can generally be sown in early to mid-March when the soil temperature is stable at 3 to 5°C. Then cover the bed surface with plastic film and press the edges of the film firmly with fine soil, pressing a clod of soil every 2 to 3 meters to prevent the wind from damaging the film and affecting the heat-preservation effect.

Potato planting methods

1. Scientific seedling release: Once potato seedlings have grown 1 to 2 leaves and no cold wave is coming, the seedlings can be released. Cut a cross-shaped opening in the plastic film directly over the seedling and guide the seedling out of the film, then grab a handful of fine soil to seal the film tightly around the seedling to help preserve heat and moisture.

2. Fertilizer and water management: After the potatoes have all emerged, cultivate and weed in time. During the bud and flowering stages, spray the leaves with potassium dihydrogen phosphate or micronutrient fertilizer 1 to 2 times to supplement phosphorus fertilizer, potassium fertilizer and trace elements. When flower buds have formed and inflorescences are emerging, remove them in time.

3. Combining promotion and control: When the aboveground part of the potato grows too vigorously, it will affect the expansion of the underground tubers. Attention should be paid to controlling excessive aboveground growth. Use 50 to 80 grams of 15% paclobutrazol wettable powder per mu, mixed with 45 kilograms of water, and spray evenly on the leaves.

4. Timely harvest: For fields where potatoes are sold as vegetables, seize the opportunity of early market listing and high value, and harvest and sell early after flowering. Although the yield is low, the output value is high. Potatoes for other uses should be harvested after they are fully mature, so that the highest yield can be obtained.

5. Pest and disease control

① Ring rot: Ring rot causes relatively great damage to potato growth. If it occurs on a large scale, it can lead to reduced yield or total crop failure. Therefore, ring rot must be cut off at the source by choosing disease-free seed potatoes and paying attention to disinfecting cutting tools when cutting pieces to avoid cross-infection.

② Viral disease: Viral disease is an infectious virus. In the early stage of the disease, chemical control can be carried out by spraying 300-fold solution of Kangdufeng (0.5% mushroom polysaccharide aqueous solution) or 500-fold solution of 20% Virus A wettable powder, etc.

③ Ladybugs: Ladybugs can be killed by spraying any of several methods, such as 1000-fold solution each of 80% trichlorfon wettable powder or 80% dichlorvos emulsifiable concentrate, 2.5% deltamethrin emulsifiable concentrate, or 3000-fold solution of 10% cypermethrin emulsifiable concentrate, spraying once every 10 days.

④ Underground pests: For underground pests such as mole crickets, grubs and cutworms, use 2 to 3 kilograms of 3% phorate granules per mu, prepare them into poisonous soil at a medicine-to-soil ratio of 1:10, spread evenly on the soil surface, and apply during land preparation.