When is the best time to harvest sweet potatoes? Master the optimal harvest period
When is the right time to harvest sweet potatoes? Please give detailed guidance. The sweet potato harvest period can be determined by referring to the following methods for reference: 1. You can harvest based on soil temperature. When the soil temperature is around 18°C, the weight of sweet potatoes increases very little; when the soil temperature is around 15°C, the sweet potatoes stop expanding; when the soil temperature stays below 9°C for a long time, chilling injury will occur...
When is the right time to harvest sweet potatoes? Please give detailed guidanceThe sweet potato harvest period can be determined by referring to the following methods for reference:
1. You can harvest based on soil temperature. When the soil temperature is around 18°C, the weight of sweet potatoes increases very little; when the soil temperature is around 15°C, the sweet potatoes stop expanding; when the soil temperature stays below 9°C for a long time, chilling injury will occur. Therefore, generally when the soil temperature reaches 18°C, harvesting of sweet potatoes begins, and harvesting is completed before the killing frost. Spring sweet potatoes used for drying or those grown after clearing the previous crop to plant winter wheat are generally harvested before Cold Dew, summer sweet potatoes kept for seed are harvested before Frost's Descent, and sweet potatoes stored for eating are harvested a little later, but they must be fully harvested before the killing frost.
2. Harvest based on soil moisture. Soil that is too dry or too wet is unfavorable for harvesting sweet potatoes. If too dry, the soil moisture content decreases, the soil temperature varies greatly, the sweet potatoes are prone to chilling injury, and they are not easy to dig out. If too wet, the soil moisture content is too high, and the sweet potatoes are not only difficult to dig out but also have a high moisture content, making them unsuitable for storage after harvest. When the soil is too wet, the sweet potato vines should first be cut off and left to dry for a few days, and harvesting should wait until the soil is slightly dry.
3. Harvest based on whether the crop is kept for seed. Summer sweet potatoes kept for seed should preferably be harvested on a sunny morning, dried in the field for a while, and put into the cellar that afternoon. Do not leave them in the field overnight to avoid chilling injury.
4. Store according to use. After the sweet potatoes are harvested, the tubers can be selected in the field, removing diseased, damaged and water-soaked tubers, and stored separately according to different uses and varieties. From harvesting to storage, minimize the number of times they are turned over, and pay attention to handling, placing, loading and transporting them gently to avoid bruising the skin of the tubers.
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