Advantages and disadvantages of growing potatoes using Dutch technology

Dutch farmers, despite the small amount of land available for growing crops, managed to achieve high potato yields even on small plots. From 1 hectare they manage to collect up to 50 tons of selected crops. What is the secret of planting potatoes in Holland and whether this technology is applicable to Russian conditions, we will tell you further.

Features of the Dutch method of growing potatoes

The Dutch method involves abandoning holes and beds and comes down to planting in furrows. The second feature is a special approach to the preparation of seed material. If you follow the full range of agrotechnical measures, you can get about 35 tons of potatoes, and under good weather conditions - up to 50 tons.

Description and essence of the method

The essence comes down to the precise implementation of all agrotechnical techniques in terms of timing and quality. The emphasis is on increased soil aeration and planting potatoes in ridges with a wide distance between rows.

To increase productivity, start by germinating tubers. It allows you to reduce the time of crop cultivation by up to two weeks and reduce the risk of lack of seedlings.

The soil is prepared in a special way – Dutch planting requires optimal looseness. Soil preparation begins in the fall and continues in the spring after the snow melts. Autumn treatment includes digging up the area, removing weeds and applying mineral fertilizers, especially nitrogen-containing ones.In spring, the soil is loosened using a cultivator to a depth of 10-15 cm and phosphate and potassium fertilizers are applied - superphosphate and potassium sulfate.

The main essence of the technique is planting according to a certain algorithm and scheme. A distance of 70-85 cm is maintained between rows, and 30 cm between bushes. It is convenient to use potato planters. The holes are dug manually using a fork or shovel to a depth of 6-9 cm. The prepared and germinated seed material is placed sprouts up and covered with soil.

What are the specifics

When cultivating potatoes using the Dutch method, it is important:

• use varietal potatoes;
• follow the rules of crop rotation;
• apply fertilizers in a timely manner;
• treat against pests, bacteria and viruses;
• carefully prepare the seed;
• properly treat the soil;
• use milling tools;
• follow the disembarkation plan.

Are all varieties suitable for this method?

To plant potatoes using this method, only high-quality potatoes purchased from nurseries are used.

Dutch varieties are best suited:

• Cleopatra is an early variety for sandy and clay soil;
• Frisia is a mid-season potato with high resistance to viral diseases;
• Eba is a mid-late yellow tuber variety with high immunity;
• Mona Lisa is a high-yielding mid-early variety with the highest disease resistance, suitable for regions with a poor epidemic situation for potato diseases;
• Asterix is ​​a mid-season variety with high keeping quality;
• Prior is an early variety with high resistance to nematodes and late blight.

Advantages and disadvantages

The positive aspects of agricultural technology include:

• high productivity;
• good consumer and product qualities;
• long-term preservation;
• low risk of lack of seedlings;
• active formation of tubers in each plant;
• impossibility of waterlogging.

However, the method also has disadvantages:

• high time and energy costs for preparing soil and seed;
• using only varietal potatoes;
• the difficulty of crop rotation in small areas;
• the need to strictly follow the scheme and all recommendations;
• difficulties associated with the timing of agricultural practices.

Necessary materials

To accurately follow the entire methodology, certain materials and tools are required:

• varietal potatoes;
• mineral fertilizers – nitrogen, phosphate, potassium;
• cultivator;
• potato planter;
• pitchfork;
• shovel.

For farms:

• trailed planters;
• milling installations for weed control;
• elevator diggers for harvesting.

Seed material of the second reproduction with high varietal purity is purchased.

Conditions for growing potatoes using Dutch technology

The technique is very accurate and requires a certain looseness of the soil and compliance with crop rotation rules.

An important condition is certified seed potatoes. Standardized tubers with a diameter of 30-50 mm and a weight of 50 g are suitable for planting. Each tuber must have at least 5 eyes. Before planting, secondary sorting is carried out and only those materials are selected whose sprout length does not exceed 5 mm for mechanical planting and 2 cm for manual planting.

The tubers are planted in soil heated to +8…+10°C. Humidity is checked as follows: take the soil in the palm of your hand, squeeze it and throw it down. If the lump crumbles, the soil is ready.

Potatoes are grown in places where legumes (beans, peas) and cereals (oats or rye) previously grew.Oats can be used as green manure in the fall. A crop should not be planted in one area more than once every 3 years.

Landing technology

Compliance with technology and all agricultural techniques is a key feature of the method. The slightest deviation threatens to reduce yields, produce weak plants and a small number of tubers. We will tell you in detail how potatoes are planted in Holland.

Site preparation

For planting, choose a flat area without the slightest slope. The place must be sunny, on a slight hill, but in no case in the lowlands where water accumulates. Also, the area should be protected from constant winds to avoid blowing out and drying out the ridges.

The soil should be light and loose, heavy soils are lightened by adding river sand, too light soils are weighted with peat.

Preparing tubers for planting

For planting, select whole tubers without signs of damage or disease, with a diameter of 3 to 5 cm and a weight of 50-60 g. Each tuber must have at least 5 eyes.

Germination begins 30 days before planting. The tubers are poured in one layer in a dark place at a temperature of +16...+18°C. The best bedding is paper or cotton fabric. Number of storeys is not allowed to avoid waterlogging of the upper tubers from evaporation from the lower tiers.

For mechanical planting, the sprouts must be from 5 to 8 mm long; for the manual method, a length of 1-2 cm is allowed. Tubers are sorted according to the length of the sprouts on the eve of planting. Sprouts that are too long will break off using the mechanical method, so they are only suitable for the manual method.

Soil preparation

Soil preparation begins in the autumn after the harvest of predecessor plants.Using a reversible plow, the soil is dug up to a depth of 25-36 cm, removing weeds and their roots.

Plows swap the top and bottom layers of the soil, which makes it possible to simultaneously disinfect it for pests hibernating in the deep layers. Simultaneously with digging, nitrogen-containing fertilizers are applied, for example, ammonium nitrate or “Nitroammofoska” in an amount of 3 kg per 1 sq.m of soil. It is allowed to sow cereals, alfalfa, clover or sweet clover as green manure.

In the spring, after the soil has warmed up to +10°C, it is loosened using a cultivator to a depth of 10-15 cm. After loosening, double superphosphate (30 g per 1 m²) and potassium sulfate (30 g per 1 m²) are added.

During sowing, a thin layer - no more than 0.5 cm - of rotted manure, humus, dry chicken droppings and crushed shells is laid in the furrows. To prevent the appearance of wireworms, dry crushed onion peels are scattered.

Landing dates

When planting in Russian conditions, they rely on the climatic conditions of the region. The risk of night frosts must be avoided. Otherwise, the tubers will freeze.

Optimal timing: end of April – beginning of May, however, in a year with a cold spring they can move away until the beginning of June.

Planting scheme

In the Dutch method, row spacing is of great importance. To obtain a good harvest, a width of 65-70 cm is set for early potato varieties, and 75-80 cm for late varieties. This facilitates subsequent hilling and reduces the risk of cutting the developing root system.

The distance between the bushes should be 25-30 cm. The tubers are placed in holes or furrows with their sprouts up and covered with soil to a depth of 4-6 cm.

Further care

Caring for plants after planting is one of the key features of the technique.It includes regular hilling, fertilizing, pest control and weeding.

Top dressing

Before the first hilling, the seedlings are watered at the root with 1 tbsp. l. urea per 9 liters of warm water - 1 liter per bush. The row spaces are watered with a solution of rotted cow or chicken manure.

3 weeks after the appearance of the first shoots, additional ammonium nitrate is added to the beds: 20 g are diluted in 5 liters of warm water per 1 bush and carried out watering under the root. You can also add 20 g of dry matter before hilling.

Hilling

Hilling up bushes carried out using a hoe, raking the soil around the plant. The result is a ridge, the height of which should not exceed 25 cm, and the width at the base - 70-75 cm. In large areas for hilling walk-behind tractors are used.

The first hilling is carried out when 3-4 true leaves appear. The earth is raked high to the leaves (8-12 cm in height and 30-35 cm wide at the base). After 2 weeks, the procedure is repeated until the ridge of the required height is obtained.

Weed control

After sowing, high-quality herbicides are used to control weeds rather than weeding.

On the Russian market, the following are considered good drugs:

1. "Roundup". A surface treatment agent that affects cereal and dicotyledonous weeds. Apply directly to leaves and young shoots of weeds in dry, windless weather. The optimal concentration is 1-3%.
2. "Centurion". The drug is superficial, concentrated at growth points. Used in conjunction with Amigo in a ratio of 1:3.

Watering mode

Watering is carried out no more than 3 times per season. The first watering occurs at the time of flowering, the second - 10 days after it, the third - after the end of flowering.

Protection from diseases and pests

Dutch varieties are weakly resistant to late blight. Plantings are treated 5-6 times per season, following the sequence of preparations, if possible of biological origin. The most commonly used drugs are “Skor”, “Topaz”, “HOM”.

To prevent viral diseases, treatment is carried out against aphids, wireworms and Colorado potato beetle (“Bankol”, “Korado”, “Beetle Eater”). All pest control is carried out strictly before flowering begins.

Difficulties in the process of growing potatoes using Dutch technology

The main difficulties when growing potatoes using the Dutch method are the purchase of seed, the price of which is high, and compliance with agricultural technology deadlines. The latter is associated with different weather conditions, fluctuating from year to year, especially in the Urals and Siberia.

Another difficulty in dacha conditions is the need to allocate a large area and wide ridges. In this case, it is possible to adapt the method without using the full set of all agricultural practices.

Harvest dates

Late harvesting leads to loss of taste and poor keeping quality of tubers. Seed potatoes are harvested in early August, food potatoes - in early September. 10-15 days before harvesting, remove the tops, leaving 5-7 cm from the surface of the ridge.

In small areas, the crop is harvested manually using a fork, shovel or potato digger; on farms, an elevator digger is used.

Tips and recommendations from experienced gardeners

To increase productivity, it is not necessary to immediately switch to the entire complex of the Dutch method. You can draw up a technological map of the list of works and deadlines, determine the quality of the soil, its acidity.

You can start by establishing proper crop rotation and purchasing high-quality planting material. Then gradually switch to agrotechnical techniques characteristic of the method.

Adaptation of the Dutch method to our country conditions

Adaptation comes down to processing the substrate and the use of certain agricultural practices. In small areas, manual weed removal without the use of chemicals is allowed.

Tubers can be planted in shallow furrows to form low ridges without further hilling.

Conclusion

The Dutch method of growing potatoes allows you to significantly increase the yield per 1 hectare, but requires strict adherence to deadlines and agricultural technology. It takes a lot of energy, time and money to purchase high-quality seed, but these expenses are worthwhile. The resulting potatoes have high taste, good transportability and a long shelf life.