High-yielding potato variety "Farmer", requiring minimal care

A farmer is a potato that combines the best qualities that attract vegetable growers, gardeners, small and large agricultural producers. The variety is unpretentious, has high yields and requires minimal care. It is especially popular among farmers who grow potatoes for sale.

Description of the variety

Farmer - table potato variety of very early ripening. Tubers can be used to prepare various dishes, as well as for the production of chips and semi-finished products.

Origin and development

Potato Farmer was the result of many years of selection from various farms. The main goal of the farmers was to create a variety that was ideal for cultivation for subsequent sale.

Reference. Farm potatoes have persistent varietal characteristics, but are still not included in any register of agricultural crops.

Chemical composition, trace elements and vitamins

The tuber pulp contains 9-12% starch, amino acids, protein, fiber, as well as vitamins B, C, E, H, PP, calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium, phosphorus, sulfur, iron, zinc, copper, iodine, copper, selenium and chromium.

Characteristics and yield of potatoes Farmer

The plant is an erect bush of medium height with not too spreading side branches. The rich green leaf blades are small, with slightly wavy edges.The corolla is compact and consists of several large white flowers.

Medium-sized, oval-shaped tubers, are covered with a thin and smooth peel of light yellow color, on which small, shallow eyes are visible. The average weight of tubers is 90-110 g.

The pulp is light yellow and has a pleasant taste., does not darken for a long time in the open air and retains its shape during heat treatment.

Variety characterized by consistently high productivity: 10-15 tubers are formed on one bush; on average, 200-230 centners of potatoes are harvested from 1 hectare of land.

For which regions is it best suited?

Grow farm potatoes possible in any region with a temperate, continental or sharply continental climate, therefore it is successfully cultivated in Ukraine, Belarus and almost all regions of Russia.

Other potato varieties:

Potatoes "Krasa" with excellent presentation and taste

Potatoes Galaxy with a long shelf life

Difference from other varieties

Let's conduct a comparative analysis. The table shows the main indicators of different varieties.

The main advantages and disadvantages of the variety

Variety Farmer has a lot of positive characteristics:

• excellent taste;
• early maturation;
• high productivity;
• long-term storage;
• possibility of growing in different climatic conditions;
• resistance to degeneracy and most diseases.

Minuses:

• tendency to late blight when tubers remain in the ground for a long time;
• need for nutritious and moderately moist soil;
• the need to regularly treat the beds from aphids, cicadas and Colorado potato beetles.

Features of planting and growing

Potato Farmer can be grown from seeds and tubers. In the first case, the planting material must first be soaked in water for 2 days, and then placed on a damp cloth and left in a warm place for germination.

Spread the sprouted seeds on the surface of the soil, sprinkle with loose soil or sand and cover with film. After emergence of shoots, remove the film. After 2 weeks, pick into separate containers. When 4-5 leaves appear on the seedlings, transplant them into open ground.

Seed tubers are also needed pre-germinate for 7-10 days in a bright and warm place.

Preparation

Before planting potatoes the ground needs to be prepared as follows:

• in the fall, clear away weeds and debris;
• Before frost, dig to a depth of about 30 cm;
• In spring, loosen the soil surface well;
• 2-3 days before planting, add complex mineral fertilizers to the soil containing potassium, phosphorus and nitrogen, as well as humus, rotted manure or peat;
• To reduce the risk of disease development, before planting, treat with fungicides, for example, the drug "Prestige".

Dates, scheme and rules of planting

The timing of planting potatoes in open ground depends on the type of planting.: tubers should be planted in early or mid-May, seedlings - in the first half of May.

Reference. The seedlings must be at least 30 days old at the time of transplantation into open ground, so the seeds should be sown at the end of March.

It is important to ensure that at the time of planting there are completely no night frosts, and the average daily temperature does not fall below +10...+15°C.

Scheme:

• divide the area into even rows at a distance of 60 cm from each other;
• dig small holes in them at intervals of 20-25 cm;
• pour humus, peat and wood ash on the bottom of each, pour in a little water;
• remove the seedlings from individual containers along with a lump of earth;
• place them in the prepared holes, leaving 3 leaves above the soil surface;
• sprinkle the roots with loose soil;
• cover the beds with film to speed up the rooting of seedlings;
• lift the film daily for ventilation, and remove it after the plants have adapted to the open air.

Tubers should be planted in the same way, placing them with their sprouts facing up.

See the end of the video at the end of the article.

Features of cultivation

For successful potato growing some rules must be followed:

• for the fastest growth of tops and rapid ripening of tubers, the crop should be planted in a well-lit area;
• exclude cold drafts, which weaken the immunity of plants and contribute to the development of late blight;
• choose an area with a high level of groundwater, which will prevent the potatoes from dying during dry periods.

It is not recommended to plant potatoes after nightshades.. The best predecessors for the crop are legumes, grains, cabbage, cucumbers, carrots, peppers and garlic.

Important! Potatoes can be planted in the same area no earlier than after 3 years.

The soil should be light and fertile, contain black soil or sand. It is important that it allows air, water and solar heat to pass through well - this will have a beneficial effect on the development and maturation of tubers.

Nuances of care

To get a high-quality harvest, you need to properly care for your potatoes.

At least 2 times when the bushes reach 12-15 cm in height and 20 days after that, you need to hill up the crop, and to preserve moisture and prevent the growth of weeds, mulch the ground with cut grass or straw.

Watering mode

Variety The farmer is picky about watering, especially during the formation of tubers. Drying out the soil negatively affects the quality and volume of the crop.

It is necessary to moisten the soil as the top layer of soil dries out, pouring 3 liters of water under each adult bush. Under favorable weather conditions, 3 waterings are sufficient: after emergence, during the formation of buds and at the end of the flowering period. To avoid moisture evaporation, it is better to water in the evening.

Reference. For uniform moistening, it is better to use a drip irrigation system.

The soil should be loosened after each irrigation.. If this is not done, the soil becomes compacted and its ability to pass air is reduced, and the lack of oxygen leads to the withering of the tubers.

Top dressing

Throughout the growing season, the crop need to be fed at least 2-3 times:

• 2 weeks after emergence;
• during flowering and tuber formation.

You can use mineral and complex fertilizers (urea, potassium sulfate, ash, “Ammofoska”), as well as organic fertilizers in the form of diluted manure, bird droppings, herbal infusion made from any weeds.

Foliar feeding required, for example, spraying bushes with a superphosphate solution.

Read also:

Unpretentious mid-season potato variety “Irbitsky”

Easy-to-care and productive potato variety Lasunok

Disease and pest control

The variety is resistant to potato blight, viral diseases, golden cyst nematode. However, there are other diseases and pests that affect mature plants.

Difficulties in growing

Growing potatoes Farmer from seeds or tubers is economically profitable, but in the process you may encounter some difficulties:

• lack of preliminary soaking of seeds leads to poor germination;
• excessive deepening of hatched seeds leads to their rotting;
• water getting on the sprouts while watering the seedlings is the cause of the development of blackleg;
• The seedlings may become too stretched and tangled - this interferes with picking.

It is important to follow the rules of agricultural technologyto avoid such problems.

Harvest and storage

The ripening period of tubers is influenced by the climatic conditions of the region and the method of cultivation.. You can tell that the potatoes are ready for harvesting by the massive yellowing of the tops.

How and when to collect

Harvesting can begin in late July - mid-August, that is, 50-60 days after planting, and in case of favorable weather conditions and proper storage of seed tubers - already after 40-50 days.

Harvest on a sunny, warm day., carefully digging up the bushes with a shovel and manually selecting tubers. Harvested potatoes should be cleared of soil and placed in baskets to avoid mechanical damage.

Storage features and keeping quality of the variety

Tubers must be sorted, discarding rotten and spoiled ones., leave some for later planting and remove the main crop for storage, after drying it in the shade under a canopy.

It is better to store potatoes in wooden boxes in a dark room. with moderate humidity and good ventilation at a temperature of +2…+5°C. Keeping quality of tubers is at least 90%. Under proper conditions, the crop is stored until spring.

Advice from experienced gardeners and reviews

According to reviews, when growing potatoes, the Farmer from seeds Even experienced gardeners face problems Therefore, it is better to start getting acquainted with this variety by planting tubers.

Vasily, Krasnodar: “We didn’t become friends with this variety right away. First, we bought seeds, planted them, and after 1.5 months we collected 4 kg of potatoes from 1 bag, and the tubers were the size of a chicken egg. A year later, they planted tubers and then they realized the beauty of the variety: from 1 bucket of seed potatoes, 4 buckets of large, even tubers grew, as in the photo on the pack. The taste is excellent, the harvest is stored perfectly".

Maria, Ufa: “Unfortunately, I have had unsuccessful experience growing a Farmer from seeds. I bought seeds from SeDeK, the instructions said to soak them in Energen on March 18th. I did so. They hatched within 5 days. I planted them in a tray, but only 1 sprout sprouted, and even that grew to 1 cm and froze, and then completely died.”.

Conclusion

The farmer is suitable for cultivation in almost all regions of Russia, as well as in Ukraine and Belarus. The popularity of the variety is due to its high yield, resistance to most diseases and good shelf life despite its early ripening period.