Potatoes bloom, depending on the variety, with white and purple flowers. These pretty inflorescences are cut off by some gardeners, and there are also opponents of this method of increasing productivity. The dispute between them has been going on for more than one century.
Background
Growing potatoes throughout Russia began only in the nineteenth century. The researchers noticed that a quarter of the plant's nutrition is spent on flowering and seed formation. Thus, the conclusion was made: if you cut off the flowers, the food will remain for the tubers, the yield will increase.
At the end of the nineteenth century, one of the peasants conducted an experiment. He planted potatoes in the garden. I cut off all the flowers on one, and left it on the other. When harvesting, it turned out that on a ridge with removed flowers, the yield was almost twice as high.
The method began to be used in fields with potato plantings. The large space was difficult to handle by hand. A skating rink was launched for planting, which broke off the stems of plants. The harvest has become higher, but only by 10%.
In the Soviet period, schoolchildren picked flowers on the collective farm fields.
Soviet scientists in 1946 concluded that in the middle lane the removal of flowers is not advisable, since this not only did not increase the yield, but, on the contrary, lowered it.
How to explain it? New varieties of potatoes have been bred that produce fewer buds. They spend less than 5% of their nutrition on the formation of flowers. And to recover from damage, you need more strength.
Scientists have ceased to deal with this issue, and the owners of private plots are still arguing whether this should be done.
Should you pick flowers from potatoes?
Everyone makes their own decision about this. I never do it. And my neighbor, who was born before the war, plants a lot of potatoes and always picks off the flowers.
There are arguments for and against this process. Why you shouldn't remove flowers:
- Each plant seeks to leave offspring, that is, to complete its development cycle. Potatoes will tend to bloom even after the flower clusters are removed, supplying nutrients upwards. It follows from this that the tubers will not receive part of the nutrition.
- The potato variety degenerates if the flowers are constantly removed. Its renewal is possible only through seeds. The yield gradually decreases, the tubers become smaller.
- Cutting off buds and flowers reduces the immunity of plants. They can easily become infected.
- To remove flowers, a person is forced to walk between rows, trampling down the soil. Air does not penetrate well to the roots, as a result, the yield decreases. In addition, fungi, viruses, bacteria can be transferred on the legs, which leads to plant diseases and inhibition of its development.
- The process takes time and effort.
Before deciding whether to cut off flowers from potatoes, you can experiment by repeating the experience of a peasant from the 19th century. How I did it:
- planted a crop of the same variety on two different ridges;
- on one he broke off flowers;
- on the second let it bloom and form seed boxes.
Early varieties and varieties that do not form flowers or are few in number are not suitable for the experiment.
When harvesting, you can be sure that bushes with removed flowers produce more tubers, but they are small. In another case, potatoes grow large and even.
In my opinion, it is not worth interfering in the cycle of cultural development. Violent interruption of flowering leads to diseases, and practically does not affect the yield.
Do you cut buds and flowers on potatoes? What arguments do you have for and against this process? Share with us in the comments.
Read also: We protect the crop from the attack of the Colorado potato beetle, diseases.
Another related article: Morozko pepper: description, secrets of successful cultivation
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