Means for processing potatoes and rules for the procedure

The Colorado potato beetle is a major potato problem. This beetle will destroy the plantings cleanly if they are not processed. And this applies not only to an adult insect, but also to their larvae. Damaged plants cannot recover and germinate well. The result is losses. Farmers and gardeners have long been trying to find a way to protect themselves from the Colorado potato beetle. And processing potatoes from the Colorado potato beetle before planting is an effective method. Today, there are effective drugs that make growing potatoes before germination less risky.

Colorado potato beetle - the cause of the drop in yield

The Colorado potato beetle is a gluttonous insect. Not only worms, but also adults are able to eat large quantities potato tubers... In principle, these insects eat any plant of the Solanaceae family. But the larvae of the Colorado potato beetle are most active in eating food.

One larva requires about 80 milligrams of green mass. During her life, she eats 750 milligrams.

The entire vegetative period has to deal with this pest. All means are used. But potato shoots can be protected. To do this, it is required to process the potato tubers that are being planted. The fact is that adults spend the winter in the ground at a depth of 50 centimeters, so nothing prevents them from attacking the seed material.

Means for protecting potato tubers

To obtain a harvest, farmers will have to process potato tubers from the Colorado potato beetle. Seeds are processed before they are planted in the ground and it is required to wait until they are absorbed into the potatoes. So the treatment will not be afraid of rain. There are professional remedies, and there are folk remedies.

Industrial professional protection

The processing of potatoes before planting from the Colorado potato beetle at a quality level is carried out using pesticides, which are offered by manufacturers in a wide range. There are foreign high-quality drugs, but the domestic industrial one produces no less effective drugs. If you need to check the quality, then there is no better tool than consumer reviews.

Note! Domestic and foreign drugs have the same effectiveness. But the cost of the former is much lower.

Below are domestic products that answer the question of how to process potatoes:

1. Prestige. Reliable remedy. To prepare a working solution, you will need 50 milliliters of poison per 3 liters of water. This volume of solution is enough to process 50 kilograms of tubers.
2. Maxim. Often used together with Prestige.Feature of the drug - protects not only potatoes before planting, but also the soil around them after planting.
3. Cruiser. The drug affects not only the Colorado potato beetle, but also viral diseases of potatoes... Protection lasts one and a half months. The cultivation of potatoes by experienced farmers has proven to be effective.
4. Taboo. The drug acts on any insects that live in the soil and can affect potatoes. Potato tubers are protected for a month and a half, while precipitation does not reduce the effect of the drug.

Take a look also

Instructions for the use of Ammofosk fertilizer and its composition

Note! The protective effect can be easily enhanced if the drugs are used in combination.

Traditional methods

At the beginning of the 19th century, the Colorado potato beetle came to the domestic open spaces. Among birds, the insect has no enemies, so it feels safe. To save their crops, farmers had to come up with effective measures to control the pest. Some of them are still used by people on personal plots.

Folk remedies for processing potatoes are less effective in comparison with industrial pesticides, however, they are environmentally friendly and harmless to potatoes. Their list:

1. Ash. Previously, it was used as a fertilizer. However, later it turned out that the furnace ash solution protects the tubers. To do this, you need to dilute the ash and water in a ratio of 1 to 10 and dip the tubers in the solution before planting. Do not spray the ash through the sprayer - this is its disadvantage.
2. Potassium permanganate. A common remedy for farmers. For 10 liters of water, you will need to fill in 1 gram of potassium permanganate. The result is an effective solution in which you want to dip the tubers seed potatoes or spray process liberally through a sprayer.
3. Boric acid. Some gardeners use it for lack of potassium permanganate. You will need 15 grams per 10 liters of water. The tubers are also rinsed or sprayed with the solution through a sprayer.
4. Copper sulfate. Also used by dipping tubers. 1 gram of copper sulfate is required per liter of water.

Folk substances do not have a negative effect on human health. This means that protective agents can be omitted when processing tubers. Can I spray with homemade solutions? Yes, but the efficiency is lower.

How to spray potatoes - with pesticides or folk remedies? What is more affordable. With a small amount of landings, it is advisable to use folk remedies.

Safety when using pesticides

Industrial products in the form of pesticides are dangerous not only for the Colorado potato beetle, but also, due to their high concentration, have a negative effect on human health. Therefore, it will be necessary to observe safety precautions when processing tubers:

• Protecting exposed parts of the body. To do this, cover all exposed skin with clothing before processing. You will need gloves, a jacket, a scarf or a mask available.
• Etching in an open area. Tuber processing must be done in a well-ventilated room. Otherwise, the human respiratory system may suffer. A balcony is suitable for spraying, in an urban environment. It is easier for the villagers in this regard, but the operation must be performed during calm weather. Otherwise the nozzles should be set to low power.

Take a look also

Growing potatoes from seeds at home, planting and care

Note! Before processing, it is required to study the instructions for use of the drug and act as directed. The solution should be prepared exactly in accordance with the instructions.

Tips and rules for processing

For the effectiveness of the event, it is important to know how to properly spray potatoes. The tubers are processed before planting. To do this, you will need to send a tarp, cellophane, to the surface of the ground or floor on the balcony.In an open area, in order to avoid exposure to the wind, the edges of the underlying material are pressed with stones.

You should not rush to unfold the seed, as the sprouts can be damaged. Therefore, it is required not to empty it out of bags or boxes, but to carefully lay it out by hand. Diluting the drug is required, taking into account the dosage and the appropriate proportion. That is, if a 2 times smaller volume of the finished solution is required for processing potatoes, then when diluting a part, both must be cut by 2. The single-use drug after dilution cannot be stored.

If the sprouting of potatoes took place in plastic boxes, then it can also be processed there. But this can only be done if the tubers are in one layer. This will make the treatment as efficient as possible through the sprayer. A film or tarp should be placed under the boxes.

Assistants should not be in the processing room. Or, in open areas, they need to retire to a safe distance. It is desirable to stand on the windward side.

To speed up the process, it is advisable to use a special apparatus. An ordinary sprayer will do. A glass cleaner bottle is also suitable for these functions. It is required to carry out the work carefully and slowly so that there are no missing tubers. Otherwise, the processing may not bear fruit. The defenseless potato will be eaten by the Colorado potato beetle or its larvae. Planting tubers begins after it dries completely.

Note! Do not take processed potato tubers with your bare hands. They need to be protected with gloves. Throw them away after use.

In the absence of a sprayer, treatment is carried out by dipping the tubers into the solution. Tubers should be kept in the pesticide for no more than 3 seconds. Otherwise, there may be damage.

It takes up to 2 hours to dry the treated seed. When processing outside the city, the seeds can be wrapped in cellophane so that the chemicals do not completely evaporate before arriving in the field.

After drying, processed potatoes can be planted without fear in the ground according to all the rules of agricultural technology. The Colorado potato beetle is not afraid of it before shoots, and then the seed tubers dissolve. Those who processed it correctly will receive healthy seedlings.