Characteristics of the potato variety Santa
Sante potatoes are a mid-early table variety with an ideal balance of taste and yield. Its characteristics made the culture unusually popular among gardeners and summer residents. It is unpretentious, easy to care for and resistant to most painful conditions.
Characteristics of the potato variety Santa
Features of the variety
Many summer residents and gardeners grow Santa potatoes without even knowing its name. The homeland of the plant is Holland. The vegetative period from the appearance of the first shoots to the collection of potatoes is 85-90 days.
Description of potatoes:
- The bush is erect, low.
- The root system is well branched.
- The leaves are simple, dark green.
- Flowers are white, large, gathered in corolla inflorescences.
Under each bush, 15 to 20 tubers are tied. There are many eyes on them, but they are shallow and therefore almost invisible.
The taste of the potato is pleasant, full-bodied, it does not require a long cooking. During heat treatment, the tubers do not change color. They are used for the preparation of chips, various semi-finished products, stuffed and baked.
Advantages and disadvantages
The crop has excellent taste, high yields and low maintenance requirements. The advantages of the Santa potato are as follows:
- high yield - up to 28-50 t / ha;
- beautiful shape of root crops: smooth yellow peel;
- large tubers - their weight reaches 150-200 g;
- easy to store: thin, but sufficiently dense peel reliably protects root crops from blows;
- practically not affected by scab, mosaic, cyst nematode and potato crayfish.
It is worth noting some of the disadvantages that gardeners will have to face when growing a variety:
- suspends its growth during a drought;
- zoned only for regions with a temperate climate;
- loves sunny areas, so it will not be possible to grow a good harvest on shaded soils;
- prefers light and fertile soil enriched with oxygen;
- does not tolerate frost;
- the low starch content makes it unsuitable for mashed potatoes.
The Santa potato variety is unpretentious, therefore, taking into account all its advantages and disadvantages, you can achieve a good harvest. It is not recommended to grow a crop in heavy soils and in regions with a harsh climate, because all the efforts made will not bring the desired result.
Planting potatoes
Planting after frost
This variety is quite thermophilic, so it should be planted when frosts pass and stable warm weather is established. According to research by scientists, the Santa Variety is not prone to degeneration. But experts recommend renewing the seeds every 5-7 years. They are taken from the most productive crops that are not affected by disease states and pests. Collect this material separately, dry thoroughly, sort and store separately.
Soil preparation
Even in the fall, you need to decide on the choice of site.It should be sunny and draft-proof, well-drained, fertile and oxygenated. The best predecessors for nightshades are legumes, cabbage, phacelia, or radish.
The earth is dug deep, weeds and their roots are selected from it, nitrogen fertilizers are applied. Do not overdo it with nitrogen, otherwise the tops will begin to grow vigorously, and the growth of tubers will slow down. If the soil is not fertile, humus or bird droppings are introduced.
Planting potatoes
It is necessary to plant seeds at a time when the spring frosts have passed. It is recommended to do this in the first ten days of May, when the soil warms up well into the depths.
Seed material is germinated before planting. To do this, spread it with one ball in a room or greenhouse. In dry air, the tubers are sprayed with water. The potato is considered ready for planting when the sprouts reach 1 cm.
A little ash or humus is laid out in holes made at a distance of 30-40 cm. The pits are shallow - up to 10 cm.The row from the row is placed at a distance of 60 cm.
Potato care
You need to constantly look after potatoes: water, loosen the ground, pull out weeds, fertilize and huddle, remove pests in a timely manner.
Crop care rules:
- 6-7 days after subsidence, the soil must be loosened with a rake or harrows and weeds must be removed. If the soil quickly overgrows, the event is repeated after a week, but loosened carefully so as not to damage the emerging sprouts.
- After the formation of rows, the ground around the plants must be loosened with a hoe.
- A culture with a height of 17-20 cm should be hilled, this will protect it from frost.
All these measures should be carried out in a comprehensive manner. Neglecting at least one of them will affect the quality of tubers and yield.
Watering
The plant needs to be watered regularly
Potatoes of this variety require moderately and constantly moist soil. If the weather is dry, it should be watered. The problem can be solved with the help of a drip irrigation system: the soil will always be moist, but it will not be washed out by water.
With manual watering, at least 3 liters of water are poured under each bush. To prevent the formation of a crust, after a day, the soil near the plant must be loosened with a hand hoe.
Excessive watering can cause the development of a painful condition "black leg", and the tops of the plant in this case are affected by the Colorado potato beetle or aphids.
Fertilizer
The introduction of complex mineral and organic fertilizers is a prerequisite for a high yield. Potatoes require a lot more nutrients than grains. At the same time, the root system is poorly developed, and at the beginning of the growing season, the plant poorly assimilates nutrients from the soil. Therefore, gardeners carry out not only root, but also foliar feeding.
The Santa variety must be root-fed three times: during germination, bud formation and during the flowering period. The best food for the plant is ash or bird droppings.
The first feeding is carried out with bird droppings: 200 g of droppings are taken in a bucket of water. The second time a mixture of ash and potash fertilizers is used: a glass of ash and 2 tbsp. l. potassium sulfate per 10 liters of water. During the flowering period, the culture is fed with an infusion of 2 tbsp. l. superphosphate and 200 g of manure per bucket of water.
Pour 500 ml of this product under each bush.
Foliar dressing is carried out during the budding period. The plant is sprayed with drugs "Immunocytaf", "Epin-extra".
Pest control
The main enemies of the Sante potato variety are Colorado beetles. Experienced gardeners spray the seed material with a solution of the Prestige preparation and in this way protect the crop from pests.
If it was not possible to process the seeds in the spring, they use biological and chemical methods to control Colorado beetles. Pests, their larvae and eggs are collected and burned.
If biological methods of control have not brought a successful result, the culture is treated with insecticides "Confidor-Maxi", "Dantop", "Mospilan". The last processing should be carried out no later than a month before harvest.
Description of other pests and control measures:
- Stem nematode - affects tubers, white loose spots are formed on them under the skin. As a result, the peel dries up, begins to lag behind the pulp, and dark spots with a metallic tint appear. The middle of the potato remains healthy, but microorganisms penetrate through the damaged skin and the process of decay begins. During storage, healthy tubers become infected from sick ones and the crop is lost. A preventive measure is planting a culture in one place no earlier than 3-4 years later and using healthy planting material.
- Potato moth - affects plants of the Solanaceae family. Its caterpillars eat tubers, making moves in them. They can bite the stems and eat the leaves. They fight the pest with insecticides.
- Wireworms and a bear eat the tubers of the plant. To prevent their reproduction, the land must be plowed deeply in late autumn or early spring, and the acidic soil must be limed. Wireworm larvae should be picked from the soil.
Timely measures taken to protect plants from possible pests. It is necessary to constantly monitor the health of potatoes and identify their pests and diseases in time.
The characteristic of the Sante variety, namely, immunity to many painful conditions and unpretentious care, made Santa potatoes popular among summer residents and gardeners. On light and fertile soils, the crop yields high yields. Anyone who has tried to grow this potato once will never give it up again.