2024/10/07
Skip to content
Specialty vegetable crops

Specialty vegetable crops

Technical Development

Premium Vegetables

Potato

Growing Potato
Growing period : Suitable to plant seed potatoes in October and November locally.
Growing environment :

Dry and sunny weather with a great temperature difference between day and night is preferred. Grow well in thick sandy loam with rich organic matter, good drainage and ventilation, and a pH value between 5.5 and 7.5.
Planting and spacing :

Choose healthy seed potatoes with emerged buds. Cut them into equilateral triangles of some 15 g to 20 g with at least one bud in each potato cutting. Plant and bury the cuttings 7 cm to 10 cm deep in the soil.

Plants should be spaced 30 cm apart and arranged in a “Z” pattern.
Application of fertilizer and management : Basal dressing: Apply 1 000 kg of compost and 100 kg of organic fertilizer (N:P:K:MgO = 4:3:3:1) to each d.c..

Top dressing: Apply 46 kg of organic fertilizer (N:P:K = 9:3:7) as top dressing to each d.c. some 30 days after planting (when the seedlings reach some 15 cm in height). Depending on the conditions, apply top dressing again during the later interim growth period.

Light ploughing, weeding and earthing-up: Pay attention to weed management in the field and perform light ploughing, weeding and earthing-up as appropriate.

Irrigation: Maintain moderate moisture in the soil throughout the growth period, and the soil should neither be too dry nor too wet. Stop irrigation 10 days before harvesting. Avoid stagnant water in the field after rain.

During the later growth period, cover emerged tubers with soil so that the tuber skin will not be discoloured due to prolonged exposure to sunlight.

Pay attention to pest control in the field and remove diseased plants as soon as possible.



(1 d.c.= 674 square metres or 7,260 square feet)
Harvesting and storage:

The ideal harvest time is 110 to 120 days after planting for medium or late maturity varieties.

Better to harvest the tubers on sunny days. After the harvest, air-dry the tubers for one day and take away damaged and deformed ones. Sort them by grade and store in a cool, well-ventilated place or a cooler (with a temperature of 3 oC to 5oC and a relative humidity of 85% to 90%).

Horticulture Section, AFCD
2012
Back  Back to Top