Each gardener, growing on their beds potatoes of the Agate variety, dreams of getting a good harvest. To do this, it is recommended to familiarize yourself with its description, advantages and disadvantages, as well as the nuances of care and harvesting with its subsequent storage.

Breeding History and Main Growing Regions

This variety was bred by Dutch breeders and subsequently became widespread in Europe and Russia. The most suitable regions for its cultivation are those where there is a short summer, namely: in Siberia and the Urals.

Did you know? A resident of Somerset (England) Peter Gleizebrook in 2011 managed to grow weighty potatoes. The weight of the vegetable was 4.93 kg.

Description and characteristic

The following is a detailed description of the appearance of root crops, their taste, chemical composition and ripening time. In addition, crop yields and plant resistance to diseases are considered.

Description of root crops

The plant is a low spreading bush with small green leaves. Large white flowers form corollas.The variety has practically no drawbacks. To obtain the maximum yield, metered watering, plentiful top dressing and frequent loosening of the soil are recommended

Size and color

Large-sized fruits can reach a mass of 70–140 g. They have an ellipsoid shape and a smooth surface with small outer eyes. The color of the root crop is light yellow.

Taste qualities

Potatoes have beige or yellow pulp of a dense structure. From it you can cook a variety of dishes. After heat treatment, the vegetable does not darken and acquires a pleasant taste.

Did you know? The largest potato in the world managed to grow a resident of Saudi Arabia Halil Sehzat. The weight of the vegetable was 11.2 kg.

Chemical composition

The composition of this variety of potatoes includes 12-14% of starch, which affects the structure of the pulp and its taste. In addition, the tuber contains many minerals, vitamins and chemicals, namely:

• protein;
• sugar;
• organic acids;
• glycoalkaloids;
• magnesium;
• calcium;
• iron;
• iodine;
• chromium;
• zinc;
• cobalt;
• potassium and others

Ripening time

A characteristic feature of this variety is that it matures quite early, 50–55 days after planting. Already in the second summer month it will be possible to observe the appearance of the first tubers.

Productivity

More than 250 centners of the crop can be harvested from 1 hectare of land. From one bush of planted potatoes, 6–9 tubers are harvested. This indicator depends on the quality, quantity and frequency of fertilizer application.

Disease resistance

Potato agate does not suffer from diseases such as scab and potato cancer. The variety has medium resistance to late blight and fusarium wilt.

Advantages and disadvantages of other varieties

• Potato Agatha is in great demand among farmers due to its advantages:
• fruiting on any type of soil;
• high and stable yield;
• high consumer qualities;
• universal application;
• high resistance to common potato diseases.

• The main disadvantage of the variety is
• its predisposition to late blight.

Agricultural Engineering Planting

This variety has the characteristic features of agricultural planting. So, it is necessary to select a place in a timely manner and prepare the soil for planting potatoes, taking into account the peculiarities of crop rotation and the action scheme.

Site selection and soil preparation

For planting, you should choose a flat and well-lit area on the plot. The soil for planting should be prepared in advance, in the autumn period. To do this, the soil is fed with a mixture of fertilizers based on potassium, phosphorus and cow manure and dug up.In household plots, 0.5-1 l of rotted humus and 0.2 l of wood ash are added to the wells. It is recommended that the vegetable be planted in the ground from the 20th of April, after stable warm weather is established. At the same time, the soil should warm up to + 10 ° C at the optimum depth for planting, which is 8–10 cm. If autumn feeding of the soil was not carried out in the garden, then before planting, it is necessary to introduce rotted humus at the rate of 5 kg per 1 m².

Crop rotation features

In order to increase soil fertility and its restoration, farmers must adhere to crop rotation, i.e. crop rotation on the site. The best precursors for potatoes are cereals and legumes.

Scheme and depth of landing

Seed material is planted from each other at a distance of 35 cm, the row spacing should be 60 cm. Over the entire season, plants are 2-3 times spud and weed from weeds. To obtain a good crop, the aisles are mulched with straw or dry grass. If planting is carried out on clay soils, then the depth of tuber embedding is up to 6 cm, while on clay soils - 8-10 cm.

Potato Care

To get a good harvest after planting, you should water the beds in a timely manner, as well as make the necessary fertilizers and prevent diseases and pests. The following is a detailed description of these processes.

Important! During the season after the main watering, you can feed vegetables with special mineral fertilizers, for example, Kemira or Kristalon.

Watering

To ensure uniform soil moisture, the Agate variety should be irrigated with a drip irrigation system. It should be remembered that for the rapid development of potato tubers, a sufficient amount of moisture is required, therefore The following recommendations should be followed:

1. In an arid summer, planting is irrigated for the first time when young seedlings grow to 15 cm. In this case, up to 3 liters of water must be added under each bush.
2. In the phase of bud formation, the rate of liquid application is increased by 2 times, i.e. it is recommended to pour up to 6 liters of water under each bush.
3. During the period of mass gain, tubers pour 12 l of liquid under each bush.

Fertilizer application

To obtain an abundant harvest, it is advisable to feed potatoes with minerals, namely:

1. Prior to the first hilling, the bush should be fed with a solution based on 20 g of urea, diluted in 1 bucket of water. Under 1 bush, it is necessary to pour 0.5 l of fertilizing.
2. In the aisles, you can enter a solution prepared on the basis of rotted humus, diluted in water in a proportion of 1:10, or infusion of bird droppings in a ratio of 1:15.

Foliar top dressing will also be beneficial for the plant. To do this, you must:

1. 2 weeks after the first shoots, treat the plant with this mixture: 100 g of urea, 150 g of potassium monophosphate and 5 g of boric acid per 1 bucket of water.
2. 30 days before harvesting, the plant is sprayed with a solution prepared on the basis of superphosphate. For this, 10 g of the substance is diluted in 10 l of water. The consumption rate is 1 bucket per 10 m².

It is not worth it to overuse nitrogen-containing fertilizers, since they contribute to the accumulation of nitrates in young potato tubers, which has a negative effect on the health of the person who consumes them as food.

Disease and Pest Prevention

To cure an already infected plant, you can use drugs such as Oxychom, Ridomil, and Arcedil. After harvesting, seed tubers infected with late blight should be treated with Imunotsitofit. Tubers must be left in a well-ventilated place. In the fight against the main pest of potatoes - the Colorado potato beetle - the preparations "Aktara", "Komandor" and "Iskra" will help.

Important! Dug up tubers must be dried in the open sun for 2–3 hours and then put away in a shaded place. Before laying for storage, potatoes should be sorted out while disposing of the illiquid liquid.

Harvesting and storage

Technical maturation of potatoes of this variety occurs on the 80–85th day after planting in the ground. Gardeners usually pick potatoes in August, as in the early stages this will protect the crop from infection by late blight. 10 days before this, the tops should be mowed, leaving sprouts of 5-10 cm. During this time, the potato peel will ripen in the soil. The crop should be stored in cellars or cellars at a temperature of +2 ... + 4 ° C and air humidity of 90–92%. Subject to all these indicators, potatoes can be stored for up to 8 months.Many gardeners, growing Agatha potatoes in their plots, want to get a good harvest. Adhering to the rules for growing this variety, as well as following the recommendations for caring for it, you can get the desired result.