About Potato: Potato is a versatile food that may be consumed as a staple, a side dish, a snack, or processed into a variety of forms, and in any of these roles, it improves the nutritional content of people’s diets. The crop is grown when the highest day temperature is less than 30°C and the night temperature is less than 20°C. When the day and night temperatures are 20°C and 14°C, respectively, the tuberization rate is maximum. Potatoes can be cultivated in a variety of soils, including well-drained, loose, friable, non-saline, non-alkaline loamy sand to sandy loam soils. The pH of the soil should be in the range of 5.5 to 8.0.
Varieties: The early varieties are Kufri Surya, which has characteristics such as heat tolerance, white tubers, resistance to late blight, good keeping quality, early planting, and average yields of 100-125 q/acre in 90-100 days, and Kufri Pukhraj, which has characteristics such as tall plant, vigorous and erect, susceptible to late blight but escapes due to earliness, large uniform tubers, oval, white, and yields 130 q/acre. Kufri Ashoka are tall plant, erect and moderately compact with green foliage, huge tubers, smooth, oval long with white skin and yields around 110 q/acre in 75-80 days; Kufri Chandramukhi has characteristics such as white, large, smooth, white skin, uniform and more appealing and yields about 100 q/acre in 80-90 days. Kufri Pushkar have White tuber, resistance to late blight, good keeping quality and average yield is 160-170 q/acre in 90-100 days.
Late-season varieties Kufri Chipsona-3 has characteristics such as a medium maturing period of 90-100 days, resistance to late blight, good keeping quality, oval and white tubers, low reducing content of 100 mg per 100 g fresh weight, and high tuber dry matter (21.5%), which is required for producing light colored chips, and an average yield of 165-175 q/acre. Medium maturing 90-100 days, resistant to late blight, good keeping quality, oval and white tubers, suitable for French fries due to long tubers with high dry matter (22 %), and average yield of 160-170 q/acre are some of the attributes of Kufri Frysona.
Procedure and chemicals required: From the end of June to the first week of July, sow 20 kg of Dhaincha for green manuring. The seed needs for an acre are as follows: large size- 10-12 q/acre; medium size- 10-12 q/acre; small size- 10-12 q/acre; medium size- 10-12 q/acre; small size- 10-12 q/ 7-10 q/acre is a medium size. 4-6 q/acre is a small size. Dip sliced tubers for an hour in a solution of 1 percent Thiourea and 1 ppm Gibberellic Acid (one ml per 100 liters of water), then air dry the tuber pieces in thin layers in the shade for 24 hours.
After removing the tubers from the cold storage, treat them with Monceren @ 2.5 ml per litre of water for 10 minutes to control black scurf. For the autumn harvest, the last week of September to mid-October is ideal, and for the spring crop, the second week of January is ideal. Manually planting the crop should be done with a ridger. Where tractor power is available, semi-automatic or automatic planters are preferred. The spacing between the rows and tubers should be kept at 65×18.5 cm or 75 cm x 15 cm for mechanized planting.
Biozyme’s Application Potato yields are increased by applying 8 kg granules per acre at the time of planting and earthing up, as well as spraying Biozyme liquid formulation at the tuber start stage @200ml/acre. After 25- 30 days of sowing, earthing up should be done with a double mould board plough or a ridger. Irrigation savings and effective control of annual weeds are achieved by applying paddy straw mulch @ 24 q/acre soon after planting.
Irrigation in the furrow: The first irrigation should be administered right after planting to ensure optimal germination. Light and frequent irrigations are beneficial to the potato crop. In light texture soils, the total number of irrigations will be 7-8. In the case of potatoes, drip irrigation not only increases output but also saves 38 percent of water when compared to traditional irrigation methods. Irrigation should be applied every two days under this technique. A lateral pipe with a dripper discharge of 2.2 litres per hour should be used to irrigate the potato crop.
During the first month of the crop’s growing period, apply 24.50 kg Urea, 6.6 kg Mono Ammonium Phosphate, and kg Muriate of Potash (white) per acre in 7 equal dosages with every second irrigation (4 days’ interval). After the crop has germinated, the initial fertigation should begin. The remaining fertiliser (97.5 kg Urea, 26.2 kg Mono Ammonium Phosphate, and 26.7 kg Muriate of Potash (white) should be applied in 13 equal doses with every second irrigation during the rest of the crop season (before the last irrigation) (4 days interval).
Harvesting: A tractor-operated digger that is suitable for the job has been designed and is available on the market. When it comes to harvesting, the soil should be at its optimum moisture level. Clods obstruct the potato digger’s ability to function properly.
Grading: The potato should be graded once it has been harvested. There are four possible grades. 1-Miniature size (below 25 g weight) 2-Size: Medium (25- 50 g weight) 3- Extra-large size (weight 50-75 g) and 3- Large size (weight 50-75 g) (above 75 g weight). Leno sacks can be used to store potatoes while maintaining their quality. It should be kept in a cold storage facility with a temperature of 2-4 degrees Celsius and a relative humidity of 75-80%.