Storage of potato storage equipment

Potatoes before lying down in boxes like to lie in a dry dark place, at positive temperatures, for two weeks. Then the tubers can be stored.

The simplest and most reliable way of storage is in the cellar. But it can be arranged only on those soils where the groundwater table is below 1.5 m, otherwise the cellar will be flooded with water. Where the groundwater table is above 1 m, you can make a horizontal storage of two concrete rings, planted on cement at the docking site. One bottom of such a concrete cylinder is completely filled with cement mortar, in the other one a square hole for the door is left - the hole.

The cylinder is wound with a roofing material and covered with soil. The soil layer above the top surface of the cylinder must be at least 30-40 cm. A wooden pipe must be passed through the wooden door, through which the air necessary for breathing vegetables will enter the storage. Otherwise they will suffocate and rot.

Inside it is necessary to lay a wooden floor, and in the end make a pair of shelves for storage of cans. Autumn on the floor put on each other boxes with potatoes and vegetables. From above it is necessary to cover everything with a layer of dry hay, also it is necessary to fill the hay in the space in front of the door. In the spring it can be used as a biofuel in greenhouses and in beds( hay is introduced into the trenches excavated on the bayonet, and then covered with a layer of soil not less than 15-20 cm).

In such a store, you can make a flower garden, plant strawberries, plant gourds or zucchini, pour an additional layer of 15-20 cm of nutrient soil, that is, the place occupied by the repository will not be lost in vain.

To avoid theft, the storage can be equipped in the subfield of the house, carefully disguising the laz with furniture. In the underground dig a hole at the bottom of which is poured a layer of gravel for drainage. They put a large barrel in the pit, without holes, painted with anti-corrosion paint on the outside. The space between the barrel and the pit is filled with gravel and sand, so that the barrel does not stick out of the pit when the soil freezes. The edge of the barrel should be above the soil level, otherwise it may be flooded with groundwater.

Next, you need to adjust the lid and insert into it a narrow metal tube for breathing vegetables. To prevent mice from gnawing through the lid, pour over the seeds of the blackcorn or burdock over the lid, then warm it with hay.

In the barrel can be folded layers of potatoes, beets, carrots, parsnips, celery, parsley;to put banks with workpieces.

Potatoes can overwinter in the soil, but in a place where water does not fill it in the spring or during winter thaws, for example, in the upper layer of the compost heap, if it is covered with a film from above and the potato is sprinkled with dry soil or peat.

Fold potatoes and vegetables in the beads by covering them with dry earth or peat. It is necessary to cover only the top of the shoulder with the film, leaving the underside of the collar uncovered( for breathing and airing).The height of the bulk part of the collar is 50- 60 cm. Over the film, the shoulder is covered with lapnik.

Those gardeners who have glazed loggias or balconies can make boxes insulated with polystyrene there and arrange an excellent storage directly at home. To ensure that the vegetables are not harmed in this storehouse, light is carried out and a hundred-watt lamp is included in severe frosts. Do not forget to insert a small tube - a hole for breathing. Those who do not have a loggia or a balcony are in a worse situation, but from my own experience I know that you can store bags with potatoes almost all winter long in the hallway or in the kitchen, near the outer wall. For storage it is better to use bags from thick paper

Potatoes of early varieties should be used first, in October-November, as early as the end of November the early potatoes begin to germinate in a warm room. Then, potatoes of medium-early varieties are used, with a longer period of rest. Potatoes with the longest period of rest( usually of medium or late varieties) begin to germinate in the apartment only in early March, and it is allowed to last.

If there are shoots on the tubers, they are immediately broken off, as they take out a large amount of nutrients and moisture from the tuber( the tubers wrinkle and lose their taste).In addition, in the area of ​​the sprout, the tissue of potatoes changes, the biochemical process that makes potatoes not only tasteless but also harmful to health begins. Old potatoes, especially those that were stored in a warm room, are already unfit for food in April.

Seed potatoes can also be stored in the apartment. In autumn, after processing, it should be folded into five-liter glass jars, tied with a cotton cloth and placed on the window sill. Banks need to turn from time to time.

Diseases of potatoes when stored

Of fungal diseases, most often occurs phytophthora. It manifests itself in the form of brown solid spots on the tubers. If the infected tuberous phytophthora is cut, then brown blurred spots appear from the peel into the depth of the tuber. The disease develops rapidly inside the tuber at a high storage temperature. From the tuber to the tuber of phytophthora is usually not transmitted. Tubers become infected with phytophthora during harvesting, or it is transmitted from a diseased plant during growth( growth and development).

Fusarium dry rot is also a fungal disease. It appears on the tubers at first in the form of brown dents, then the flesh under the stain becomes dry, rotten, the peel wrinkles. Later on wrinkled peel appear white fungus spores, which fly apart and infect adjacent tubers.

The disease usually infects damaged tubers and is transmitted with soil adhered to them. Therefore, they are recommended to be washed, treated with "Fitosporin", dried and then stored.

Risectoniasis( black scab) refers to fungal diseases. The disease manifests itself during growth - on the tubers are visible small black lumps, which are easily scraped off with a fingernail. The disease is not transmitted from the tuber to the tuber during storage.

Wet bacterial rot turns the tuber tissue into a gray slurry with a hideous smell. The disease is caused by bacteria living in the soil. They penetrate into weakened or damaged tubers even in the soil and at high temperatures rapidly develop, infecting other tubers. The development of the disease contributes to excess nitrogen when growing potatoes.

Ordinary scab is manifested in the form of cracked warts of black color( scabs).The disease is caused by soil bacteria, usually with excess nitrogen in the soil. On the storage and taste qualities of potatoes, this is not reflected, as mentioned above, because the disease is not transmitted during storage.

Internal rot develops as a secondary disease of already diseased or damaged tubers.

Darkening of the pulp of the tuber is not a disease, it is the result of a lack of potassium or excess nitrogen when growing potatoes, the cause of darkening can also be prolonged dry and hot weather during vegetation, high( above 12-15 degrees for 3 months) or reduced( about 0degrees) storage temperature.

Freezing tubers occurs at 2 degrees below zero. If you do not quickly defrost the potatoes in hot water, the skin will wrinkle when the thawing is slow, the flesh will turn pink when the tuber is cut, then it will darken. Wet rots quickly appear on the frozen tubers.

The rustiness of the tubers is visible on the cut as brown spots along the periphery of the tuber. The main reason for its appearance is a deficiency of

phosphorus during the growing season, an excess of iron and aluminum in the soils. The disease is not transmitted during storage.

Duplicity of tubers( voids inside tubers) causes uneven intake of moisture and nitrogen during the growth of potatoes. When penetrating into putrefactive bacteria, the hollow tuber begins to rot.