How to plant potatoes under a straw: no hassle

Planting potatoes under straw was once popular: Tomathouse.com was obtained from peasants who needed to follow many other crops. But this rural simple way after the revolution was forgotten and only today it is starting to regain its undeservedly forgotten popularity.

Of course, potatoes do not require such careful care like cucumbers or tomatoes, but still, its classical cultivation is associated with many garden works. The land needs to be plowed, then dig up onions, then fertilize and plant tubers. Moreover, care does not end at the landing: watering, weeding and the fight against Colorado beetles are required.

But the method of planting potatoes under straw can be called for lazy people. Although, we would say not for the lazy, but for practical owners: free time can be distributed among other duties. What is the essence of the method of planting potatoes under straw, we will consider in this article.

About the benefits of growing under straw

So, you will need to find a lot of straw or just scraps of grass from the garden. Potato tubers and planting time are also needed. The fact is that after planting you can forget about your potatoes until the very moment you harvest: no watering, no weeding, or other manipulations are required.

Moreover, the potatoes will not need to be digged, because the crop expects the owners directly under the straw. So, what is the essence of the method.

We plant potatoes under the straw

To produce planting potatoes under straw, Tomathouse.com needs to be prepared. Plowing the earth is not necessary, just prepared the land for planting is taken and laid out on top of the selected area in even rows. On top you need to put prepared potato tubers and cover them with a layer of straw. The minimum layer can be 40 cm, but excellent if you can lay straw on tubers with a layer of up to 70 cm.

What are the advantages of sheltering potatoes in straw:

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• In dry weather, the soil under the straw will retain a sufficient amount of moisture;
• Dry grass emits carbon dioxide, which only benefits active growth of potatoes;
• When the straw decomposes, then a large number of microorganisms and even worms act in it. Thanks to their work, potatoes get the necessary components for their growth and development;

If you want to increase productivity, then when planting each potato tuber should be sprinkled with fertile soil mixed with a certain amount of fertilizer. So that the straw does not fly away from the strong wind, which is possible in spring and summer, you can sprinkle it with soil a little after the end of the planting process.

How to harvest

It's all. They sprinkled straw with soil and you can forget about your potatoes until the very autumn, until the time of harvest. When this day comes, a rake is taken and the straw is raked, now you can collect potatoes. It will turn out delicious and crumbly and will retain all the positive characteristics of the variety. Moreover, when grown in this way, tubers will not need to be cleaned from the ground: they will be clean and beautiful, and will be able to be stored for a long time in this form.

Important! Of course, some of the Colorado potato beetles can also live on potatoes that grow under straw. But the bottom line is that microorganisms and worms that are in decaying straw will fight the bugs.

Where to get so much straw

It seems that the method has one solid pluses. But, there may be one single pitfall associated with the large amount of straw that is needed.You can grow straw yourself, and then use it to grow your own potato crop.

Grass is grown on a plot that is intended for future potatoes. As soon as the snow melts, you need to plant oats, vetch and peas, mixing the seeds before planting. In the second half, you can plant potatoes in the traditional way. When the grass grows, you will need to plant potatoes directly in this straw. And in that half of the plot where potatoes were grown in the traditional way, it will be necessary to sow oats, peas again and harvest straw for the coming year.

As for the reviews on planting potatoes under straw, they are positive. Not everyone can immediately believe in this method of planting and collecting potatoes without weeding and other garden hassle. Therefore, at the beginning of the year, only a small piece of land is allocated: for the experiment. But judging by the numerous reviews, you can not play it safe twice. After all, this year you can simply and quickly get a wonderful harvest of delicious potatoes.