Should I pick flowers from potatoes or not?

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

Gardeners and even potato growers cannot come to a consensus on whether it is necessary to pick flowers from potatoes or not. Some advocate their removal, because the bush spends energy on the formation of berries and seeds, while the tubers themselves do not have time to grow large and he althy. Others argue that each plant has its own cycle of development, and there is no need to intervene and interrupt it.

To determine whether the flowering of potatoes affects the future crop, scientists conducted a study. They planted three rows of the same variety and treated them equally. When the time came for flowering, the first row was left as it is, all the flowers were cut off on the second, and the top was cut off at the third. As a result, it turned out that where the potato flowers were left, although not many tubers were formed, all of them were large, almost the same size. In the second row there were more potatoes, but not of the same size, a lot of little things. Wherecut off the tops, in each hole there were about 30 tubers, but they were all very small.

This experiment answered the question "Is it necessary to pick flowers from potatoes". When a plant is injured, it also affects the growth of tubers. If you really want to stimulate them, then you should cut off only flowers and buds, and not flower stalks. In this case, new shoots are not formed, and the nutrients go directly to the tubers, which, in turn, grow large. There are varieties that do not bloom at all or form few inflorescences, in which case it is not worth interfering with the development of the plant.

When deciding whether to cut flowers from potatoes, it is worth considering the soil-climatic zone and weather conditions. In dry and windy regions, pollen is often sterile, so it does not interfere with the development of tubers. But in rainy weather, there will be enough nutrients for the entire bush, so you don’t have to worry about its development. If you answer the question of whether it is necessary to pick flowers from potatoes, then the answer will be more likely to be negative than positive. Because flowering does not particularly affect the maturation of tubers, but damage to the bush can adversely affect the future harvest.

Firstly, an unreasonably long time is spent on plant correction. Secondly, as a result of walking between the rows, the soil is trampled down, which negatively affects the crop. Thirdly, a person can carry pathogens of fungal, viral or bacterial diseases on himself, he will infect all the bushes and spoil the tubers, picking flowerspotatoes. Photos of beautiful and he althy potatoes encourage gardeners to experiment, but not all of them are successful. Before you start picking flowers, you should test the result on several bushes, since each variety reacts differently.

In addition, many people are interested in the question "do I need to spud potatoes?" This procedure is done to remove excess moisture and better warm the soil. For this reason, hilling should be done in rainy regions, but in arid areas it can only be harmful, because hot dry winds from raised beds will blow out the remaining moisture.