The Rosselkhoznadzor administration Krasnoyarsk was given advice on choosing seed potatoes.
Specialists recommended not to buy seed potatoes from unverified sellers in the “spontaneous” and “roadside” markets. There is a risk of bringing any disease to your site.
Instead, it is better to go to specialized stores or seed farms. There you can familiarize yourself with documents confirming varietal and sowing qualities. This may be a certificate of conformity, an act of testing and a test report. They indicate: the name of the variety, the category of landing material, the number of the party, the year of the crop, the mass of the party, the name and address of the manufacturer.
When buying seed potatoes, you need to take into account the following: tubers should be dry, even and smooth, approximately the same in shape and weight, with an elastic peel. If the peel is wrinkled, perhaps the goods were stored incorrectly. There may be sprouts on the tubers, but their size should not exceed 5 mm. Otherwise, they can break off during transportation, which is fraught with a decrease in the crop.
Also, tubers should not be cracked, rotten. Spots or slices can also indicate poor quality of planting material.
“In seed potatoes, the presence of weed seeds that are quarantined for the Russian Federation, as well as pests and diseases, which include: potato cancer, brown bacterial rot, black leg, various types of mosaics, late blight, black steam, potato head, golden potato nematode and others,” the department said.
Experts also explained how the categories of planting material are different.
Elite seed potatoes have high quality. It is not infected with viruses and bacteria. Healthy plants will grow from such potatoes. They will give a high harvest of quality tubers.
Materials on the topic
Potatoes of the first reproduction are the one that was received in the first year after planting elite tubers. He will also give a good harvest. However, such material accumulates disease faster than elite.
Also, a good harvest will give potatoes of the second and third reproduction. However, after one or two years, he will go to the category of “food potatoes”. This means that planting material is lost in varietal signs and resistance to the disease. In addition, productivity falls strongly.
When buying, it is important to pay attention to whether the variety is included in the state register of varieties and hybrids of agricultural plants admitted to use. And also to check whether it is suitable for growing in our East – Siberian region. Experts noted that varieties bred in the southern regions are not suitable for growing in the middle lane and northern regions, and vice versa.
