A reliable assistant for every farmer - Natasha potatoes: description of the variety and characteristics

Characteristics of the variety

Natasha potatoes are positioned as an early ripening table variety. The harvest ripens 65-80 days after planting.

The yield is relatively low, about 130-190 centners per 1 hectare of planting.

Potatoes have excellent taste and are versatile (suitable for frying, boiling, mashing and salads).

Potatoes are resistant to golden nematode, potato rot and cancer.

Potatoes Natasha

Russian business executives and farmers are interested not only in domestic, but also in foreign potato varieties. They perceive everything new with interest, trying to find for themselves that one and only variety that will allow them to harvest an excellent harvest with minimal time and material costs. Relatively recently, the Natasha potato, bred in Germany, began to appear in Russia.

Description, general information

The variety was included in the State Register of Russia as an early ripening variety, suitable for cultivation in the Central Black Earth and Southern regions of the country. It is also grown in the northern regions; it manages to produce a good harvest in a short summer.

Gardeners and summer residents of the southern regions like it because it allows them to provide their families with early young potatoes already in early June. Due to the high yield, you can allocate a small plot of land for planting potatoes, and after harvesting, use it for planting other crops or mid-season potatoes.

The variety is characterized by a high yield and early ripening of fruits; it can be planted from the beginning of spring in greenhouses or under film. The first harvest will ripen within 2 months after planting; mass harvesting begins after 80 days.

There is not a lot of starch in the tubers, 11-13%, so when cooked it retains its shape and does not become soft. It is resistant to mechanical damage, has a good taste; according to a five-point system, tasters rate it 4 points. The peel of the fruit is smooth and even, yellow in color, the flesh is dark yellow, they are smooth, oval, and of the same size.

Let's look at the photo:

The bushes are medium in size, 45-50 cm high, each containing up to 15 potatoes weighing from 100 to 130 grams. As a result, up to 190 centners of potatoes are harvested per hectare, some of which can be saved for planting next year. The keeping quality of tubers in the right conditions, that is, at a low temperature of +1-2 degrees and low humidity of 65% - up to 93%.

Agricultural technology

The Natasha variety is resistant to nematodes, rot, and potato blight; protection from the Colorado potato beetle is necessary. It is grown using standard technology used for early ripening varieties. When planting in spring, when there is still a lot of productive moisture in the soil, there is no need to water the potatoes too often, but if the soil is sandy loam and the moisture leaves it very quickly, you cannot do without watering.

If it is not possible to provide irrigation on the field, it can be replaced by loosening the soil, this destroys the capillaries through which water evaporates. It’s not for nothing that gardeners call this work dry watering.

Advantages and disadvantages

The variety is grateful for its popularity to a number of advantages that breeders endowed Natasha with. These include:

1. Early maturation. After 45-50 days, the tubers can be dug for testing, and after 2 months they can be harvested.
2. One bush produces a large number of large tubers. Thanks to this, it is possible to collect more than 135,000 kg from one hectare of planting.
3. The yield of Natasha potatoes is not affected by weather conditions.
4. Thanks to their dense skin, the tubers are not afraid of transportation over long distances. Also, the skin protects potatoes from spoilage, showing a good shelf life of 93%.
5. Good presentation allows you to quickly sell products on the market.
6. The variety has good immunity, protecting the crop from many fungal diseases.

Among the disadvantages, it is worth noting the low yield compared to other varieties, which affects demand from industrial producers.

Productivity

High yield rates are genetically inherent in this variety. Commercial yields remain at the level of 130 - 190 centners per hectare, which is 30 - 40 centners higher than the standard Udacha and Rozara varieties for the region. The maximum yield was collected within 320 c/ha, which is 80 c/ha higher than the standard.

The yield of any potato is directly related to soil fertility. It would be naive to believe that if a variety is genetically programmed for productivity, it can bear fruit abundantly on poor soils.

Potato is a crop that produces a high removal of nutrients from the soil. And in order for it to show its productivity, it is necessary to have a high nutritional value of the land.

Experienced vegetable growers apply organic fertilizers to potatoes annually. This is the only way to increase fertility, provide the crop with nutrients and mineral elements, and humus compounds will balance all substances and make them available for consumption by the crop.

If there is no access to organic matter, vegetable growers use mineral fertilizers, which lead not to fertility, but to mineralization of the soil. An alternative to good organic fertilizers, humus of animal origin, is compost. Every gardener can prepare it by simply building a compost bin on his or her own plot. But the benefits from compost will be much greater than from mineral “sprinkling”.

Correct fit

Medium potatoes (usually the size of a chicken egg), weighing 50-60 g, are used as planting material. Before allowing the tuber to be planted, it is thoroughly inspected for visible defects (this could be spots, cuts, rot, etc.) .

Planting is carried out at the end of spring. At this time, the soil warms up well (up to +9-10 C), which helps protect root crops from freezing.

The holes are dug to a shallow depth of up to 15 cm. If the climate is warm, then you can plant potatoes to a depth of up to 10 cm without fear for its development. If the climate is cold, then the potatoes are placed deeper, but not more than 20 cm.

The distance between the rows is left no more than 70 cm, between the holes about 30-40 cm is left.

After planting, the soil is leveled with a rake.

Shoots will begin to appear in approximately 10-12 days.

Features of cultivation

Before the formation of the first sprouts, caring for Natasha potatoes is reduced to loosening the soil in order to remove the crust that interferes with the penetration of air and the emergence of seedlings. In the future, it is necessary to water, feed and hill up the plants in a timely manner.

Watering and fertilizing

The Natasha potato variety responds well to watering, but several rules should be followed:

1. Do not irrigate until sprouts appear.
2. Water the plants just before flowering.
3. After its completion, moisten the soil only in dry weather.

Important! Excessive watering can contribute to the development of late blight.

Fertilizing of Natasha potatoes is carried out three times per season. At the beginning of June, nitrogen is added - ammonium nitrate, urea or an infusion of chicken manure. During the budding phase, plants need phosphorus to stimulate the formation of root crops. For this purpose, superphosphate or bone meal is used.

Potassium fertilizers are applied during the flowering of the Natasha potato. The element helps improve the taste and technical characteristics of tubers.

Loosening, weeding and hilling

Most often, loosening, hilling and weeding are combined. They are held at least twice a season. For the first time, weeds are removed at the moment when potato shoots reach a height of 5-10 cm. Before flowering, the bushes are weeded again.

Hilling is required for the formation of new roots, and in the early stages of plant development - for protection from return frosts.

Care

Like any other variety, Natasha potatoes are not too demanding to care for. You only need to follow a number of agrotechnical procedures:

Carry out hilling. Many gardeners disdain this procedure, however, it plays a vital role in the development of culture. Firstly, when hilling bushes, the soil prevents the tops from falling to the ground, thereby protecting them from rotting or drying out. Secondly, during hilling, the soil is loosened, oxygen enters it, which is subsequently used by the tubers. Thirdly, during this procedure, weeds that have an inhibitory effect on the development of the crop are completely removed from the site. Hilling is carried out twice per season. The first time, when the tops have risen by 20-25 cm. Or earlier, if there is frost. In this case, the potatoes are completely wrapped. The second time 2-3 weeks after the first time.

Water. Potato Natasha responds well to watering. But in the case of this crop, you need to know that it is better to underfill than to overfill. In addition to the fact that dampness increases the risk of late blight, it also inhibits the development of the crop or completely destroys the planting tuber.

Therefore, when watering, we focus on the following recommendations:

1. Do not water the potatoes until the tops appear.
2. The first watering is best done when the young shoots have grown by 10-15 cm.
3. The second irrigation is best done before the bush begins to flower.
4. The third irrigation is carried out immediately after the bush has flowered.
5. After flowering has finished, it is not advisable to water the crop. This is explained by the fact that with further watering the risk of late blight increases.
6. If climatic conditions are unfavorable (heat), then you can increase the number of waterings by +1-2

Fertilize. Potatoes are not a demanding crop that grows in almost any soil. But it will not be able to produce a good harvest in heavy soil. For this reason, it is necessary to make the soil fertile.

To do this, in the fall, after harvesting the entire crop and cleaning the area, it is dug up (or plowed over) and fertilized with organic matter. Ideal options: wood ash or humus.

Usually this feeding is quite enough to get a good harvest. But in some cases, due to poor soil (even after autumn fertilization), it is necessary to fertilize again.

At the time of planting, a handful of wood ash (the preferred option) or humus is added to the hole.

Description

Medium-sized potato bushes of the Natasha variety are erect; the side stems may deviate slightly. The large leaves are wavy at the edges, light green or a deeper shade. There is almost no anthocyanin color on the flower petals or it is weakly visible.

Potato variety Natasha forms oval-shaped tubers, cross-sectional dimensions 35-65 mm. The skin is yellow, smooth, and the eyes are small. The pulp is rich yellow, dense, juicy. Tubers weigh from 96 to 133 g and contain 11-13.6% starch.

Diseases and pests

The variety is not the weakest, but it needs to be inspected for diseases or parasites at least once or twice a week.

The main problems may be:

1. Colorado beetles. They love to gnaw on the tops of this variety.
2. Wireworm. The wireworm is the first stage of development of the click beetle. This beetle lives in wheatgrass. Therefore, the first measure to protect the crop from the parasite is to clear the area of ​​this weed.
3. Potato flea beetles and cicadas. These parasites also very often attack Natasha potatoes.

We recommend reading: “Description of the Colombo potato variety”
Speaking about diseases, there are no serious enemies for this variety as such. Naturally, like any potato, Natasha cannot completely resist late blight, but if you follow all the growing rules, it is unlikely that it will invade the crop.

Conditions for proper wintering

Potatoes of this variety tolerate winter well.
The safety of tubers is 93%. Careful preparation of tubers for storage: washing, drying, selection of damaged material increases this figure by another 2 - 3%. After digging, the potatoes are laid out in a thin layer to dry, but protected from direct sunlight. But the one that is selected as planting material, on the contrary, is taken out to warm up in the sun. For planting, you should select potatoes weighing 80 - 90 g. A special feature of the Natasha variety is that the eyes are located on one of the poles. Experienced vegetable growers sometimes cut off the “noses” and use them for planting, and the rest for culinary purposes. Such an event can be held both in autumn and spring. Whenever you decide to cut, you must allow time for the wounded surface of the tuber to scar.

Some potato growers, having conducted their personal research, prove that there is no need for scarring; potatoes grow well without healing.

Experienced vegetable growers recommend sampling three times with an interval of 1 - 2 weeks before sending tubers for storage. Such an event allows you to identify damaged, diseased tubers, which will be an additional guarantee of the safe preservation of the crop.

Potatoes "Natasha" have established themselves as a high-yielding, picky, and disease-resistant variety. German breeders gave the world potatoes that have taken root not only in Europe, but also in other countries. By planting this variety, creating conditions for soil fertility, and carrying out the necessary agrotechnical operations, you can get an excellent harvest of a tasty and nutritious product.