POTATO
Planting potatoes using growths has been tried and found better than using the root crop itself. The former is more productive and grows faster. This is possible with the varieties Ackersegen and Mariella.
Manner of Planting
1. Select potatoes free from disease with growths around 1-3 cm. long.
2. Cut up the parts with growths that will serve as "cuttings".
3. Plant these first in a pot.
4. When 4 or more leaves have come out, this can be transferred in the field.
5. Potatoes like clayey or sandy soil. Sieve the soil to remove dirt and clumps of soil. Mix the soil with animal manure (carabao, horse, cow, etc.) 1 part soil and 2 parts dried manure.
6. Make pots out of banana or nanka leaves or similar wide leaves.
7. Fill this with the mixture of soil and manure.
Cutting Up the Growths - The best time for cutting growths is from October to the first days of November.
1. Remove with the hand the growths from the flesh of the potato.
2. Cut up the potato with growths around 4-5 mm size.
3. Place the growths in the center of each pot and press gently until it is halfway down in the soil mixture.
4. Place these in the shade where there is no strong wind.
5. Water with hose 3-4 times a day.
6. In 3-5 days, roots and shoots will grow.
7. On the 7-8 days, put them in a place with adequate sunlight.
8. Put 1 gram urea and 2 grams single superphosphate in a liter of water, and spray this on the plants 2-3 times a day.
9. After 2 weeks, the plants will be about 7-10 cm. high. This can now be transferred to the field.
10. The mother potato from where the growths were taken can also be planted.
If the shoots are many, 2 growths can be taken from every root crop and planted immediately.
Planting
1. Make beds where the cuttings will be planted. Make the soil fine, and plant the cuttings 20-25 cm apart.
2. Apply fertilizers such as:
* animal manure - 2kg/sq m or 20 tons/ha
* superphosphates - 350gms/ha
* muriate of potash - 150 gms/ha
* nitrogen - 150 gms/ha
3. In planting, choose a time when it is not rainy. Transplant the whole plant from its pot so as not to hurt the roots. Place 1-2 plants in every hill (tundos). Put soil around each plant.
4. Water the plants 2 times a day for a week.
5. From transplanting, apply fertilizer 4 times: days 12-15,25-30,40-45,55-60.
6. After 3-4 weeks without rain, irrigate the plants as in ordinary irrigation.
Harvesting
1. Choose only matured root crops.
2. Store in a place with plenty of sunlight. Let this harden and turn green.
3. After 7-8 days, store in the usual way of storing crops.
SWEET POTATO
Planting
There is one way of planting sweet potato (camote) that has been tried that can make it yield 20% more than the ordinary way of planting. In the manner tried, the stems to be planted are taken from healthy plants, two to three months old. The cut stems to be planted are watered first, then covered with a plastic sheet for two days When ready for planting, the stems will have developed small roots which will hasten the growth of the new plant. It is advised by a Puerto Rican researcher not to remove the leaves before planting, as this will reduce the roots that will eventually become crops.
Harvesting
Sweet potatoes can be harvested about 3 1/2 - 4 months after planting. If the harvesting is made too early or too late, only a few crops are harvested and the quality is not good. The over matured ones are fibrous and rot easily. Do not harvest sweet potato after a rain or when the ground is wet because the fruit contains much water then, which will make it rot easily. Besides, it is harder to gather and clean the crops when the soil is muddy it is easy to harvest when the soil is dry.
Procedure in harvesting:
1. Cut the vine first, roll it over to one side and plow the beds to bring out the crops.
2. If the harvesting is done manually, do not use pointed metal instruments but only wooden tools with a pointed end so as not to hurt the crop.
3. Carefully cut the vine in separating the crop so as not to hurt the crop.
4. Cut the vine closest to the crop.
5. Do not pile up the crops so as not bruise them.
6. Do not leave the newly harvested crops exposed in the sun. This will make them dry up and shrivel.
7. Put the crops under the shade.
Storing Procedure: Sweet potatoes will last 2-3 months when properly harvested.
1. Use a right sized basket to contain the harvest of sweet potato - not overflowing so as not to bruise them. It is in bruises and hurts that rotting starts.
2. Because of this, do not use sacks for storing.
3. The storage place must be nearest to your house or the farm or wherever the crops will be transported with facility.
4. Use bamboo, cogon or coconut leaves for roofing and sawali for walls in storage places.
source: NCC.gov.ph, p
ictures from www.globalpinoy.com, www.food.oregonstate.edu
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