Mid-season hardy potato Tuscany

The German potato variety Tuscany is versatile in its application - it is suitable both for cultivation for sale and for personal use. The tubers are attractive because of their even size, smooth skin with a small number of shallow eyes. The taste of potatoes is excellent. Due to its optimal starch content, it is widely used in cooking and food industry.

In the article you will find complete information about the Tuscany potatoes with photos and descriptions.

Description of the variety and its origin

Mid-season potatoes Tuscany - a variety of German selection. Bred by biologists of the famous company Solana. Not included in the State Register of Russia due to the lack of necessary research. The crop is suitable for growing in any region of the country.

In the photo - Tuscany potatoes.

The table contains the distinctive features of the variety.

Chemical composition

The table shows the complex of vitamins and minerals contained in 100 g of raw tubers.

Advantages and disadvantages

Advantages:

• high productivity;
• excellent taste;
• moderate starch content;
• suitable for dietetic food;
• tubers are resistant to mechanical damage (wounds heal quickly);
• strong immunity.

Judging by the reviews of farmers, there are no shortcomings in the variety.

Potato agricultural technology

Tuscany potatoes are undemanding to the composition of the soil, they adapt to any cultivation conditions. The agricultural technology of the culture is simple, it provides for timely watering during the dry season, loosening the earth crust, cleaning weeds, hilling and feeding with organic matter and minerals.

Tuber preparation

Due to the short dormancy period, tubers do not need to germinate before planting. It is enough to take the seeds outside from the storage 3-5 days before landing, rinse with running water, treat with a solution of boric acid, copper sulfate or potassium permanganate and dry. 24 hours before planting, the tubers are soaked in a growth stimulator ("Epin", "Zircon").

For safety reasons, the seed is subjected to vernalization.20 days before planting, the tubers are washed, disinfected, put in boxes with holes and left in a warm room with a temperature of + 14 ... + 17 ° C.

Soil preparation

As practice shows, potatoes prefer light and nutritious soil: sandy loam, sandy, peat. Cultivation on loam is possible, subject to the introduction of humus.

In the fall, the site is dug up, harrowed, fertilized, in the spring it is sown with oats, lupine, rye, flax, and wheat. After a month, the mows are embedded in the soil to enrich with nitrogen and prevent the development of pathogenic microflora.

Timing, scheme and landing rules

When planting potatoes, they are guided by the weather conditions in each individual region. In the south of the country, planting work begins at the end of April. By this time, the soil has time to warm up to + 5 ... + 7 ° С. In the central regions, planting is carried out in early May, in the northern ones - in mid-May.

The disembarkation is carried out according to the scheme:

• depth - 8-10 cm;
• the distance between the holes is 30–35 cm;
• row spacing - 60–70 cm.

A handful of wood ash and superphosphate are added to each hole. These fertilizers are enough to gain green mass.

Care

Care rules:

1. It is recommended to install a drip water system. Manual watering is carried out at least 2 times per season. In drought, the frequency of watering is increased up to 2 times every 10 days.
2. Loosening the earth crust is a mandatory procedure that provides an additional flow of oxygen to the roots.
3. Weeding is carried out once a week, preventing the rooting of plants.
4. Mulching the soil with straw or hay traps moisture and the growth of weeds, making it easier to maintain plantings.
5. Potatoes are spud twice: 7-10 days after planting and after flowering. This protects the tubers from possible night frosts and stimulates the growth of stolons.
6. Fertilizers are applied after flowering. Prior to this, the plant feeds on organic compounds introduced during planting and at the stage of soil preparation. Spraying the bushes with a solution of superphosphate (10 g / 10 l) and nitrophoska (30 g / 10 l) is more effective.

Disease and pest control

The Tuscany variety is moderately resistant to late blight of tops and tubers.

Signs of the disease:

• brown spots on the leaves;
• white pubescent bloom on the back of the leaf;
• small black dots on greenery (spores);
• dark spots on tubers.

Preventive measures:

• pre-planting treatment of tubers with boric acid, copper sulfate, potassium permanganate, "Fitosporin-M";
• crop rotation;
• weeding;
• timely harvesting of tops and tubers;
• control of the level of moisture and nitrogen in the soil;
• spraying plantings with milk whey with iodine (10 drops per 1 liter of fermented milk product);
• plant feeding with potassium and phosphorus.

Treatment:

• chemicals "Oksikhom", "Ridomil Gold", "Gamair", "Metaxil", "Bravo", "Planriz", "Alufit";
• 10 tablets "Trichopolum" per 10 liters of water (spray once every 14 days);
• 2 kg of horsetail per 10 liters of water, leave for 4 days, process the bushes once a week;
• 1 liter of ash, 200 g of soap shavings per 10 liters of water.

Along with a frequent visitor to the garden - the Colorado potato beetle, plantings are often affected by the potato moth. Its larvae first feed on the ground part, then move on to potato tubers. With mass distribution, you can lose up to 80% of the crop.

Harm inflicted:

• weakening of plants as a result of partial or complete destruction of leaves;
• loss of yield due to damage to tubers;
• decrease in the quality and quantity of the crop.

Signs:

• spider web on stems and leaves;
• dying off of foliage and stems;
• wormholes in tubers;
• passages in potatoes filled with excretion products;
• traces of rot on damaged tissues.

Control measures:

• planting healthy material;
• hilling bushes;
• weed harvesting;
• sprinkling of plantings (this leads to the death of butterflies);
• quick harvesting and taking out of the field;
• destruction of damaged tubers;
• treatment of a plant with preparations "Danadim", "Bi 58", "Ditox", "Di 68", "Rogos-S", "Bitoxibacillin", "Kinmiks", "Lepidocid", "Dendrobacillin", "Entobacterin", "Arrivo" , "Tsitkor", "Zolon", "Terradim".

Another enemy of the potato - the bear, has an irrepressible appetite, erodes the root system of the plant.

To get rid of the pest:

• a solution of ammonia (4 tbsp. l. ammonia / 10 l) is poured into the nests with larvae;
• pour the granules of the "Terradox" preparation (25 g / 10 m²);
• 1 kg of any boiled cereal is mixed with a solution of "Vofatox" (20 ml / 100 ml of water), balls are formed and laid out on the site, sprinkled with soil so as not to attract birds.

Plant infusions with a pungent smell help to fight the Colorado potato beetle:

• 300 g celandine, 200 g ash / 10 liters of water;
• 2 kg of yellow bitterness, 30 g of soap shavings / 10 l of water;
• 200 g cloves of garlic or green arrows, 40 g shavings of soap / 10 liters of water;
• 200 g of tobacco shag, 2 kg of green bugs / 10 l of water.

Sprayed with means in the evening in complete calm, on dry foliage. Ready infusions are used only fresh for greater efficiency. To prevent addiction, the means are alternated with chemicals.

To scare off beetles, marigolds, borago (cucumber grass), calendula, coriander, nasturtium, matthiola, hemp, beans, peas, horseradish, onions, tansy are planted.

In case of mass distribution, insecticides are used: "Prestige", "Aktara", "Corado", "Lightning", "Commander", "Iskra", "Inspector", "Sonnet +", "Antizhuk", "Death to beetles", "Prestige "," Dilor ".

Collection, storage and use of the crop

Harvesting rules:

• two weeks before digging, the tops are cut and completely removed from the field;
• dug potatoes in dry, warm weather;
• the tubers are cleaned from the ground, sorted, rotten and damaged are thrown away;
• potatoes are left in a dry dark place for 3-4 days to dry.

Potato storage rules:

• storage and containers (boxes, bags, nets) wash, disinfect, dry and put tubers in them;
• storage temperature should not be higher than + 4 ° С, humidity at 70-80%;
• potatoes can be stored with apples or beets to prevent rotting;
• the tubers are periodically pulled out of the container and sorted out (rotten and green ones are discarded).

To store potatoes on the balcony, use thermo containers powered by the mains and withstanding air temperatures down to –40 ° C.

Tuscany potatoes are suitable for cooking, frying, baking, stewing, preparing snacks, alcohol and starch.

Features of cultivation and possible difficulties

There are no difficulties in growing the Tuscany variety. The culture quickly adapts to all weather conditions and soil types.

To reduce labor costs when cultivating potatoes, it is recommended to use Dutch technology.

Landing rules:

• selection of high quality seed material;
• germination at a temperature of + 18 ° С;
• treatment of tubers in growth stimulants;
• planting after reaching 5 mm sprouts;
• soil preparation in autumn - plowing to a depth of 25 cm, harrowing, leveling the surface, adding humus and potassium sulfate, superphosphate, 25 g each per 1 m²;
• sowing alfalfa, rapeseed, mustard with further mowing;
• spring plowing of the site and the introduction of urea or ammonium sulfate (50 g per 1 m²);
• planting tubers in soil heated to + 10 ° С to a depth of 6–8 cm with sprouts up;
• distance between holes - 30 cm, rows - 70 cm;
• forming a high ridge with a cross-sectional area of ​​15 m2;
• weeding and hilling bushes (shaft height - 12 cm, width - 35 cm);
• re-hilling - after a month (embankment height - 30 cm);
• further removal of weeds using herbicides;
• installation of a drip irrigation system;
• treatment of plantings from the Colorado potato beetle with chemicals "Corado", "Bankol" strictly before flowering;
• irrigation of bushes (5-6 times per season) with preparations "Skor", "Topaz", "HOM" for the prevention of late blight;
• harvesting tops 1.5 weeks before digging.

Benefits:

• increased productivity;
• reduction in ripening period;
• an increase in the number of tubers on each bush;
• attractive presentation of potatoes;
• preservation of taste during storage.

Reviews of gardeners

Reviews of the Tuscany variety are mostly positive. Gardeners appreciate potatoes for their undemanding soil and care, excellent taste and high productivity.

Mikhail, Kirov: “I like Tuscany potatoes for the excellent taste of the tubers. They are neither dry nor watery; they do not darken after cooking and cutting. Shrub maintenance is minimal. I water only in drought, and before that the plant has enough rainwater. I fertilize once with nitrofos, and this is enough for the normal development of tubers. "

Julia, Novovoronezh: “Last year I bought seeds of the Tuscany variety at the farmers' fair. The nodules are smooth as for selection, medium in size with an even and smooth skin. I planted a couple of bushes for testing because of the skepticism towards overseas varieties. The taste of the potatoes was a pleasant surprise. It is not soapy, does not boil over, does not break when frying, and is stored for a long time in the cellar. The bushes did not get sick with anything, there were few Colorado beetles. To prevent late blight, she treated them with Oxyhom, and poured wood ash under the bushes to scare off beetles. "

Read also:

Potatoes in the fight against hemorrhoids: how to make suppositories and compresses for treatment.

The ideal potato variety for the winter: Jelly.

Is it possible to eat potatoes with high cholesterol.

Conclusion

Tuscany potatoes are a German-bred variety, which, despite a number of positive qualities, is not yet included in the list of selective achievements of Russia. The culture is unpretentious to care for, needs minimal watering and double fertilization.

The variety is resistant to most nightshade diseases, with proper care it does not suffer from late blight and gives a large harvest. Preventive work includes pre-planting treatment of tubers, compliance with crop rotation, cleaning of weeds and tops, spraying with copper-containing preparations.