Potato variety Impala, description, characteristics and reviews, as well as features of cultivation

Russians have been growing Dutch impala potatoes for almost 30 years. He is known in Ukraine, in Belarus. The variety is precocious, but at the same time fruitful and mellow. It is not without flaws, but if you follow the classic rules of agricultural technology, you will not notice the minuses of the Impala.

The origin of the variety Impala

The history of Impala potatoes began in one of the administrative centers of the Netherlands - in the city of Emmelord. It is located on land conquered from the lake, and even earlier the site was part of the sea. In the coldest month of the year (January), the temperature does not drop below 0

^aboutC, but in the hottest (August) it does not rise above 22^aboutC. It rains every second or third day.

Potato grows very well among local farmers in such conditions, but it is not possible to sell large crops on the domestic market. In 1973, the producers came together to create one large enterprise whose goal is the cultivation and sale of potatoes. Thus began the international company Agrico. Today, its specialists develop innovative solutions in the field of potato growing, develop new varieties, and send seed material around the world.

One of the largest sales markets has become Russia. In 1992, the potato passed a variety test and was included in the State Register of the Russian Federation, as zoned for only four regions:

• Central
• Lower Volga
• Volga-Vyatka
• Northwest.

However, Impala potatoes quickly spread throughout Russia. It is successfully grown for sale by farmers of Krasnodar, even managing to collect two crops per season. In 2000, the variety was introduced in the State Registers of Ukraine and Belarus.

In some regions of the Russian Federation and Ukraine, Impala even gave their native and understandable names: Kubanka, Krymchanka.

Video: how Agrico creates potato varieties

The main characteristics of the variety

The advantages of the variety, which allowed to win the hearts of gardeners:

• High productivity and beautiful appearance of fruits. The tubers are light yellow, have a smooth oval shape, each weighs 88–150 g, 10–12 pieces grow in the bush. Eyes are small and shallow.
• Early maturity is 55–65 days, young potatoes can be dug already on the 40th day.
• The taste of almost everyone who grew the Impala, like it. The pulp is almost white, with a slight yellow tint, moderately friable, during cooking it does not turn into porridge and does not turn black.
• The tubers on the bushes are compactly arranged; you do not need to dig holes deep and wide in search of a crop.
• Little things are very few, potatoes aligned.
• Indicators of transportability, keeping quality and productivity are above average for this crop. Farmers per hectare receive from 180 to 360 centners. In an amateur garden, you can collect from 0.5 kg from a bush of young potatoes. Aged gives more than 1 kg, with good care - up to 2 kg. For an early ripening variety, these are excellent indicators. It is beneficial to grow impala on an industrial scale for sale.

Tops grow up to 80 cm high, white flowers. Impala is affected by the Colorado potato beetle, late blight and rhizoctonia. However, early ripening of the crop allows you to avoid diseases, because they are especially actively developing only in the fall. The variety is resistant to viruses, easily tolerates drought.

Table: Variety Advantages and Disadvantages

Growing Potato Impala

Like any potato, the variety needs loose and fertile soil. To fertilize the field, you will need a lot of humus. Impala responds well to mineral fertilizers. Reverse frosts are dangerous for seedlings, so plant potatoes after they are over. By the time the young shoots appear, heat will come, and those that appeared earlier can be recharged. In southern Russia, to get two crops per season, Impala is planted already in late February - early March under spanbond. Cultivation differs from the classical one in that everything needs to be done in a short time, keeping up with the growth of this sprinter.

Video: landing of the Impala in March under film in Krasnodar

Seed germination

Due to early maturity, Impala seed tubers can be sprouted. If you want to get a super-early crop, take the potatoes out of the storehouse and begin preparation 2–4 weeks before planting.

From year to year I act with my potato according to the same pattern. I choose seed tubers from the best bushes. For the prevention of diseases, wash them in a solution of vitriol (1 h. l 10 l of water) and leave for drying and landscaping in a ventilated veranda. A week later I send to the cellar. A month before planting, I transfer seeds to heat. I shift it to the nets, while removing the ones that I don’t like: with sores, rotted. I lay out the nets in the room on the floor for germination. I plant only 5-6 buckets, so they do not take up much space. It can be germinated on a glazed balcony, in a greenhouse, a barn. The main thing is to keep it warm (15-18^aboutC) and not too bright. Due to the fact that the tubers are in the light, the sprouts do not stretch, but grow thick and green. For a month, potatoes sprouts no more than 1.5–2 cm long. The whole germination period 2 times a week, I spray the tubers with clean water so that they do not fade, and turn the nets on the other side, allowing the sun to illuminate the potatoes from all sides.

If it is already time to plant, and the site has not been dug up, or nature has presented a surprise in the form of snow or prolonged rain, then I transfer the seed potatoes to the shed and dig them into wet sawdust. In 5–7 days, short and thick roots appear at the base of the sprouts. Such potatoes will sprout in 7-10 days.

Handle sprouted potatoes very carefully. Sprouts easily break off and deform.

Soil preparation and planting

Potatoes love light loamy and sandy loamy soils with a high humus content. The site should be all lit by the sun. In the shade, the bushes will grow weak, the tubers on them will be small. The earth needs to be fertilized well, for every 1 m² depending on the cultivation season, add:

• in the fall: 1-2 buckets of humus or manure and 1 tbsp. l superphosphate and potassium sulphide;
• in the spring: 1–2 buckets of humus (manure can no longer be brought in) and 1 tbsp. ash instead of phosphorus-potassium fertilizers.

Impala planting pattern: in a row between tubers - 40 cm, row spacing - 60–70 cm, planting depth - 7–8 cm. In each hole, you can additionally add 1 tbsp. l ash, a pinch of ammofoski, a handful of peat, humus or a spoonful of special fertilizer for potatoes, for example, Gumi-Omi. All this must be mixed with soil at the bottom of the hole and spread the tubers. Already at this stage, start the fight with the Colorado potato beetle, horsetail, and bear. Spray the wells and potatoes in them with a solution of Tabu (4 ml per 10 l of water). Now you can fill the tubers with earth and wait for seedlings.

Video: planting potatoes in the furrows

Potato Care Impala

Early potatoes very quickly grow tops, and then tubers. Although the variety is called drought tolerant, without moisture it will not please you with a large crop. Early ripening needs watering more often than ordinary potatoes, but not as plentiful. Consumption under the bush is 3 liters of water heated in the sun every 3-5 days. But this is the average norm, take into account the structure of the soil and the weather. For example, sandy soil dries faster than clay soil. In the south in hot weather and dry weather you need to water more often. If it is rainy summer, then watering the potatoes may not be necessary. In any case, the ground should be constantly moist and loose to a depth of 30 cm, but in no case flooded. In damp, the tubers simply rot.

If you use drip irrigation, then connect the system not to the water supply, but to the tank to water the potatoes with rain or settled water.

As for feeding, I can share my scheme that I applied last summer:

1. In the spring, before planting potatoes, she planted the whole field with mustard. She made holes in the middle of mustard; by that time she was still short - up to 5 cm.
2. By the time potato shoots appeared, the mustard had grown, I chopped it with a chopper and left it to rot and nourish the soil under the potatoes.
3. When the potato bushes grew to 10–15 cm, they poured horse manure concentrate with a solution. It is sold in a store. Dissolved 50 ml in 10 liters of water, poured 1 liter under each bush.
4. When the buds appeared on the potato, I bought BioGumus complex fertilizer for potatoes. It is made in the form of jelly, in a 10-liter watering can, bred 2 tbsp. l Now, the feeding rate was 2 liters under the bush.
5. During flowering, it gave foliar top dressing with the same BioGumus, but only moistened the leaves.

Be sure to combine fertilizing with watering or do it after rain, you can not pour fertilizer into dry ground. For a short growing season, Impala with strong employment and visiting the site only on weekends, you can manage to feed only once. But that will be enough.

Fertilizers containing nitrogen (infusions of manure, manure, urea, ammonium nitrate, etc.) are fed in the first half of the growing season until the buds appear. Later, phosphorus-potassium mixtures with trace elements are already needed. They can be bought or replaced with ordinary ash. Shake a glass of ash in a bucket of water until it settles, pour potatoes (10 liters into 5-6 bushes).

If you didn’t have time to add nitrogen top dressing, and the potato has already gained color, skip it, give the next one - complex from the store or ash.

After watering and top dressing, the next day the soil begins to become covered with crust and cracks. Therefore, do not forget to loosen the aisles. At the same time, remove the weeds. Mulch from straw or grass cuts will greatly facilitate the work, under it the earth always remains loose.

Video: weed control, methods of hilling

Disease and Pest Prevention

I don’t wait when the pathogenic fungi infect my potato or the Colorado potato beetles start to eat it. I just know that they live in neighboring areas, and I need to do everything so that my plants get around these misfortunes. From diseases I process:

1. Seeds - a solution of copper sulfate (1 h. l for 10 liters of water). Just wash tubers in this solution in the fall, immediately after digging, or in the spring, before germination.
2. I spray the bushes with a height of 15–20 cm with HOM (40 g per 10 l).

Impala is enough for one preventive treatment against phytosporosis, rhizoctonia, scab and any other fungal diseases. If you harvest on time, do not leave potatoes until the fall, late blight will affect only the tops and do not have time to switch to tubers. When growing two crops per season, potatoes planted a second time (in the fall) must be processed twice with an interval of 10 days with any of the fungicides (HOM, Skor, Ridomil, Bordeaux liquid).

Fighting with the Colorado potato beetle, she discovered a beautiful insecticide - Aktaru. I have been using it for many years, although they say that pests get used to poisons. The result is always good. Before the appearance of beetles, as soon as the potato bushes grow a little to 15–20 cm, I process with Aktara (2 g per 10 l). This drug is absorbed by the leaves, spreads throughout the plant and makes it poisonous to beetles for 2-3 weeks. After 2 weeks, repeat the treatment. I do not do more than two sprayings. As a result, over the whole summer I find only 1-2 adult individuals on the earth upside down. Bushes are absolutely clean.

There are many insecticides from the Colorado potato beetle:

• Corado
• Killer,
• Marshal
• The executioner and others.

Manual collection and folk remedies against this pest are ineffective. When treating with insecticides, consider the waiting period. At Aktara, it is 20 days after processing. So, Impala can be sprayed 7-10 days after emergence and 2 weeks later. Until the end of the growing season there will be enough time for the breakdown of the pesticide. If you plan to dig young potatoes, then confine yourself to one treatment.

You can also make a calculation for pickled seeds. For example, when planting, you treated the tubers with Tabu. It protects potatoes from beetles 30 days after emergence. Impala grows 60 days, which means that after 30 days, and preferably sooner - after 3 weeks, it is necessary to carry out insecticide treatment also on tops.

Video: why the Colorado beetles returned

When and how to harvest

No need to wait for the tops of the Impala to lie down and turn yellow - they can stand green for a long time. It happens that the early potato overexposed in the field begins to grow a second crop on already ripened tubers. You will get a lot of little things, the commercial quality of the main crop will decrease. Therefore, start cleaning 2 months after emergence. If the Impala ascended at the end of May, then you need to harvest at the end of July.

When growing a second crop or as a result of late planting, potato harvesting occurs in the fall. In this case, a week before digging, mow the entire tops and remove it from the field. At the end of the season, she is usually affected by late blight. Pathogenic fungi with rain and dew will fall into the ground and infect tubers.

Video: when to dig potatoes

Collect potatoes in dry weather. Immediately after cleaning, transfer it to a dark and ventilated area (shed, garage, under a shed) for a week. During this period, the peel will get stronger, if there are tubers infected with late blight, then they will manifest themselves, covered with brown pressed spots. They cannot be stored for storage. Only healthy and whole potatoes should be sent to the cellar or cellar. All injured and sick can be cleaned and used.

Delicious pancakes, casseroles, mashed potatoes, fried and stewed dishes are obtained from Impala. Potato cubes retain their shape in soups. The variety is suitable for the preparation of winter salads.

Reviews gardeners

When I was still fond of collecting potato collections, I also had Impala - a Dutch selection, the peel seems to be almost white with yellowish hue, has absolutely even tubers, I don’t remember the color of the flesh, was bred for the production of chips, with a reduced content starch. The only variety that I regret is that over time I lost it.

And we in the market bought a bag of potatoes, the seller said - a variety of Impala. I haven’t eaten such delicious pancakes as from her in my life! Now I’m looking specifically for Impala, but how evil I can’t come across!

Impala for my conditions is still the best grade. Very productive, little things almost none. Compared to Red Scarlet, the crop yielded twice as much, under equal conditions. I and my family really like the taste qualities (crumbly, but not boiled, very tasty mashed potatoes, tasty in frying, do not darken during cooking). Early, tubers are compact. Planting the third season.

Impala, as they wrote about it - after 2 months you can start digging (0.5 kg in the bush, later more, up to 1 kg), at the beginning I I didn’t like the impala - it’s watery, but my grandmothers praised it, after three weeks the taste improved significantly, it became boil over.

Impala at early ripening is characterized by high productivity, which was the reason for the popularity of this variety. Caring for him is the most common. However, it must be completed in a short time, since the development phases (sprouting, growing greenery, budding, flowering, ripening) quickly replace each other. If you have time to do 1-2 feeding and the same amount of hilling, then this potato will give you such a crop that other varieties do not have time to grow even for a much longer growing season.