Hilling potatoes with a walk-behind tractor

Hilling up potatoes - sprinkling loosened soil at the base of the plant stems. This is done to better saturate the soil with air and oxygen, and, accordingly, for better development of tubers.

Due to the fact that the crop is formed in the soil, the higher the potato is hilled, the greater the harvest. This is usually done twice, and in areas with spring frosts - three times. The first hilling should be done when the seedlings just appear, the second when they grow by 25-30 cm, and the third - 2 weeks after the second.

Potatoes can only be hilled with moist soil. Covering the shoots with dry soil can only cause harm. It is best to carry out this work in the morning or evening.

During the first hilling, the seedlings must be completely covered. Don’t be afraid that it will be difficult for them to break through the soil layer; they will cope with this just fine. During the second and third hillings, you should try to cover the stems with soil as high as possible.

For hilling, you can now buy walk-behind tractors from both our manufacturers and imported ones. Although hilling is a labor-intensive job, using a walk-behind tractor makes it much easier. It is physically more difficult to huddle under a plow that you pull yourself.

When hilling potatoes with a walk-behind tractor, a couple of rippers are usually placed in front of the walk-behind tractor, and a hiller is placed behind it, which covers the bushes. In any case, hilling is a very important stage in caring for potatoes, and everyone decides for themselves exactly how to do it.