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Growing potatoes

13

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  • Mnd
    Mnd Posts: 1,699 Forumite
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    Sounds good, keep watering and no need to pick any shoots off. Watch out for slugs, can't think of anything else that nibbles potatoes, they will also burrow into the new tubers in soil. It won't be long till you have usable spuds, don't pull a whole plant, dig your fingers under the plant and feel around for usable tubers leaving the rest to swell up in there own time, it's really a satisfying feeling those first new potatoes of the summer.I've dug 2 plants from up the plot. Charlotte, really lovely potato. Good luck
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  • Gers
    Gers Posts: 12,013 Forumite
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    Yesterday I thought the potatoes had blight, but decided that the leaves have taken a battering with all the rain and wind we've had over the past three weeks. I cut off the bottom leaves anyway.

    Then I did what Mnd suggested and stuck my hand down each bag in turn, and was delighted to feel potatoes. Yes, I know it's what I should have expected but it was still a pleasure to have them there. Some small and some much larger. I just wish that the wind / rain hadn't washed off the labels I'd stuck in the bags! Next year I'll do something more secure.

    The leaves are dying back so I'll do some harvesting in a couple of weeks. My virgin journey as a potato grower is almost at an end. I won't be so worried next year.
  • Gers
    Gers Posts: 12,013 Forumite
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    I've stuck my hand down into all the bags and pulled a couple of potatoes out of each.

    The Epicures (I think) have scab. The other varieties don't, so far. As we've not had dry weather I'm at a loss to understand why, however I peeled the blemished ones and cooked them, tasted fine.

    The reason for thinking it was the Epicure is because they were floury and I don't normally eat this type.

    The carefully written on plastic sticks with variety were the biggest failure, the writing washed off very soon after planting. For next year I've bought wooden sticks and will somehow get labels on the front of the bags.

    I'm not disheartened or disappointed. It's nature and there are loads more potatoes to unearth. As I'm growing them mostly for my DM I doubt she'll be unhappy either.

    The remainder are still under earth. Another couple of weeks I think.
  • Gers
    Gers Posts: 12,013 Forumite
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    Epicure bag had lots of mushy potatoes in the soil :eek:
  • Gers
    Gers Posts: 12,013 Forumite
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    The yield from each of the eight litre bags was disappointing - only really a meal for two people from each. It's my first year in doing this so I'll learn from it. So far I've learnt to feed the bag which I didn't do this year, thought the well rotted manure would be enough.

    I've just emptied the last two bags and will now get ready to plant some Charlottes for Christmas. I've got bigger bags and will plant more than one in each! And I've got potato fertiliser.

    I don't even eat that many potatoes normally so I''m growing them for others. At least next year I'll (hopefully) have the raised beds sorted in the front part of the house, across the track, which should yield more.
  • kazwookie
    kazwookie Posts: 13,836 Forumite
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    Label the bags, and take a photo on your phone or camera, so you have a record of which is which, or old fashioned paper and pen, number each bag and write on the paper which paper has which spuds in it!
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  • Apodemus
    Apodemus Posts: 3,384 Forumite
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    ...and earth them up next time! There is a good reason why farms do this, it's not just "recreational tillage"! :)
  • pineapple
    pineapple Posts: 6,931 Forumite
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    edited 7 August 2017 at 7:24PM
    At my last house I grew potatoes two years running in bags on the patio because the actual garden was uphill and clay. The first time, I was astonished at the height of the greenery above the bag! Can't remember the varieties but they did well. There is nothing like your own potatoes but I'm not convinced the yield justified the outlay in compost and seed potatoes and the space they filled.
  • Gers
    Gers Posts: 12,013 Forumite
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    kazwookie wrote: »
    Label the bags, and take a photo on your phone or camera, so you have a record of which is which, or old fashioned paper and pen, number each bag and write on the paper which paper has which spuds in it!

    Did that...however I used donated plastic labels and the names washed off in the torrential rain. I will do better next time. :(
    Apodemus wrote: »
    ...and earth them up next time! There is a good reason why farms do this, it's not just "recreational tillage"! :)

    Yep, will do this with the Christmas tattles!
  • Gers
    Gers Posts: 12,013 Forumite
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    I planted my Christmas Charlottes on 09 August - three to a large bag for earthing up.

    Now I find that one of the tubers is growing faster in one of the bags than the other two. Do I just earth up the growing one? Or make the soil even?

    It's a steep learning curve so far, and the slope over one tuber will be even steeper soon!
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