How do I stop potatoes going green?

msb5262

My friend is the daughter of a potato farmer - she stores her potatoes in a cardboard box lined with newspaper, with either a tea towel or some scrunched up newspaper to cover them.
HTH
MsB

bunny999

Lakeland sell bags to store them in.

valk_scot

They only go green if they're exposed to light. So keep them in a dark place and they won't. A thick paper sack is better than a plastic bag as it lets them breathe.

They will all sprout eventually but if you keep them in a cold (but frost free) place this will slow the sprouting down.

I keep my allotment spuds in paper sacks in my unheated basement utility room. I dug them up in late summer, sorted out the damaged ones for immediated use and stored the rest in 5lb quantities, which I take up to the kitchen as needed. They have remained sprout free so far but I'm expecting them to show signs of sprouting anytime soon though. it's just that time of year. I cut off the sprouts and keep using the rest, untill they get too wrinkly. Sprouts don't make the spuds inedible, but any green bits should be cut off and not eaten of course.

carolinosourus

Thanks! I think I'm going to try the cardboard box with the teatowel, problem is there's nowhere really cold to keep them aside from the fridge!

Swipe

valk_scot wrote: »

Sprouts don't make the spuds inedible, but any green bits should be cut off and not eaten of course.

Interesting about the green bits. I've always eaten them. :eek: Are they bad for you?

izzwizz_2

Swipe wrote: »

Interesting about the green bits. I've always eaten them. :eek: Are they bad for you?

Any green parts of potatoes & tomatoes are poisonous. That's why you have to cook green tomatoes for such a long time if using them to make chutney - to break down the toxins. Don't eat the green parts of potatoes, they'll make you sick.

Butterfly_Brain

If spuds are kept in the light they go green and if they are too warm they sprout
I keep mine in the shed in a box with a lid, covered with a blanket they keep for ages

lil_me

Mine are in the kitchen cupboard not next to the cooker of course, in a pillow case, works ok.

missm29

i bought a potato bag from ebay its like the lakeland one....and it works. I notice they do banana ones too, anyone used one before?

valk_scot

Swipe wrote: »

Interesting about the green bits. I've always eaten them. :eek: Are they bad for you?

The green bits contain glycoalkaloids which are poisonous and can cause muscle and nerve damage and, if you consume a lot of them, can result in death. Potatoes come from the same family as Deadly Nightshade, did you know?