4m x 3m Omlet pen, cube, new auto door still boxed and coop light

[pbfhpunk]

Am I being incredibly stupid but to grow potatoes do I just stick a potato in mud/compot and then keep ppusing more mud/compost onit as it grows

 

Can it be that easy?

 

Helen

[Couperman]

Yeh that's pretty much it. It helps it you 'chit' the spuds first. You leave them in a cool place for a few weeks until they sprout.

 

But bunging them in the ground should work too! Early varieties work well in containers too.

 

Once the plants get to about 8" above soil pile some more soil on them. Feed them once a week with tomato feed and once they have flowered and the flowers have died they are ready.

 

I have got loads in this year so hopefully we will have loads of loverly earlies.

 

Kev.

[Lesley]

That's about it - good advice from Kev.

[Matthew]

Yeh that's pretty much it. It helps it you 'chit' the spuds first. You leave them in a cool place for a few weeks until they sprout.

 

But bunging them in the ground should work too! Early varieties work well in containers too.

 

Once the plants get to about 8" above soil pile some more soil on them. Feed them once a week with tomato feed and once they have flowered and the flowers have died they are ready.

 

I have got loads in this year so hopefully we will have loads of loverly earlies.

 

Kev.

 

The only thing I would add is that if you are planning on planting this year I'd get them in and not bother to chit... there is no evidence either way as to whether its better or not... I only do it to identify 'dud' spuds

[little chickadee]

OOh I didn't know about feeding them with tomato feed. Thanks for that. We've got loads in this year too.

[Couperman]

I have been feeding our spuds with wormery wee, but have run out now after the wormery disaster. So I googled and found tomato feed is ideal, they have similar needs and suffer from the same blight apparently for the same reasons.

 

I am just about expert enough to call myself a beginner, I do read a lot before doing anything though, and my spud plants are going crazy. I just hope it's not all leaves!

 

Kev.

[Matthew]

I tend only to feed once I've earthed up the first time and keep watered if dry (if only this year lol)

[chickencam]

We put some well rotted manure in the trench to hold some water (we have very sandy soil) then some chicken poo pellets or growmore whichever is to hand. Then they get one other dose of chicken poo pellets and loads of water throughout the rest of the season.

 

Ours were going great guns last year until we had to cut the haulms off early because of blight. We left them in the ground for a further 2 weeks to give time for the blight spores to die or blow away then harvested them. Most were not very big but they did keep after throwing a few out in early sack checks.

[redhotchick]

I've got some Anya in. (first earlies I think) Do I need to earth them up even if I can't see any potatoes peeking out? Is it the earthing up that encourages the potatoes? They have been in about 8 weeks, they are about 8 inches high and I can see flowers on one plant

I don't know if I'm a novice or a beginner, definitely an L-plate gardener though!

[chickencam]

When we plant ours we make a trnch about 6 inches deep and then plant them 18 inches apart in that then pull the soil up over them into a ridge about 6-8 inches high. We do not then do any further earthing up unless we see potatoes, because the ground is usually too hard.

[Matthew]

I've got some Anya in. (first earlies I think) Do I need to earth them up even if I can't see any potatoes peeking out? Is it the earthing up that encourages the potatoes? They have been in about 8 weeks, they are about 8 inches high and I can see flowers on one plant

I don't know if I'm a novice or a beginner, definitely an L-plate gardener though!

 

I would earth up to 6-8 inches

[AJuff]

When will I know when they are ready?? Mine are just beginning to flower?

[Janty]

We have grown ours in potato sacks. We have grown lots of Kerr's Pinks as my maiden name was Kerr.

[chickencam]

We harvested our first ones from the allotment on Saturday Aaron Pilot very nice they were too. We planted them in the last week of March and they are just flowering but quite a good size.

[Chuckov]

Do you think that you could reuse a chicken pellets sack for storing your spuds after you've pulled them?

[Matthew]

When will I know when they are ready?? Mine are just beginning to flower?

 

If they are earlies, have a root around in the soil to see

 

If they are seconds/mains then you'll need to leave them a while

[chickencam]

Potatoes need to be stored in a bag that will breath either thick paper or hesian.

[Chuckov]

Potatoes need to be stored in a bag that will breath either thick paper or hesian.

 

So - a chicken feed bag, which is thick paper, would probably be OK?

[Matthew]

Potatoes need to be stored in a bag that will breath either thick paper or hesian.

 

So - a chicken feed bag, which is thick paper, would probably be OK?

 

Seems fine to me