Chitting or Green Sprouting Potatoes?

[Mauldintiger]

i received mine yesterday from the Maine Potato Lady, they were cold and hard without any sign of a sprout! Varieties were Red Norlund, Purple Viking, Satina, and Red Pontiac. Last year I bought organic potatoes from Fresh Market in January and kept them dark and warm for a week, then warm and bright for two weeks. Bought some seed potatoes locally for my nephew this week and they were already sprouting. Web searches say to greensprout them for two weeks and you get an earlier harvest. But if I wait two weeks what's the difference? Looking for advice!

 

[so lucky]

By green sprouting, does that mean leaving in warmth and light? With the ground as cold as it is, I would think the potatoes would appreciate a warm sunny holiday before they get stuck in the cold damp ground again. But I may be anthropomorphizing again.

 

[Ridgerunner]

@Beekissed got into this on another thread recently. Potatoes are a cool weather crop and do best further north than we are. Still we can grow a lot of nice potatoes. Commercial operations like to chit their potatoes to gain and extra week or two on the growing season. Supposedly the quality is better if they grow before it turns too hot, plus for commercial farmers that gives them an extra week or two so they can grow a second crop on that ground. That could be important in a cooler shorter summer if your livelihood depends on farming.

I generally do not chit my potatoes and they still do great. Where you are the ground should be plenty warm already for you to plant them directly and them do well. If you haven't already chitted them I don't see any real benefit to you. I'd just plant them.

 

[Beekissed]

Me too....should sprout and do fine, especially if you get them in now while it's still cool.

 

[Mauldintiger]

I googled and read several articles about it and @Ridgerunner is right I think, they were all written by folks up north. My soil is about 50* right now, so I'm putting them in the ground today.

"anthropomorphizing"??? Where did that come from @so lucky, guess I'll have to google that as well.

 

[Mauldintiger]

To ascribe human tendencies or needs to things not human! Learned something today!

 

[Ridgerunner]

I just wonder if @so lucky knew how to spell that. I was familiar with the work, I've seen it over on the chicken site a few times, but I'd have to loo up the spelling.

 

[thistlebloom]

I just wonder if @so lucky knew how to spell that. I was familiar with the work, I've seen it over on the chicken site a few times, but I'd have to loo up the spelling.

Of course she did!

 

[Mauldintiger]

Thanks @Beekissed & @Ridgerunner, 40 lbs now in, on top of the ground and covered with straw. Look how dark and and rich the soil is after 2 years of sheet mulching, without the compost its red clay. Planted bok choi, sugar daddy peas, evergreen bunching onions, 3 kinds of carrots, and Dutch yellow moon shallots also. Harvested some green onions and kale. Busy 60* day in the garden and this old man is tired, but is a good tired. Showered and now enjoying some Jack Daniels! All guarded by my owl!

 

[Beekissed]

Y'all plant your rows a little closer to each other than we do here in the hills. Good day of planting! Can't wait to see your growing crop and your yields. Your soil does look great!