I Ordered Seed Potatoes Today!/Update Post #56/Harvest pg 7

[baymule]

I cut my potatoes in peices today so the cut sides can heal over. My Daddy taught me that when I was a little girl, I remember him cutting his potatoes carefully making sure that each piece had an eye. He explained to me that he cut them a week or two before planting them so the raw open cut would not rot after he planted them. The small potatoes I left whole. Next weekend, our 5 year old grand daughter is coming so she can help plant potaotes. She is excited and can't wait to get here.

Because of what I have read here on TEG, I placed the eyes under the flourescent lights. I read where it helps them to sprout better. We'll see if it makes any difference.

 

[MontyJ]

I like to dust the pieces in a little sulphur after I cut them. That also helps prevent rotting.

 

[baymule]

Thanks MontyJ! I didn't know that. I will do that next time, the cut surface has already dried and the sulfur probably wouldn't stick now.

 

[897tgigvib]

The potatoes in my fridge are making long pale sprouts. Will they be ok to plant, and if so, should i start them inside?

 

[MontyJ]

Tricky question Marshall. Short answer, yes they will probably grow just fine. Longer answer, if they are store bought potatoes you run the risk of introducing soil born disease into your garden. Some potato diseases are viable for many years after the harvest (Rhizoctonia comes to mind). Of course you already know that seed potatoes sold in the US are inspected and certified to be disease free. Those same procedures are not required for potatoes sold for food. Most home gardeners get away with planting store bought potatoes. Heck, I've done it in the past. But, with the way pests and diseases seem to be spreading across the country in such an alarming rate, I no longer take as many chances as I used to.

As for starting them indoors, I wouldn't. Potatoes don't particularly care for being transplanted unless they are started from seed.

 

[897tgigvib]

These are taters I harvested from my garden last August. Originally they came to me as a gift from one of the very special campers here who also grow and produce small amounts of private reserve only wines that are extreme gourmet quality award winning wines. They did not know the variety names but they grew very healthy last year and showed no sign of disease. One is a slower to mature potato of the all blue type, only moderately productive. The other is a red fleshed, very quick maturing, and quite productive potato.

Monty, it will continue to frost here, likely no colder than 24 degrees, or actually probably will not even get colder than 27 or 26 by now.

Do you think they'll tough it out if I set them at the ends of my north row?

Taters are not a critical or important thing in this year's garden other than I really want to be able TO SUSTAIN A POTATO CROP YEAR TO YEAR.

 

[lesa]

Marshall, I think it would be very possible for you to sustain a potato crop from year to year. I am on the other side of the country, in a much colder climate.... and I have a good percentage of potatoes coming back, year after year. I won't take credit for this happening- mother nature does it. When you harvest your potatoes and find those cute little ones- I would plant those right back in the ground. The ones that I leave in, provide a viable crop, and I am sure I lose some to the cold. In your neck of the woods, I think you would have even more success.
I don't cut my potatoes up anymore. I heard on Victory Gardens, that it is better not to, since the cuts are an invitation to bugs and disease. There is no way I could keep a seed potato from October to April. But, the conditions seem right when they are left buried in the soil. I would plant that potato that you have growing in the fridge in the ground, for sure. If nothing else, it would be an interesting experiment.

 

[897tgigvib]

That sounds like a great plan Lesa. Thank you! Unfortunately I was very careful to even get those little ones. I'm going to go ahead and plant those that are sprouting at the ends of my north row today or tomorrow.

I love how you call it my neck of the woods! I'm actually in the very heart of the woods. Well, maybe not quite. That honor might go to the Yuki Wilderness that starts about 5 Raven flying miles north and goes to about 40 miles north.

Yes, if these don't make it it's not the end of the world. I can get more. It'd be real cool to get some of those strange knobbly looking South American varieties and also some of those varieties that do make actual seeds. I once saw a website that has more than a few good potato varieties that make good almost true breeding seed, real seeds like tomato seeds.

I just made a new thread for talking about sustainable potato growing ideas.

 

[MontyJ]

If your soil is not frozen, I would go ahead and plant them out. If it is frozen, plant them just below the frost line. You can always uncover them a bit once it warms up, but I doubt you would have too. Making sure they don't freeze solid is more important. If they freeze solid they will most surely rot.

 

[baymule]

I planted potatoes yesterday! I had 44 Red Pontiac eyes (red-skinned white potato), 28 Mountain Rose eyes (pink inside), and 30 Purple Majesty eyes (purple inside). I planted in deep dug trenches. I know I am supposed to plant about 6" deep and then hill them up as they grow, but I only have small beds and no room to hill them up. Last year I trenched them and they did good. I trenched them about a foot deep this year and covered them. As they grow, I'll cover them with more soil or compost.

These are the two small beds at the street. That is extra dirt piled up in the middle on the brick walkway (that you can't see). There is another bed not in the picture that is planted also, and the 3 big tubs you see are planted. I ran out there this morning and was so disappointed! They had not come up yet! (Is anybody else as impatient as I am?)