Minimizing casualties when digging potatoes, and other questions

[curly_kate]

It never fails that when I dig potatoes, I end up spearing some. And naturally, they are ALWAYS the most perfect, most beautiful ones. I'm using a pitchfork and trying to start way out from the plant and work my way in. Is it just inevitable that there will be some losses?

Also, I have more rotten potatoes this year than ever. I'm assuming it's because of water, but weirdly, it's been fairly dry since I planted them (I always plant potatoes late). And what makes potatoes all knobbly? I have a bunch of really weirdly shaped ones.

 

[so lucky]

I hope you will get some good answers to the digging question. I think I saw on TV the farmers using a harrowing type attachment, that would rake the taters from the soil, but not strike at them directly. But we don't have that kind of equipment, so probably the way you are doing it is best. Just plan on eating the stabbed ones first.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I try to hill mine up pretty well so they are in a raised area. I try, don't always make it. I generally use a mattock to dig them, starting from outside and try to get under them to loosen them, then use my fingers to work them out. If the soil is rock hard, that is tough. If it is moist enough to be friable it works pretty well. But, yeah, I always damage some, sometimes cutting them in two.

 

[digitS']

Kate, I grow my potatoes in a single bed. It happens to be 100 square feet.

Digging out the bed isn't so tough, especially since I have other use for the trench result. I use it for "composting in place." It's filled with compostables and just used as a regular (fertile and deeply cultivated) garden bed the following season.

Digging beds out is my common practice and may include several others besides the spud patch.

At a depth of about 8", I don't hit tubers with my shovel. Instead, I dig up to where I see them, then pull the plant into the trench where I'm standing.

Making it real easy, I don't even dig all of the potatoes at one time. There has been 100+ pounds in the bed and they can be dug, packed out and carried to the basement in smaller amounts .

Steve

 

[thistlebloom]

I don't dig mine with a tool. My method is to kneel down in the bed and lift the potato plant out of the soil, taking any spuds still connected to the roots. Then I sift through the soil with my hands feeling for more potatoes until I'm sure I've found all from that plant. I move down the rows that way, tossing the potatoes in 5 gallon buckets. Each full bucket is pretty close to 20 pounds.
You're guaranteed to get totally filthy doing it this way, but it works the best for me.

 

[so lucky]

@thistlebloom , it sounds like your soil is a lot more friable than many of us have. And I guess catching it at the right time, with just enough moisture in the soil is key. Otherwise, clay turns into adobe.

 

[curly_kate]

Any ideas about what makes some of them knobby?

 

[thistlebloom]

Some of mine get knobby too and I figured it was the amount of stones in my soil, but I found this article that makes sense to me. Watering unevenly is probably my biggest problem with potatoes.

 

[Smart Red]

That does make sense, Thistlebloom. This year I have almost zero knobby spuds. This year we've had a pretty steady moisture/rainfall level for the greater part of summer. By the time we started drying out, the potatoes were nearly done.

 

[digitS']

You lost the "www" in your link, Thistle'.

Let me try again: LINK.

Interesting ... I couldn't copy and paste it with the www ... Typed it in let's see if it works ...

High temps and stimulated growth. My spuds look pretty good, other than being few and small. However, I do have a couple of those Daisy Golds with what must be stimulated growth. Look like weird creatures with a protruding eye.

Steve