Author Topic: last years potatoes as seed  (Read 2219 times)

staris

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last years potatoes as seed
« on: February 11, 2013, 16:47:10 »
i've got loads of kestrel left over which are sprouting and starting to go a bit soft so i was wondering if i can use them as seed potatoes or is this bad idea.

BarriedaleNick

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Re: last years potatoes as seed
« Reply #1 on: February 11, 2013, 17:11:04 »
It is often considered a bad idea and it is preferred by many to buy new seed stock every year due to disease being dormant in the tubers.  However a mate on my plot has been saving his biggest and best for years and replanting them and has great results.
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manicscousers

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Re: last years potatoes as seed
« Reply #2 on: February 11, 2013, 17:24:27 »
We're planting some smile spuds from last year in pots, this is inside where there's no blight. I wouldn't use our kestrel as they got blight last year and I've been told it overwinters in the potatoes

Robert_Brenchley

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Re: last years potatoes as seed
« Reply #3 on: February 11, 2013, 18:54:37 »
As long as they're clean and you're sure there's no rot you should be OK for a year or two at least. There are two potential problems. The first is blight, which overwinters on the tubers. It's definitely a problem; seed potatoes are a souce of blight in the States, though I've never heard anything of the sort over here. I suspect their standards are a bit lax. The second is viruses. These accumulate from one year to the next, and eventually the quality is likely to deteriorate.

staris

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Re: last years potatoes as seed
« Reply #4 on: February 11, 2013, 22:31:53 »
not sure whether to use them or not now, we did get blight last year as we seem to every year, i had to cut the tops of but have not found any rot in any of them.

chriscross1966

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Re: last years potatoes as seed
« Reply #5 on: February 13, 2013, 07:59:50 »
Depending on storage conditions blight will rot the potatoes in storage normally in this country unless you chilled them immediately after harvest and have kept them chilled since... Blight overwinters on the tubers in discard piles where most of the tubers were clean but outgrade and it has a chance to keep infecting fresh tissue.... If you chit your spuds and they have blight they will start to rot long before you plant them out. The real issue is diseas build up of a viral rather than bacterial nature. I'm growing a few things from saved seed spuds this year, mostly antique heritage stuff though there are a couiple that I've raised myself from seed, a Ratte sedling that produces something like a massive Charlotte or Anya and seems to be at least partially blight tolerant and a couple of crosses of PFA with Sarpo somethnig (Axona or Mira I believe

chrisc

laurieuk

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Re: last years potatoes as seed
« Reply #6 on: February 14, 2013, 13:21:13 »
Seed potatoes are mainly grown in Scotland at altitude where there is very little if any aphid to spread virus. If you save your own seed potatoes without very very careful selection you can build up a harmful virus. Some allotment groups have such strong rules that anyone found using ware seed are asked or told to leave. Your own seed is not  quite so bad as shop bought ware potatoes.

 

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