Author Topic: Potatoes - not your usual questions  (Read 2670 times)

newspud9

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Potatoes - not your usual questions
« on: August 16, 2014, 13:11:44 »
?1
My main crop has started to grow clusters of what are presumably potatoes (though they look like green olives) on the shoots above the ground. I haven't been able to tend to them as much as usual this year so I assume the crop is telling me it's time to dig up what's in the ground. Anyone had this themselves?

?2
I also dug up the last of my new potatoes. The soil is in perfect condition but this means that the small spuds are dropping down quite some way in the soil and I think I'm missing lots. What's the best tool people use for digging up small spuds...my 5-pronged fork is excellent for many things, but not for this.

Thanks for all the responses

Jayb

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Re: Potatoes - not your usual questions
« Reply #1 on: August 16, 2014, 13:36:55 »
If the clusters of little potatoes are quite far up the foliage on little stalks coming in from the main stem,  then they are likely to be potato berries formed following the flowers being pollinated. If they are a cluster of small potatoes growing on from stems quite low down on the plant it might be as a result of Black scurf/ stem canker.

Some potato varieties are more likely to produce seed pods than others, what sort are you growing?

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newspud9

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Re: Potatoes - not your usual questions
« Reply #2 on: August 16, 2014, 14:03:02 »
Thanks Jayb
From your advice, I would say they are berries. They are Pentlands.
Many thanks

Jayb

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Re: Potatoes - not your usual questions
« Reply #3 on: August 16, 2014, 14:30:50 »
Good news then, if it helps here's a picture of some potato berries or true potato seed. Not everyone is interested in doing it but, I try and let the berries ripen and save them for seed to grow next season, it is a little time consuming and the plants don't come exactly true to the parent from seed, fun though!
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Flighty

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Re: Potatoes - not your usual questions
« Reply #4 on: August 16, 2014, 14:37:24 »
In fact it's a very common question here, and on all the gardening forums. These are green fruit/seed heads which are poisonous so should be removed and binned.  Start lifting potatoes once the foliage is dying back.

You can get a potato fork, give it a google and you'll see.  I use a border fork but still manage to spear, or miss, a few.
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Jayb

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Re: Potatoes - not your usual questions
« Reply #5 on: August 16, 2014, 14:46:23 »
Good point Flighty, potato seed pods are poisonous as are the leaves and stems of potatoes. But if someone wants to and it is safe to do so, saving seed pods for seed should not be a problem.
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Silverleaf

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Re: Potatoes - not your usual questions
« Reply #6 on: August 16, 2014, 15:29:06 »
I'm interested in potato berries! You could post them to me! ;)

newspud9

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Re: Potatoes - not your usual questions
« Reply #7 on: August 17, 2014, 15:14:32 »
Thanks for all the responses. Bearing in mind Flighty's comments, I'm not going to post them anywhere (sorry Silverleaf) and they are going straight in the bin

Silverleaf

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Re: Potatoes - not your usual questions
« Reply #8 on: August 17, 2014, 20:25:37 »
Well lots of people have harvested true potato seed from berries and grown it, and not poisoned themselves.

I have five Desiree berries on my windowsill waiting for me to process them, and I don't appear to be dead yet.

sparrow

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Re: Potatoes - not your usual questions
« Reply #9 on: September 02, 2014, 11:02:39 »
If the clusters of little potatoes are quite far up the foliage on little stalks coming in from the main stem,  then they are likely to be potato berries formed following the flowers being pollinated. If they are a cluster of small potatoes growing on from stems quite low down on the plant it might be as a result of Black scurf/ stem canker.

Some potato varieties are more likely to produce seed pods than others, what sort are you growing?

I had the latter option on my Desirees (as yet still in the ground) - new leaves forming on purple pods on the stems, and small potatoes at the bottom of the stems where they went under my mulch. Now going off to look up black scurf, which does sound just delightful!

 

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