Topic: Potato Growing Problem

[Garden Manager]

I normally grow 2 crops of potatoes, a first early and a second early. perfectly happy with my first earlies (Sharpes Express), but this year I decided to change seconds from Estima to Kestrel as we weren't happy with Estima and fancied trying Kestrel for a change. I grow both crops in one large semi raised bed and employ a 'no dig' growing method (plant tuber 6" deep and mulch bed with landscape fabric).

Whilst the first earlies have grown fine, the Kestrel have been somewhat pathetic, the tops have hardly grown at all before starting to die back. yesterday I decided to cut my losses and dig them up so I could replant with leeks. Each plant had produced 2-3 decent sized tubers but thats all, nothing like the yield I would normally get from them. Strangest of all the seed tuber was still present and hadn't withered or rotted much at all. its as if the plants had started to grow and form tubers and then something had stopped them.

Not sure what has gone wrong, the bed hadn't dried out or got too wet (soil nicely moist under the mulch) and I have grown potatoes in this location before. Only two things (apart from variety)I can think of could have affected them; the weather (not warm enough at the right time) or a cultivation pan under the bed that I discovered when I harvested the meagre crop. cant think what else could have gone wrong. Or is it a variety problem? I thought Kestrel was a reliable variety. Unless I can find some other reason for the failure I will have to find another 2nd early for next year, which is a shame because they seem a good potato to eat.

Any ideas. Anyone had a similar problem?

[sparrow]

It's not a variety issue - I have the same thing with Dunluce this year. Personally I think it's down to the cold year so far and a huge amount of rain which has kept the ground cold AND washed away a fair proportion of nutrients.

There were a lot of tiddlers when I took up my spuds. If I'd been able to leave them in longer I might have had a bigger crop, but they were dying back and also I need the space for winter veggies.

Chalk it up to a bad year?

[Silverleaf]

I have some Kestrels in a raised bed but I haven't lifted them yet. One of the four plants has flowered so far. I'll report back when I harvest them - currently working through first earlies.

[Humbug carrot]

Kestrel usually work well for me, although they never seem to make a lot of top growth the yield is good . The good thing about Kestrel is that the slugs don't like them so I can leave them in the ground until I need them.Some years I've been lifting them in late November with very little damage.

[Tee Gee]

I am not one to say someone is doing wrong because it has always been my philosophy that there is no wrong way to garden.

What I mean by this is;  due to the resilience of plants they will overcome anything that we mere mortals throw at them but I would have to say you do one thing that I have never come across, although I have seen variations of your methodand that is:

(plant tuber 6" deep and mulch bed with landscape fabric).

One or the other I would say is ok but not both!

The 6" deep method is a fairly traditional method, and planting on the soil surface and covering with black plastic sheeting is another I have used with some success.

I am having difficulty imagining your set up, but what I imagine has happened in your case is the stems/haulms have developed up to the underside of the fabric then they have been checked (growth stops) until such times as they have penetrated the fabric and they have not recovered from this, hence the poor tops/haulms and subsequently the poor crop.

This is how my potatoes looked three weeks ago (16/6)



There are four varieties in that bed namely from the left is PFA /Kestrel /Charlotte / Foremost and as you can see the Kestrel /Charlotte / Foremost are all perfoming equally well, PFA are always much slower growers for me.

I swear by Kestrel and would never be without them simply because they crop well, cook well,show well and are pest and disease resistant.

Due to their disease resistanceI treat them more like a maincrop than a second early because I can leave them in the ground as Humbug Carrot does.

I hope you do not take this reply as a criticism of your methods because as I mentioned earlier plants are resilient and potatoes in particular.

Pehaps you can fill me in how you used the fabric i.e. was it laid in strips? Did you cut X holes in it to allow the stems to come  through ?

I am intrigued and as the saying goes;" you are never too old to learn" so I look forward to your reply, a picture would also be nice.

[Garden Manager]

Tee Gee, No offence taken. I should clarify: I plant the seed tubers fairly deep to promote tuber development under the soil rather than on the top of it. the landscape fabric is used to stop any that do form on the surface from going green. I cut holes for the haulms as soon as they appear, enlarding the holes as needed. it is possible there was a delay releasing the haulms on a few of the plants and this may as you say have inhibited develpment. that said i have grown my potatoes using this method for a number of years and usualy get good crops.

I could dispense with the fabtic and just use a compost mulch. i have seen Monty Don do his potatoes like this on GW with good results so maybe its something to try. Availabilty of enough mulch material has been a handicap in the past, hence the reliance on the fabric.

One thing; i havent been premature diging them up have i? The haulms were begining to die off and were unlikely to grow any more. the condition of the seed tubers whe i lifted the plants did bother me though, a few did look like they still had energy left to keep going longer had they stayed in the ground. Unfortunately being tight on space on my modest veg plot meant i couldnt really afford to wait and find out, and my leeks were desperate to get inthe ground!

[Garden Manager]

Update:
Just lifted my earlies and found that while they were better than the seconds, the crop was still below par. The problem may be with the bed itself, while raised this is only by 6" and there appears to be a cultivation pan about 9" down. I think this might be part of the problem. I only dig to harvest crops these days (even potatoes and find my beds do form a hard layer at 6 - 9" depth after a few years, which needs breaking up with deep digging after a while. have done a couple of beds recently but not this one. Needs putting on the list for the winter!

[johhnyco15]

ah yes the great back breaking double dig should sort it out dont envy you

[Garden Manager]

Been doing one bed a year, alongside replacing rotten edging timber.

Just found photos of last year's spud bed in early July.  Plants doing much better than this year at same stage and they were planted the same weekend both years. Apart from weather only difference would be the bed, which HAD  been dug to remove a pan the previous winter. Has to have made a difference.

Shame as I am rather keen on no dig growing!

[Deb P]

I grow potatoes in edged and raised beds three years out of five, and in long rows on the other side of my plot the other two years. I usually lay a heavy manure mulch in autumn, cover the beds two weeks before planting to warm them then lightly fork over before planting. I unfailingly get better credit crops in the raised beds...go figure.