Topic: Digging up potatoes

[hippychik]

I have had great success with my new pots this year and now ready to start digging up my second earlies soon.

When I dig them up and the soil is moist (Which is most of the time this year!) how is it best to store them? Do I need to lay them out flat to dry them before storing in a sack? As I found that even the new pots got a bit mouldy when placed straight into a basket.

Thanks

[tim]

Me? I leave them in the ground until finished. They are fresher that way.

But when lifting Main crop, yes, dry (somehow) before storing in paper or hessian sacks.

[pete10]

 What you need is a nice dry day . Dig them up and leave them in the sun for a,
 Few hours to let the skins dry out , Then put them in the sacks , Store in a dark
 cool place of the floor if you can . Hope that helps.

[tim]

Sorry, but NO - DON'T store Earlies there's no point. You have Mains following for storing.

[Fork]

The longer you leave your early potatoes in the ground the more chance you have with slug damage.

Nothing wrong with storing earlies like maincrop for a while but keep a good check on them because they wont store as well as your lates.....thats my experience anyway.

If slugs are not a problem leave them in the ground like Tim suggests.