Topic: Am I missing something?

[Applejack]

Is there anything else I should be doing, I have my broad beans in, my onions growing nicely. Have thought about seed potatoes & chitting.  Anybody got any other ideas for this time of year.  Cannot wait to get started on my first season.

[teresa]

Hi Applejack

Have you tried Gavins and Plantsman web pages.
just click on their names and you can access their web sites real info.

[The gardener]

and if you have time you can look in mine..................

[teresa]

Whoops sorry Gardener I ment your site Plantsman has not got a site.
Sorry love your site

[cleo]

Hi Applejack

Assuming you have checked that you have most of the seeds you want,cleaned any glass or plastic you may have and tested the propagators(if you have them)then put your feet up for two or three weeks and dream of a great harvest.

Things will get hectic enough all too soon.

Stephan.

[Applejack]

The Gardner, that is one fantastic web site, just what I need will keep me occupied for hours. Thank you for all the postings.  Haven't found Gavin yet.

[tim]

As Dad's Army would say - 'DON'T PANIC!'

With a few exceptions, things will catch up, given the warmer conditions later.

OK - onions and aubergines, for example, do like an early start - given the short UK ripening time. But. again an example, potatoes do not HAVE to be chitted.  Mostly, when you feel like it is the right time. = Tim

PS Gavin? Look up 'News' - 'Internet Links'?

[Applejack]

Thanks for that Tim, can I buy seed potatoes now that don't need chitting?
I am reading Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's book, which is great, but he doesn't go into spacing, I am a bit confused as to how much room to allow for each crop.  At the moment I am thinking of crops in rows. I have noticed where my lottie is that the ladies tend to plant in small squares & the men in straight drills.

[teresa]

Ha Ha Applejack thats the difference between men and women. hee hee
Sorry could not resist

[Mrs Ava]

heheheheh teresa!  I do both, straight lines, cos I think I oughta, and blocks and wiggles and patches, cos I likes it!   ;D

[tim]

Applejack - you don't have to chit. It's just the best way to do things, and costs nothing?

Spacing -  Earlies 12" in the row; Main 15". Rows - Earlies 24"; Main  30". Pink Fir a bit more. = Tim

[Plantsman.]

My input to this thread-

Potatoes - soil, deep rich loam, or any kind except very heavy clay.  Light soils are best for early crop.  Dress soil at planting time with a balanced fertiliser.
Position, sloping borders facing south for early crop and open garden for second early and main crops.  Never plant sets direct on farmyard manure in drills.  If fresh manure is applied in spring, cover with soil before placing sets.  Seaweed is an excellent manure if dug in in autumn.

Sets for planting - best averages size 3-5cm wide and 7cm long weighing 50-80 gram.  Large tubers to be divided into three or four pieces, each with one good eye.

Treatment of sets - place tubers close together, eye end uppermost in trays in a cool light place early in the year, and allow each tuber to develop two strong shoots only, rubbing off all others;

Plant early kinds in February, protecting young growth with straw if necessary;  second earlies in March;  maincrop in April.  Draw drill 15cm deep on heavy and 18cm deep on light soils.  Rows to run north and south if possible and be 38cm apart for first earlies, 76cm for second earlies and 107cm for late crops.  Distance between sets for early kinds 15-20cm; maincrop 38cm.  These distances are somewhat arbitary and will vary between growers.

As a rider - chitting of seed is not necessary but is something I do to sort out any bad seed, to reduce the number of shoots allowed to grow and to gain a little time.  Chitting first earlies my necessitate  frost protecting early emergence of shoots.

[tim]

Glad you got around to the rider, Peter!

I'm going to do a trial this year on shoot numbers - never been conscious of a significant difference in yield.  

Do you reckon that mains might benefit from more foliage?? = Tim

[Plantsman.]

You may not  find a significant difference in the yield, Tim. Like many things that we do in gardening, it comes down to personal likes, dislikes and preferences, and not necessarily proven one way or the other.   I reduce the shoots to 3 on my maincrop because I prefer size to quantity and I think it does increase size a little. With earlies I prefer quantity and don't reduce the shoots on those.  If someone said the process was pointless I would not find that an issue - just as I would not condemn halving or quartering larger seed although I don't practice it myself.  Regarding foliage, I'm sure nature will create a balance between top and root/tuber growth.