Topic: replanting spuds

[vague]

Hi There

I just wondered if anybody has tried planting pots that have been saved from the ones that you have harvested?

I know this isn't recommended to avoid diseases, however I do tend to have a patch on my lottie with which I end up with rogue pink fur apple which have re-occured each year for the past 3 years with a healthy harvest!

I just wondered, as I have planted shetland blacks this year, and it would be nice to keep them going as finding them were a bit of a hassle. 

What i wanted to know (and apologies if this is a silly question!) is there any relation to the size of the spud being planted, and how strong the plant will be or the size of the crop?  And i am assuming that they just need to be stored in a dark dry place?

Cheers

 :D

[goodlife]

Yes..I've kept my seed potatoes going on for several years now...but...
Those that you save for planting next year need to be really really 'clean' with no marks that show sign of disease or damage. As for size..anything smaller than  hens egg will produce some potatoes..but not very big..unless you want small salad size then smaller ones will be ok.
Once I lift my potatoes..I dunk them in wheelbarrow with full of water and give them quick wash to get rid of most of the soil. Then I can see better what are for eating and what for seed.
Once graded,,I leave the skins dry out and then put stored ones away and prepare the seed potatoes for their storage. I wash them again in soapy water..fairy liquid or something similar..and clean any remains of the soil throughly off...and then let them dry again...I don't rinse the soap off..I found it will help keep the potatoes in better condition for longer....and then let the skins to dry out again. Keep them stored in cool and dark place..I keep mine in trays with with piece of cloth over. During winter I might have a look once or twice if there is any that doesn't look good and those are disposed.
I know its sounds like hard work..but that way I haven't yet passed any diseases that I know of to following crops.
I didn't invent this soapy cleaning myself but I read article where show grower explained how he keeps his seed stock alive..and once I followed it  I found it being good one. It is the soil that often carry troublesome things.

[Bugloss2009]

What i wanted to know (and apologies if this is a silly question!) is there any relation to the size of the spud being planted, and how strong the plant will be or the size of the crop?  And i am assuming that they just need to be stored in a dark dry place?

Cheers

 :D

i'm sure GQT looked at this a couple of years ago - whether big seed potatoes produce either  big potatoes or a bigger yield (not necessarily the same thing) but I never heard their results. Maybe they were inconclusive and they forgot about it. Common sense says a big seed potato gives a better start in life, but on the other hand, when the foliage starts appearing, there's no difference in size or vigour

[vague]

I guess that'll be something I'll learn along the way ;D

And thanks Goodlife for that advice....I probably would have ended up just putting them in the airing cupbored for  until spring.  Can't wait to get scrubbing!

[PurpleHeather]

Yes we have replaced potatoes which were growing in a place we did not want them

However that was far earlier in the season.

Spuds in the UK at present are yeiding a crop.

Certainly there are those which might be what we call 'chitting'

That means that they are growing side shoots.

If you have some............ then plant them

It takes 12 weeks+ for potatoes

So If you are quick and the weather is in your favour you will get a crop0.............Probably a small one but the taste will be worh it

[goodlife]

Code: [Select]

Can't wait to get scrubbing! ;D..be gentle..no brush..you don't want to break the skin..

[Ian Pearson]

Received wisdom is that repeatedly saving the same stock leads to a build up of viruses in the seed potatoes. Viruses are transferred from plant to plant by aphids feeding on the foliage, and so after a few years, your spuds will have accumulated everything that's going about. This leads to reduced vigour and yield. In the old days, this wasn't fully understood, so breeders kept developing new varieties raised from true seed (which does not usually transmit the virus) because the old varieties grown from saved tubers gave reduced yield after a few years.
Nowadays, seed potatoes are started by micropropagation, then grown on in areas of the country where cool weather controls virus vectors, are then rogued for off-type plants and disease, and certified as (almost) virus free.
So...saving your own for a few years is fine, but if repeated, expect diseased plants eventually, and be aware that the problems may be transferred to other spuds in the area.
However... many old heritage varieties are solely maintained from repeatedly saved tubers by enthusiasts, and show tolerance to disease, still producing good yields for many decades.

[goodlife]

True 'old' wise man.. ;D From time to time I do result buying 'fresh' stock..
This last lot of charlotta I've had 4 years now from my own seeds...and it is coming to an end of this lot..although all the crop I've had are nice and clean and still reasonably healthy...but the cropping vigour is not quite the same anymore.
So next year I'm having to 'stretch' the purse and get few spuds in..

[vague]

It would be good to keep them going even if just a few seasons, as finding a good supplier of heritage pots can be hit and miss, depending on who has them in stock.

I've also got some salad blue's, and hope to do the same with.

Well it will certainly be interesting to see how they go...

[laurieuk]

Some years ago Catriona was a very popular potato with exhibitots but the powers to be in Europe decided to take it off the market. I saved seed from this variety for a good number of years but I did keep to very strict rules. When the crop was growing I would mark any plant that looked poor in any way, when lifting I would select at once a few smaller poatoes from plants that had a good crop of big and small poatoes. my reason for this was that in most crops you willfind plants with only smaller potatoes and if you select from them you tend to get smaller crops but doing it my way I felt I kept a good standard. Scottish seed is grown at alitude where there is very litlle aphid so the chance of virus is  kept low. When saving any seed you should always be selective and only save from the best.

[chriscross1966]

I've saved a few "Heritage" varieties frmo last year (grown from microtubers so I should get a few years out of them).... also growing some from TPS this year too so will havge to save from the best of them and see what I get. For the normal stuff though I'd always sow fresh, it's not that expensive when you look at the yields, adn apart form the odd packet of fungicide and a few handfuls of BFB it's not like I spend a lot of money on the spuds..... next year I might look at trying to back-gaft onto tomato roots to get TPS of my own...

chrisc