Topic: First Early Potatoes very hard - is it the drought?

[George the Pigman]

I lifted my first lot of First Earlies a week ago and they need a very long cooking time. I grow the same ones every year (Lady Chrystal) and have never known them so hard. The crop was pathetic of course as the drought came at the time when they were building up the tubers so each plant is only producing a handful of small potatoes.
Could the hardness be due to lack of water. Has anyone experienced this before?

[galina]

In short - yes. 

I am still waiting for a good deluge after which I will lift most of the earlies.  To get up what we need immediately is a struggle with this very hardbaked soil.  And they are small and dense. 

[pumkinlover]

Last time we had a dry period a lot of people found that boiling the potatoes made them go mushy, thought to be due to the dry potatoes absorbing water.
Steaming helps avoid this.
We are still eating the tub potatoes and it is a great relief not to have to water them any more!

[small]

And here's me thinking it was just I'd forgotten how to cook! Yes, rock hard, even the tiny ones I do for potato salad, and then going to mush within about 5 seconds. I lifted mine (Pentland Javelin) weeks earlier than usual because the tops had just died off, it's a poor crop this year, but then, all the rules have been broken....