Author Topic: Frosted spuds (Read 7456 times)

Sarah-b · « **on:** May 11, 2005, 10:33:47 »

Poor old spuds got a bit frosted the night before last. Yesterday we gave them a good drink and earther them up a bit more.
Was that the right thing to do?
How much damage has the frost done to our crop potential?

(These are first earlies and they have been up and earthed up several times over the last few weeks.)

Thanks,
Sarah.

wardy · « **Reply #1 on:** May 11, 2005, 12:44:57 »

I would think if they'd been earthed up they'd be ok. Normally I think you cover them right over with soil Mine aren't in soil so I can't do that. I stuffed straw round them but as air frost was forecast last night I was on the lotty again late covering them with fleece.

If you give them a drink give it earlier rather than later in the day if frost is forecast

If the spuds are earthed up maybe the only part which may be damaged is the leaves and not the crop

tim · « **Reply #2 on:** May 11, 2005, 13:08:03 »

It'll just delay them.

selwyn-smith · « **Reply #3 on:** May 11, 2005, 14:21:42 »

The tips of my spuds were frosted last night in sunny surrey, they were earthed up but the tips were showing, funny thing though, looking around the site some people had been affected and others hadn't, some people who had just the tips showing had got frosted and others who had their whole plant showing were fine, and visa versa.
Should I be watering my spuds now?
Katy

Robert_Brenchley · « **Reply #4 on:** May 11, 2005, 22:20:42 »

Mine were frosted last night, but it's happpened before and done no harm. I don't earth mine up, I grow them on the flat, under a thick compost and grass mulch.

wardy · « **Reply #5 on:** May 11, 2005, 22:30:09 »

Hi RB :) Is that grass clippings which are a bit yukky or dead fresh? I ask as I've been growing my spuds in manure and topped with black plastic. I wanted to "earth" mine up as it were (not sure if I really need to) and thought I'd used grass mowings but they'd gone revoltingly stinking and mushy. Used some hay I found but it just keeps blowing away. Any advice? I think I should have got myself a bale of straw and earthed up with that but I was trying to use what I had available which is not much ;D

redimp · « **Reply #6 on:** May 11, 2005, 22:41:55 »

I have just been to check on mine and the fleece seems to be protecting them. Just one more night of frost and then I will earth up half of them at the weekend.

Black Forest Dan · « **Reply #7 on:** May 12, 2005, 11:11:40 »

We had a @@@ surface frost (-2C) yesterday too - got my spuds - all the leaves turned floppy :( - I have to leave them unattended now for a week so I'll earth them up and hope they recover. As it's my first try at spuds I feared the worst - I'd have to dig 'em up and start all over again 4 weeks later - but it seems from tim's comment that there is still hope. Next year I'll plant them a bit later but especially I'll earth them up and put some fleece over them until end of May.

When you say "earth them up" when frost is forecast, do you bury the leaves completely?

Thanks all,

Dan.

Diana · « **Reply #8 on:** May 12, 2005, 14:05:04 »

Wardy + Robert -
Do you have a problem with slugs growing your spuds like that?
D

derbex · « **Reply #9 on:** May 12, 2005, 14:39:02 »

Wardy,

I'm not Robert -but I mulch my spuds with fresh grass cuttings, If I think they might blow away then I'll water them.

Slugs seem to leave the stems alone and just go for the tubers.

Jeremy

wardy · « **Reply #10 on:** May 12, 2005, 16:25:41 »

Diane I will report back on how well or badly they did. I have grown them under home made compost before and just earthed them up with that. This time I have used cardboard first, then manure, then black sheet mulch which I cut holes in to allow the spud to grow through. I think the first lot I tried just on to of the soil in a mound of home made compost was easier on a small scale as I just used the same material to keep earthing them up. This time I'm growing on a larger scale. You can't really earth up in the normal sense so I have stuffed straw round them and tucked it in to the plastic to stop it blowing about which should help with frost and light. When I grew them in my hm compost they were great and not got at by slugs etc. This time I grew Desiree as I'm told slugs like these the least. Hope so

tim · « **Reply #11 on:** May 12, 2005, 16:34:10 »

BFD - comes a stage when they are too tall?

philcooper · « **Reply #12 on:** May 12, 2005, 17:22:33 »

"Earthing up" does more than one things.

One thing, if you cover the leaves completely, is to protect from frost.

Once the leaves have been frosted, covering the leaves does nothing for the plant at all, except possibly stop the good leaves photosynthesising and supplying the plant with food.

If, however, you earth up just the bare stems this provides additional space for tubers to grow without sticking out of the soil and going green.

As we don't appear to be threatened with frost for the next week or 2 (in the south anyway) it is not necessary to cover the leaves completely, in fact it is not a good idea (see above)

Phil

Robert_Brenchley · « **Reply #13 on:** May 12, 2005, 17:49:20 »

Well rotted grass cuttings are probably best but I take what I've got. They bring dead leaves and grass cuttings down from local housing estates, so we have a mountain of each. I've got as much mulch as I can barrow, the only problem being that it's not well rotted, and a lot of crops will rot ratehr than grow through it.

I don't have too much of a problem with slugs on a slightly acid soil, it's wireworms which are the problem with spuds.

moonbells · « **Reply #14 on:** May 13, 2005, 02:59:04 »

Quote from: Sarah-b on May 11, 2005, 10:33:47

Poor old spuds got a bit frosted the night before last. Yesterday we gave them a good drink and earther them up a bit more.

Oh dear - that means mine are probably stuffed as well. I covered the maincrops with a double layer of fleece and the earlies were fleece cloched but that has a habit of blowing off :(

Was it really bad?

moonbells, still in blazing hot Florida... and wishing she wasn't.

Robert_Brenchley · « **Reply #15 on:** May 13, 2005, 06:40:47 »

Mine are growing back already.

philcooper · « **Reply #16 on:** May 13, 2005, 08:37:16 »

MB,

If they were under fleece you should be OK otherwise you could have given your holiday to a more deservig cause (I can think of one immediately ;D) and stayed at home to look after your crops like any responsible allotmenteer

Phil

wardy · « **Reply #17 on:** May 13, 2005, 09:59:23 »

Moonbells how could you be so selfish as to go off to Florida and leave your charges to freeze to death ;D

Palustris · « **Reply #18 on:** May 13, 2005, 11:11:23 »

These were started into growth in the Tunnel in early February and frosted off as you can see, in April. Left alone and dug up today. Not a good crop, but better than nothing. Possibly Concorde.

tim · « **Reply #19 on:** May 13, 2005, 11:30:31 »

Eric - that's enough - makes us all look silly!!

And Phil - earthed up my haulms against the frosts we've had for the last 3 days. No access to mulches.

News:

Author Topic: Frosted spuds (Read 7456 times)