Topic: seed potato eyes

[bridbod]

Do any of you peel/cut off eyes on your seed potatoes before they start sprouting (chitting)in order to reduce them to just a couple of eyes per tuber ? I came across it in a book somewhere at sometime. Just wondered.

[Tee Gee]

Can't say I have heard of 'peeling' but I have heard some people rub off some of the chits at planting time.

On reflection if you do it now sods law says you will cut off the good ones and possibly end up with none.

So if I were going to use this technique I would wait till planting out time then you could remove the weakest.

Personally I don't think it makes any difference, in fact I think the more haulms you have the greater the potential number of tubers there will be.

Possibly the 'showmen' might do this to encourage bigger tubers.

[Kea]

I wouldn't cut or peel them off it would be enough to rub some off. Cutting increases the risk of disease having said that my mum used to make more seed tubers by cutting them. However we did live in a part of NZ where seed potatoes were grown because like the north of Scotland we had less potato diseases.

[gavinjconway]

General old wives tail.... keep 4 and rub the rest off before planting..

I dont think it makes much difference tho.. Look at how a farmer plants.. no chitting at all and by machine so no way the spud goes in with the eyes facing upwards.!!

[bridbod]

Thanks for the replies. I'll stick with the traditional way and leave all the eyes intact, btw, some of my seed pots are pretty big. Should I cut the largest ones in half, ensuring eyes are present on both halves (although it doesn't suggest it on the packs of JBA seed pots) ?

[cornykev]

I rub off a few chits as I'm planting some of the kestrels, some of them are bigger but not all of them. I will experiment more this year, you can cut them but cut them days before you plant so as the open wounds seal or cure, some do this with sulphur. 

[laurieuk]

I knew an old time gardener who would not plant a seed potato with as he planted it he would cut a piece off to make sure it rotted and used all it's energy , he did not like to find anything left when he lifted. I cut some of mine as I plant, if I want to fill the row up. We did have a member who use to buy a single seed potatoe of a brand new variety and then cut every eye out and grow them as single plants, he  once staged 20 plates of 5 potatoes each being a different variety.

[earlybird 2]

I knew an old time gardener who would not plant a seed potato with as he planted it he would cut a piece off to make sure it rotted and used all it's energy , he did not like to find anything left when he lifted. I cut some of mine as I plant, if I want to fill the row up. We did have a member who use to buy a single seed potatoe of a brand new variety and then cut every eye out and grow them as single plants, he  once staged 20 plates of 5 potatoes each being a different variety.

I always cut a piece out of my seed potatoes before planting,following advice from an old cornishman several years ago to help the seed potatoe to rot.