Potato questions

[sazhig]

Lots of strimming & digging planned for this weekend to start cleearing the plot (in between all the rain forcast  >:() so the potatoes can go in asap when they arrive next week.

Couple of q's:

1. Should I bother chitting the potatoes & if so for how long? Or should I just plant them straight away?

2. What else does well in the same bed as potatoes? I have more than enough potato seed to fill one bed, so was thinking of splitting the crop between 2 beds & growing something else with it to fill the 2 beds completely. I was thinking of blocks of sweetcorn amongst blocks of pots - would that work? Or is that quite hard to grow? I am in warwickshire so not sure I can sew sweetcorn outdoors?

TIA

Saz

[sazhig]

[weedgrower]

i would not grow anything else inh the same bed as potatoes as you are limiting what you can grow there next year. as regards to sweetcorn they should do very well where you are. i live in lancashire and i do ok with mine

[supersprout]

1. You don't need to chit spuds

2. I often grow several crops in the same bed. I'd plant whatever would enjoy the same well-manured and dug soil - so sweetcorn, squash, or leafy salads, not roots. These are also 'neutral' in terms of rotation (see weedgrower's point). If you grow spuds in a block, you can earth them up without disturbing whatever else you plant in the same bed :)

[Jesse]

I compiled a chart for companion planting earlier this year, information was taken from various websites and books. http://www.news2share.co.uk/Main/companion.xls According to my chart the following crops would grow well with potatoes: Peas, Beans, Cabbage, Sweet corn, Broad Beans, Green Beans

I wouldn't chit the spuds, the ground will most likely be warm enough now for them to start growing straight away so get them planted as soon as your bed is ready.

[supersprout]

That's a really useful guide Jesse, thank you :D

[sazhig]

Well - looks like I was on the right track with sweetcorn :) I would like to avoid putting peas & beans anyway as there as they are likely to be in that bed next year. As I can sew them later it should give me enough time to dig another bed for them. Thanks for the link Jesse - have saved it for future use.

Still a bit confused about the chitting though - if it's not necessary, why do most people talk about it??

Another really daft question ....does it matter which way up the spuds are planted? ??? If they were chitted they would at least have some shoots to give me a clue - so how will I know? (Or does if not matter ???)

Thanks

Saz

[Robert_Brenchley]

My chitted potatoes always seem to come up at pretty much the same time as my accidentals, so I'm beginning to suspect it may make no real difference at all. Even if they're chitted, they won't grow if the soil is too col, and even if they aren't, it's only an inch or so of growth to make up, and the chit may not even be pointing in the right direction in the soil.

[amanda21]

Can I ask another potato question please?

On my plot which apparently hasn't had anything 'officially' grown on it last year, there are potatoes springing up all over the place!  Should I leave them - ie will they be edible?   :o

[MrsKP]

oh i like the chart lots, thanks Jesse.

[Robert_Brenchley]

They'll certainly be edible, the only problem is that they could possibly be carrying blight, which usually overwinters on potatoes people have missed.

[amanda21]

Ahhh the dread blight I hear so much about!   ???

I'm not bothered about eating them - should I compost them then or just burn?

[supersprout]

On my plot which apparently hasn't had anything 'officially' grown on it last year, there are potatoes springing up all over the place!  Should I leave them - ie will they be edible?   :o

First year 'volunteers'? If you have the space to leave them, I would! Trouble is they're often growing in the wrong place.

[saddad]

Don't compost them Amanda, they will grow not rot! You will have pot plants growing out of your compost bin! If you don't riddle your compost you could send tiny tubers all over the garden when you put it on beds. A tuber smaller than your little fingernail will grow a whole new plant. I brown bin them!
Chitting helps first earlies get away to a prompt start. You can't really plant the wrong way up but if uncertain there is often a speck of dried up stalk at the "wrong" end! Naturally they would "lie down" with the residual stem pointing towards the parent plant and the new shoots at the other end to start away from the current site, like most rhizomes/tubers and plants like couch!
:)

[Robert_Brenchley]

I've composted spare spuds before now; they grow for a bit then die. The trick is to exclude light. If you're using a bin, keep the lid on, if it's open topped, cover it. Putting them in a bin bag and sealing the top would work.

[MrsKP]

i've just had a look in the front of my bin and there's tubers all over the bl00dy place.  i can see a turn and sieve coming on.