Does size matter?

[clint]

When chitting potatoes ready for planting, does the size of the potato matter?
Should I be using the bigger ones?

[clint]

[saddad]

Not really, anything over egg sized will be adequate. Theoretically the larger tubers have more reserves to produce a stronger plant but...  :-\

[kt.]

My nextdoor neighbour cuts large tuber in half to get double crop.........

[franklynn]

Can I use the potatos i have left over from last years crop?

[saddad]

You can, they will grow, but it is not good practice as virus and diseases build up in the tubers and affect the yeild. It can also be the start of  the new season blight on yours, and your neighbours crops. Do it once if you arwe short of cash but don't do it year on year. Seed potatoes are certified as disease free.  :-X

[manicscousers]

I'm using some of ours under cover in bags  :)

[shirlton]

Me too. We had that many Nadine. I am going to use the left overs.

[littlebabybird]

is scab a disease or a dificiancy?

some of my seed potatoes are scabby :(

lbb

[franklynn]

Thanks so can I put them on the compost heap then. (is it safe)

[saddad]

Scab is a reaction to the soil type I think LBB, some varieties are prone to it in certain types of soil eg clay...  :-\

[littlebabybird]

Scab is a reaction to the soil type I think LBB, some varieties are prone to it in certain types of soil eg clay...  :-\

so my potatoes wont get it any worse because the seeds are scabby, thats good,
now is there anything organic i can do to get less scab this year anyway, it was bad last year
I'm on heavy clay (under water at the moment)
lbb

[ber77tie]

Last year somebody supplied me with some potatoes they had propogated by growing on the eyes of the potatoes in 3in pots.

[jennym]

is scab a disease or a dificiancy?
some of my seed potatoes are scabby :(
lbb

I was taught that potato scab was a fungal disease, present in many soils, but mostly scab flourishes in soils that were more on the alkaline side, and there is more than one type of the disease.

[ceres]

[quote author=littlebabybird link=topic=48497.msg490208#msg490208
now is there anything organic i can do to get less scab this year anyway, it was bad last year
I'm on heavy clay (under water at the moment)
lbb
[/quote]

I'm interested too as my crop had bad scab last year.  But I'm on a very light, sandy, free-draining loam!

I can't imagine what your clay is like at the moment lbb, as even my sand is completely saturated!

[manicscousers]

can't rememer properly, is it comfrey for less scab ?

[growmore]

Personally I wouldn't set any scabbed seed potatoes :o If these were bought seed potatoes they would go back to the place I bought them from .
If you do suffer from scab in your soil, supposedly  avoiding  freshly manured patches or places where you have had a fire and burned any plant material  will help reduce it..
An old remedy was  instead of putting well rotted manure in the trench under your potatoes, use fresh grass cutting instead, this was said to deter scab.

[Barnowl]

Our soil tends to the alkaline which (apparently) encourages scab. How would one acidify the soil?

[jennym]

Rotted organic matter tends to the naturally acidic, so growmore's info on digging in muck etc seems sensible. Humus contains humic acid, so increasing the level of organic matter in an alkaline soil will make it more acidic. Also makes sense not to put diseased potato tubers in.

[Barnowl]

Thanks  :)