saving some potatoes to plant next year.

[cacran]

The guy on the next plot to me is a great gardener. He  gives me loads of advice. He saves all his own seed and and just told me he saves his own potatoes to use as seed potatoes next year. He gave me 20 of his as he says they are a good variety. How will I keep them? He has put them into egg boxes for me, do I leave them in the egg box and what is best place to put them? I am going to take some of his advice. He is a retired science teacher  (he used to teach at my school  when I went there and I am 54, isn't that strange!!!)  ???and knows lots.

[cacran]

[Eristic]

Store them somewhere cool but frost free. If there are any buds showing try to stack them shoots upwards.

Some folk will tell you that you should not save potatoes for replanting but they usually have a vested interest in selling you some new ones or they have read the reports written by those with a vested interest in selling you fresh. If the seedstock is taken from clean crops they are unlikely to be better or worse than bought-in stock.

[saddad]

I agree with Eristic although I did find after ten years that the yeild tailed off, but that was viral infections...  :-[

[laurieuk]

I saved seed potatoes of Catriona for several years when they took that variety off the market. I selected the seed as I lift the crop to make sure they came from a plant with large and small potatoes on because if you save from plants that only have small potatoes you are likely to have a crop of small potatoes. You should also make sure that the plant from which you select had good foliage etc. so as not to carry any problems into your next crop.You should not use shop potatoes as they can be from a virus infected stock. I have just ordered next years our local allot ass lists 40 vars at 3.95 for 3 kgs. We get them just before Xmas and I set them up in tomatoe trays to chit.

[PurpleHeather]

One elderly chap on our site saves all his, he used to work on a farm where it was normal practise.

He plants them early, very early and starts to lift them early too so that the land is free for a second crop of other things and all the time he is getting fresh new spuds.

A few others are copying the early growing early harvesting idea to get a maximum yield from the land.

I kept a load of spuds last year and forgot about them (as you do) they were in  one of those plastic boxes/crates with loads of holes. After planting out bought ones and other things the plot was full when I rediscovered them, so I gave my saved spuds to some one with space to spare. They reported that they did very well. Never gave me any though.

[shirlton]

We saved our own Nadine last year and they have done very well. What we are going to do is save one year and buy the next.

[Tee Gee]

I tend to only save Pink Fir Apple because our allotment association does not sell them (not enough demand I think or are they overpriced ??) and like Laurie I buy my others in.

In fact this year now that I think of it was a pretty good year for PFA's.

Re keeping/storing them I agree with Eristic;

Store them somewhere cool but frost free. If there are any buds showing try to stack them shoots upwards.

Note if you find difficulty finding which way up to put them look for where the tuber was fixed to the plant........this is the bottom and the eyes although not always apparent are at the other end (top)

[Trevor_D]

I saved Roseval from last year, more or less by accident.

I'd bought them in, planted, lifted as normal; then stored them as normal in paper sacks for eating during the winter. (We have a small cellar under an extension, which is frost-free and keeps a constant temperature all year round.)

But this year, no-one was selling them. So I just took some from the sack and planted them out. Had a wonderful crop!

[Robert_Brenchley]

I have a neighbpour who saves his own. His advice is to grow them in bags of compost, and let them green really well before storing. I haven't tried it yet, but plan to next year.

My big worry is blight, but if the foliage is cut down at the first sign, then tubers won't be affected.

[cacran]

Thankyou for all your replies. It will certainly save a bit of cash, eh? :)