Allotments 4 All

Where is Kev?

Hope so but ours won't go in until tuesday  :)

what is the potato challenge ?(newbie here)

Hiya, Sandra. Corneykev usually starts off a potato challenge about now, just for a laugh. We all start a couple of spuds , outside, in bags or something, just to see if we can get very early potatoes. I'm sure he'll be along later  ;D

Doesn't it usually start on valentines day

So Kev's a romantic at heart ;D.

Just done a search & last year it was w/e of 19/20th Feb.

Hi all, I was going to put something on here yesterday but I was busy
To anyone new, I usually do a Spud challenge where we try to warm the ground and get a handful of spuds in early then cloche with bottles, fleece etc as a bit of fun
But as the snow came down when it did, it made it awkward for peeps to get on their plots, let alone warm the ground
It would have been this weekend but as said it was hard for some peeps
I did put some bubblewrap, panes of plastic and glass down the other day and covered with a cloche, but I still haven't  bought my earlies yet
I will buy and put a few in next weekend
Any newbies, its just a bit of fun, so only pop in a few if you can spare them, if anything goes wrong don't blame me  ::)
It's just about warming the bare ground, keeping it covered frost free and trying to get a few earlies before your other lottie holders
Let battle comence.
:D ;) :P :-*

Well all righty then.... Me and the grandson, young Blake, are in.  :)

I'm sure I can spare a tatty or two.... and I do happen to know of a place on the lotty with some black stuff on it.

We'll be wellied up and ready for the weekend.  8)

It is not just a bit of fun. Almost everyone ends up with a prize because they turn into a lovely meal of freshly dug potatoes at the beginning of June.

We had quiet a hard frost just after I planted them last year, I had already done it before everyone else decided to wait.  But they did very well and I really enjoyed eating my early spuds.  Somehow those few first home grown potatoes taste the best.

I kept mine cloched under bottle cloches and fleece, and put in plastic bottles with water in to catch the daytime warmth.   

Which type of potatoes do you use for this or is that a secret part of the challenge?

Quote from: anemone on February 20, 2012, 21:34:09
Which type of potatoes do you use for this or is that a secret part of the challenge?

Hmmm. It seems no-one wants to tell...........


So I won't either...  :-*


Naah.

I have Pentland Javelin as first earlies, so I'll try one of those.

No-dig. Straight on the top of the soil, buried in straw from last year, and the whole thing covered with weed-suppressing fabric.......
All we have to do tomorrow is to saunter down with a tatty and place it in there, water and away....  ;D

You lot are proper in for a contest.  ;) I'll be brewing some compost tea just as soon as the temperatures improve...

As our seed potatoes are late being delivered, we have bought a few swift which will be going in the hot bed along with the purple majesty which have 3" chits  :o , all covered with a cloche  on sunday , too wet and cold today ;D

I use Rocket and others Swift as these are the quickest to come up, the secret is getting the soil warm and keeping it that way even when they first show their heads, the only rules are no poly's or greenhouses as they have an advantage on the rest of us but hey if you use them then that's up to you, it would be handy to have this on sticky but I don't know if I have enough cred for this.  :-X     :D ;)

Sticky it is...

Are you joining us, Dan?  ;D

OMG! :-[
I reported your post Kev, to get a mods attention...

I didn't expect......... Himself.   :o

Sorry mods.  ;D Haha!  8)

Yesterday I put 2 Foremost in buckets, first year of trying these, they were the best chitted...can I firkle yet?

Quote from: small on February 24, 2012, 18:13:47
Yesterday I put 2 Foremost in buckets, first year of trying these, they were the best chitted...can I firkle yet?

;D ;D ;D

You keep your firkling until later Small
Cheers for that Dan
And nice one Nigel, I hope its not too windy where you are, I went to Rhyl with my mates in 1981 and the bloody tent blew up a tree after the second day, off subject but I just thought of it as you live close by.    :P       :D