growing potatoes

anyone got any hints, tip,or advice .i am using piece of land 1m wide 3m long ,soulth facing so it get plenty of sun . thanks

 

RE: Potatoes do best in well dug, fed and manured soil, so get the spade out first.

I would recommend planting an early variety for a crop when those in the shops are at their highest prices- some good ones still in wilkos.

 

thanks. i am real virgin at growing veg. where do i buy manured soil from ?how much is it .how deep do you plant seeds? goinng to plant them early april when will they be ready? thanks again

 

Redders,

There's three main types of seed potato - first earlies, second earlie and maincrop, so called because they're ready at different times through the season. Get hold of some seed potatoes now, and leave them somewhere cool and light but not in direct sunlight for four to six weeks - this is known as chitting - it allows the hoot to start coming out of the seed potatoe. When they;re maybe a couple of inches long, plant the seed potatoes maybe three or four inches down with the longest hoots pointing upwards. As they start to grow you neeed to add more soil to the plants (called "earthing up") up to the level of the top set of leaves as this means you get more yield with potatoes growing at various depths. You can do this two or three times throguh the spring.

You can grow potatoes in pots from about 12 inch diameter upwards if you want to make a start wthout digging up half your garden. Exactly same principles apply and I've found you get a pretty decent yield.

I started two years ago just using the BBc Gardener world website and I've found it a piece of piss....

 

I grow mine in pots - the green bmbc recucle box is ideal - but don't tell the council. This will be my third year. Did great last year with 3 varieties and trying for a bigger yield this year. It's a great feeling getting them straight out of the garden to cook for tea!

 

Possibly the most unexpected source of potato expertise on this BBS.

 

Err, ***** and loving.

 

That's better.

 

try this http://www.gardenbargains.com/potato/

 

What about a growing method that could combine the two?</p>

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some kind of dirt filled lady part? Ask Dirk, he may well have come across such conditions.

 

thanks everyone nt

 

come across, come in, come over, the lot.

 

shocked

 

And amazed nt

 

RE: thanks everyone nt

Try www.allotments.org.uk.

 

watch out......

.....indulging in that sort of activity and advertising on here you'll be accused of supporting the IRA

 

Just remember if they get any kind of disease

or don't grow properly its probaby Simons fault

 

Dig a trench about half a foot wide and a foot deep and plant the seed potatoes about 50cm apart from each other.

Cover the potatoes with about 5cm of earth.

In about 4-6 weeks when shoots appear cover them up with another 5cm of soil and a bit of manure, keep repeating this every few weeks. Covering the shoots up with soil causes the plant to produce more roots and offshoots and so more potatoes.

Potatoes are very low maintenance, just make sure they don't dry out if there's a hot spell later in the year, and keep on top of the weeds.

For crops at different times, plant another row every 6 weeks or so to keep you in potatoes for a lot longer.

At the end of the summer plant the areas where you've dug potatoes out from with mustard seed (very quick growing) and after 5 weeks or so dig the mustard into the soil. As it breaks down it will replace the nutrients that the potatoes use up when growing. In October/November time dig a load of manure into the soil for using next year which will give a much bigger crop.

Not sure if you have the space but it's good practice not to grown potatoes in the same spot for years on end as diseases set in especially if there's been a mild winter and and wet summer.

 

ok bud, a mate has told me about mustard seeds.just growing spuds this year .as i i have been told its good for your soil and it kills all the *****.been too the garden centre today got my spuds (scotish variety first early) they have started chillting .bloke at centre told me to keep em in shed till easter