I am wanting to try my hand at potatoes, but I have never grown them before (I know I'm sorry!)
I have some really nice ones I have bought from the shops, (eating veriety, not growing variety).
Am I really out of order by letting these grow to make plants? To then make more potatoes?
If this is a really bad idea, i'm sorry for my ignorance!
Not at all - you will probably get a pretty good crop too, you are a bit late in the season but if you get them in now you might have enough of the season left (my guess is that you don't get below freezing in November like us)
Bury them about 6 inches down and each time they grow 6 (or so) inches above the ground 'earth them up' by simply putting more soil on top of them.
Most people buy seed potatoes as it reduces the risks of certain diseases but I know of people who only ever buy cheap totties from lidl to grow there own.
Worth a go
Ann Pan
"Some days you're the dog,
some days you're the lamp-post"
Certainly worth a go. If you put them in now (as Annpan advises), you'll get them to "new potato" stage by mid-September and, if you've earthed them up well, you can leave them in the soil until either the tops fall down and begin to die back (but they probably won't get that far) or until first frost. They'll be growing all the time. If you have the space, what have you got to lose?
One possible problem, though. When they're dug, potatoes are normally left on the surface for a while so that the sun dries the skin. This is important for storage, but if you leave digging the crop too late you may not get drying weather. So you might need to think about a dry and sheltered spot where you can do this. Apart from that, though - stick 'em in the ground!!
The secret of life is to aim below the head (With thanks to MMM)
Hey Guys,
That is just the news I wanted!...lol
I have a couple of pot's which have a few nice bits of growth on them I will put into the garden today and we shall see what happens.
You are Right Ann we don't tend to get bad frosts in Nov, (some years we still have some nice sunny days) but I am not actually saying that out loud for fear of trouble!!!
