Storing Potatoes

[Green Aura]

If they're starting to sprout MMM, bung 'em in a bucket of compost for xmas new potatoes I know- we've had this conversation before.

[Millymollymandy]

Um but I don't want new potatoes at Xmas, I want lovely roast spuds! I like seasonal veg and in winter I want my winter veg. New spuds for Xmas dinner would be like having strawberries and cream instead of Crimbo pud.

Anyway I'm surprised and pleased that you can get Ratte in England. Another nice 1st or 2nd early (can't remember) is Belle de Fontenay.

[Green Aura]

You can have both!

And believe me, new potatoes with xmas dinner are a delight, but only when you dug them out of the bucket by the back door, just that morning. Not if they been imported from half way round the world.

[Peggy Sue]

I'm with MMM on this one. New spuds are like courgettes, you really look forward to then in spring, then come September you really can't remmeber what all the fuss was about

[healer]

hi can I join in on this one!
Spuddle - Charlottes will keep to February if you do what has been suggested before and sort them into eat now, second use and keepers. You can eat them as earlies as well.
mmm - Rattes are 120 dayers!!! ok you can eat them early but that is why the crop is so light - you have to wait for the other layers to develop!
As you are in France have you found the baking potato grown over here - its Samba, much more floury than the usual french varieties big and really good keeper.

Remember though soil type really does affect the flavour so its easy to get into disagreements about what tastes good - Rattes are crap on my soil!!!

[Millymollymandy]

I keep being given freebies from the garden centre and this year we have Oceania which are really nice floury spuds. Last year it was Europa. Both 2nd earlies.

I'd say the baking spuds (if we're going for huge ) were the other spuds I grew last year - Amandine - I was really rather disappointed because I never got any little 'new' potatoes because they were just so enormous - some of them were so big that one spud was enough for 2 people!

By the way I know that Ratte are 2nd earlies - low yield vs. culinary quality is always mentioned re this variety in any blurb that I read about them i.e. http://www.plantdepommedeterre.org/pages/var.php?var=86

What region of France are you in?

[Durgan]

I have just dug up all my spuds - Charlotte and Sofia. We've had a good crop and more than we can use straight away. As these are second earlies and not maincrop, I'm not sure of the best way to store them. At the moment they are in buckets in the (rodent-proof, I hope!) outside loo. Should I leave them un-washed or should I wash them? How long will they keep?
Any hints gratefully received.

My potatoes are stored in my newly built cold room in the basement. The cold room is in complete darkness.The potatoes were washed gently by swishing in a tub and thoroughly dried in the shade for about two days outdoors. All were carefully checked for damage and disease and any detected were used immediately or discarded.The potatoes are in plastic milk carrying cartoons which have plenty of air circulation. I expect them to last until about March or later if not eaten by then.

Here is my storage.
http://www.durgan.org/URL/?WVRGE 30 August 2009 Cold Room Construction

Cold room construction in the utility room in the basement. Purpose is for storing garden produce. Potatoes, carrots, brussels sprouts, beets, etc.

This is the cold room built in my basement. Space was at a premium so I did the the best with what was available.

The floor space is 18 square feet, and 80 inches in height. A four inch outside air vent was installed. The hole was cut with a rental tool. The one plug in the room is split and the light is switched from outside. Paneling was construction grade spruce 5/8 plywood. Insulation of the inside wall is R14, and a vapor barrier was installed on top of this insulation, then covered with5/8 plywood. The roof was insulated in the same manner.

Tables are plastic, the same as I use in my greenhouse. Vegetables will be stored in the common plastic milk containers. The air inlet will be controlled by stuffing a rag in the inlet if it get too cold. The exhaust went is four inches diameter, and is in the roof of the structure. Humidity will be controlled with a pan of water, if necessary.

Time to build about 48 man hours. Started 25 August and finished on 30 August 2009.Cost $565.42 I had some help for about 16 hours.

31 August 2009. Outdoor temperature 10C, House temperature 20C, Cold room 15C. This is the first temperature measurement.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?NKLSD 1 September 2009 Cold Room Organized
Some milk carrier container were obtained today, and vegetables stored in the cold room. These containers are ideal for the home gardener; in that, the containers are a manageable size and they are well ventilated.

[Millymollymandy]

You are organised! That looks great - hope it works out well for storing your veg.

[Peggy Sue]

I Have a cousin in Canada and when I visited I was so impresed everyone has a basement- we just don't do that here and it's great for dstoring stuff that needs a constant temperature-fruit, veg and....wine!

[Durgan]

I Have a cousin in Canada and when I visited I was so impresed everyone has a basement- we just don't do that here and it's great for dstoring stuff that needs a constant temperature-fruit, veg and....wine!

Unfortunately, most homes don't have the old root cellar or cold room. The basements are heated and without modifications are useless for storage. Of course, there are few gardeners in Canada. Gardening is almost a lost art and would be dead except for immigrants from various countries. North Americans grow grass for the few months the land is not covered with snow. You figure!

[Millymollymandy]

Until I bought this house (an old one) I'd lived in various 60s and 70s houses in France and they all had basements - usually one part was habitable, sometimes with bedrooms etc and heated, plus a laundry room, and the rest was garage/workshop/storage rooms unheated.

Of course back then I never grew spuds or had an orchard and didn't need cool storage space!

I'm going to move my enormous stash of potatoes out to the garage as this year there are no apples taking up space on the shelves (sadly) and it's getting too warm in the living room with the wood burner on (a lot were stored under the stairs on cool tiled floor - but what's cool in summer isn't the coolest place in autumn/winter!).

We always have too many potatoes as there's only 2 of us yet I don't really grow that many plants.

[JeremyinCzechRep]

My Czech neighbours tell me that potatoes should be stored in a cool dark environment with a packed earth floor (not concrete). I would imagine that is connected to the humidity levels. They also say that potatoes should not be stored together with apples.
My favourite potato recipe of the moment: Wash but don't peel them, chop them into large chunks. Add to a baking tray with chunks of butternut squash, courgette and cabbage. Dribble olive oil over the veg and add some mixed herbs. Mix the whole lot together and then bake in the oven until the veg starts to turn brown. Yummy!