Potatoes

Can anyone tell me why my potato tops think they are runner beans,they have cropped ok but why so much foliage

 

Look at the size of the spuds, then its back to school to work out how plants feed their roots !

Oh, and welcome to GC.

 

hi Shedman does your tatties look like these.

this is Arran pilot and Desiree.

 

A healthy looking plot Fancy !

Well done.

 

Hi Fancy
Naw,yours are infants compared with mine,they grow so tall they fall over. I planted ORCA and they have a superb taste.My Plot is only tiny but quite productive with tatties,lettuce peas and carrots.At least the tattie tops fills the compost bin.
Yours looks a great plot in good condition,thanks for the reply

 

Hi Octarine
Thanks for the welcome
Check how the plants feed the roots, I am an opimist not a bio-scientist but thanks for the reply anyway

 

My potatoes (Catriona) are at least 4ft tall - is this normal? I haven't grown them before and I must admit I didn't expect them to be quite so big!

 

I have never seen potatoes plants as big as that

 

Mine too have grown very tall - only to be flattened by the rain. I reckon the bigger the tops the larger the tubers, eventually (and as long as blight does not weaken the plants).

 

When I planted 'kestrel' last year they grew to 3 foot.I think it depends on the condition of your soil. I am hoping my main crop dont get too leggy.

 

My second earlies have been flattened to by the heavy rain. My potato plants always grow very tall, it must be to do with the type of soil. Shedman what did you feed your potato plants with. Sometimes if fresh manure is used it can force them, giving lots of foilage at the expense of tubers.

 

It's all the rain we are having thats making them grow tall, they are mostly water, the only problem is if it stays like this you will get tubers rotting.

 

HI everyone who replied,
Glad to hear I am not the only one with leggy tops.
KevinO, I did put them on manure but it was well rotted,my daughter in law keeps horses and the manure is at least two years old,lovely stuff it looks good enough to eat if you know what i mean.
Well broken down and rich in nutrients,just the job and the good news is she has tons of it