potatoes

whats the max hight for earthing up potatoes.
thanx boe
ps sorry for all the ?????'s

 

oh i have been earthing them up, they are about 1 1/2 '.

 

Earth them up as much as you like, the more u earth the bigger the yield.

 

looks like i need more wood. to raise my beds more then.

thanks. boe

 

Normally you heap the soil into a ridge along the row where the spuds were planted, rather than just raising the soil level all around the plants.

Can you just draw up more soil from between the rows to make "ridges" along the rows of potatoes? (Depends a bit how your raised beds are arranged I expect?)

I'm not sure I entirely agree with "the more your earth the bigger the yield". Earthing up keeps the light off spuds that develop close to the surface, stopping them going green, and it keeps any late frost off the plants.

To a certain extent the stems, once earthed up, will produce the root-like growths that the spuds then develop on, but in practice I find there is a limit to the height they will grow above where the original seed tuber was planted - so earthing up lots & lots has a point at which more makes no difference.

Earthing up also buries the plant, and its leaves, so it has to spend energy growing back up through the soil to reach the light, which obviously wastes some of the plant's energy, so there will come a point where very significant earthing up will take more of the plants energy than it can replenish.

I reckon if you have your spuds at normal row space (a couple of feet), and you pull up all the available soil between the rows to form ridges along the rows, then that is the right height for earthing up

Adding some additional grass clipping / straw so that the light can't get to the soil where spuds might form will also help prevent any going to waste because they have turned green

 

The Incas used to earth them up in the High Andes, so you should be alright in Birmingham

 

thanks guys. i have been thinking to be honest, and with what as been said aswell. i have decided to leave them as they are. they are aerthed 1,1/2 ft high so think ill be happy with that, they are eathed up with straw i got from my local farm. and i must say the plants are looking lush, so fingers crossed ill have some good spuds.
the beds i have my spuds in are 1)8ft x 3ft. 2)7ft x 3ft. , and going to create another,

 

That all sounds good Bo

I've put some 6"x6" timbers along side mine in a hopeless attempt at stopping the plants smothering the bed next to it. Its also keeping the earth where its needed.

 

i do have some more to plant out. but think im going to bag them ones. to go with the other four bags, misses wont let me use up any more garden lol.

 

Hi boebrummie , My spuds are earthed up to a low ridge about the same height as yours and from what i have read that should be ample , One of the other reasons you should earth up potatoes apparenlty is that it anchors the plant, Which could be true because the ones i have in planters are being knocked all over today with all the heavy wind we are having, I have been in the garden earlier and there is loads of branches snapped of em, The ones in the garden are fine, That blowaway i have in the in the garden has had a rough ride today aswell' Canny scary at times , Don't worry about them spuds boebrummie they will be ok i'm sure,

Good luck TG.

 

thanks.
its been blowing a little here too. be glad when the sun decides to make an appearence