Potato growing 2021

No sign of blight here thankfully. Like JWK my earlies are dying back now and my Setanta are looking extremely healthy. We were incredibly dry for virtually 3 months but making up for it in spades now as have had quite a few torrential downpours. The only snag having been so dry is the size of my earlies,while plenty they are somewhat smaller than in the past but prefer that to a blight attack.

 

Cut the tops off my Picassos on the 29th July before any blight got to them, still got plenty between 500 - 600g. They would have got much bigger if cold weather hadn't delayed planting out, followed by lifting early to avoid blight. I've heard of individual Picaso tubers getting to over 4lbs grown for competition.



My container grown Kenebecs were cut down around the same time, but still did OK.



Everybody else here waited untill the blight got them, then left them up to 2 weeks before removing the tops and are now digging them up to put them into storage.

 

Just dug some blighted Nicola, they are a reasonable size despite the tops being killed off.

 

I noticed today that 3 of my Tomato plants in a grow house, had, what appeared to be Blight, Green Tomatoes saved, plants put in Black bags for the Bin Men.

I'm hoping this doesn't affect the other Tomatoes & Potatoes.......Fingers crossed

 

I've got a couple I'm afraid

 

Dug up the first of the Vivaldi plants. Thought I'd try these for baking potatoes as supposedly good for baking.



The Yield was ok I thought and a few good sized bakers amongst them. Baked a couple this afternoon and not that impressed, not much different in my opinion to Cara or similar in terms of taste and texture.

Ho hum - won't be growing these again next year. Had a bit of a poke around the Mayan Golds - planted in a row at the back of these - they seem to be growing well at least.

 

My polytunnel potatoes are as yet unblighted when all around outside is devastation.

Kondor and Kennebec in pots on tunnel staging producing seed spuds for next year (I have same growing in another tunnel in garden at home as backup).



Potatoes in ex-glass recycling boxes being grown for heaviest potato competition class.




If they were growing outside there would be nothing left of them, same as everybody else's outdoor spuds.

 

Your indoor plants are looking very healthy. Mine are outside and have all fallen over with the rain.

 

lifted some tatties today. First time we've grown Yetholm Gypsies, not a massive yield but they are tasty. Made chips with them tonight and will probably grow these again next year.
Strange looking things-




And also lifted half the Roosters as the Showes were starting to die back
Got a sack full, have about the same again to take up:



and have extracted the remainder of the Vivaldi:



Some quite big tatties but not great flavour and a bit watery for my liking, these were supposed to be good baking tatties. Only thing I can see that's good about them is the size.

Mayan Gold, Pink Fir Apples and Shetland Blacks still in the ground. Hoping to keep the slug population down for a while, was a big problem last year. Hopefully the nematodes will work.

 

I haven’t taken any photos, but I have grown Charlottes this year, and, for the first time, Duke of Yorks. The are both very nice, but to my surprise D of Y are the tastiest.

 

Almost September and blight all around me so decided not to push my luck and cut the tops off to ensure I have tubers to plant next year.

Ideally I'd let them grow until the tops died down, then let them dry out for two or three weeks before tipping out, but I'll do that with the ones in my garden tunnel.

Room for something else now as they can sit somewhere else.

 

I forked up a few Charlottes for dinner tonight and took a snap. It’s so satisfying growing potatoes, although I do wish the kids appreciated it a bit more. They always ask why it’s not mash. No seasonal appreciation at all!

 

Just dug the last of my pink fir apples, never had such a disastrous year, hardly any thing under them

The tops had been dead for a while, I think it was blight, bearing in mind the wet June and the plants reaching over 3ft in height I was expecting more.
I had dug in a bulk bag of compost before planting as well.