Question on potatoes!

Hi all. I have a question about my potatoes. There's lots of foliage on them now and they've flowered. Will all this foliage detract from putting the effort into growing the potatoes and should I cut back the foliage?

 

ah ok thanks for that. We did dig some up a week ago but they were still tiny. We've been watering plenty so maybe give another week and then check again then?

Thanks!

 

Jayney, it`s not the foliage you want to cut off it`s the flowers. When will people learn, you don`t want your potatoes flowering.

 

I did not know that David-a bit of a novice on this front. I will dutifully chop them off tomorrow.

 

Flowering makes no difference. Some don't, some do.

Pinching flowers out always seems counter-productive to me. Think about a Dahlia, for example. The tubers swell when the plant has come to the end of it's cycle - pinching flowers out simply extends that cycle.

I suppose ever grower is different though!

The bottom line with pots is, I think, patience. Wait until the plants are yellowing and dying back, but if you want to harvest before then, accept that there is a risk you'll get spudlings rather than spuds!

 

Some of my desiree now have dying off foliage and those ones never flowered either-and then again a few of them started to today. As long as they make a good mash I'm happy either way.

 

Some potato flowers can be really beautiful.

What research is that, out of interest, JWK?

I've often heard it as Old Garden Lore, but I've never seen or experienced any benefit.

 

I cant wait for my first spud flowers First year for me

 

Thanks all. It seems there are different opinions! I think I may try chopping the flowers off one or two and see if there's any difference ;-)

 

Taking the flowers off isn't going to make a huge difference. Do it if you want ....

 

Many years ago, when I grew my first potatoes without my dad's guidance, I misunderstood the banking up trick, and got confused with the onion trick of limiting aerial growth. I went round my tatie patch and smashed down the topside growth before the spuds were ready. Oddly enough a few weeks later I still got a good yield for the size of the patch. I wouldn't recommend that method though, I think mother nature must have been in a very forgiving mood that day