The Poultry Keeper

Lisa · Posted: Fri Apr 22, 2005 6:33 pm Post subject: Potatoes!

Okay, not in any way shameful, but absolutely totally off topic!!

I was reading Nigel's website including the bit about growing heritage potatoes Very Happy

What varieties have you tried then Nigel?

Have you been to any of the "potato days"?

Tried any of the microplants yet?

Any other potato nuts out there?

Anyone still going to talk to me? Embarassed

Lisa
asolutely denying any allegations of an obsessive personality.... Rolling Eyes

PS and I hope if you're growing potatoes, you're trying the variety called "rooster"!! Laughing

bird_babe · Joined: 20 Apr 2005 Posts: 473 Location: wales

Hi Lisa I'm also a sad potato grower, I like the first early potato Charlotte . its a lovely waxy potato for salads delic with some warm butter
I'm also a fan of desiree great all round potato but it can get scab some times had a bad bout of it last year . so I'm planting some wear else this time . mind you they are hell to dig up in thew Autumn some times think it might be better just to buy .
Do you plant in a trench or tubs?

nigel · Posted: Fri Apr 22, 2005 7:06 pm Post subject:

Lisa,

This years potatoes are a mix of heritage and new varieties,

First Early - Pentland Javelin,
Second Early - Anya,
Early Maincrop - Belle de Fontenay and Arran Victory,
Late Maincrop - Desiree and Pink Fir Apple

Rooster is a good choice too, maybe for next year

Lisa · Posted: Fri Apr 22, 2005 7:24 pm Post subject:

I've tried growing in different ways...

I've grown some earlies in tubs in my Mum's greenhouse. Great for getting the first really early potatoes. But her arthritis is so bad now, we're not doing the green house this year Sad

(she's helped with watering before).

I've planted them as normal in the ground which does okay.

And last year, when I took over the allotment I tried cutting down the weeds, putting on a layer of rotted down manure (thankfully there is a huge pile on the allotments we can all help ourselves to) and then covering with straw and grass cuttings as they grew. (Read about the technique on the Internet Rolling Eyes

) Worked well with earlies and 2nd earlies. Main crop didn't do well, and lates really suffered. But I didn't water much (my general approach to gardening).

I love the waxy salad types - slathered in butter Very Happy

1st earlies I like are Lady Christl and Red Duke of York (dig early for new, later for roasties). Then later there's Anya, Belle De Fontenay, Nicola, Roseval, Ratte and Pink Fir Apple. All nice waxy ones.

I also grew on Butes Blues from Microplants but I can see why purple potatoes didn't catch on - they taste great, but they're a bugger to find in the soil when you need to dig them up Laughing

New ones I'm trying this year are and why (according to the catalogues)

Karlena - a 1st early floury type
Verity - a cara type with very good disease restistence
Rooster - supposed to be a good organic one for general use or baking
Valor - good general for organic growing
Lady Balfour - another good organic one, good for storing

Hopefully some of these will be good for storing for Autumn and Winter...

I'm also trying to grow on from Micro plants:

Mr Little's Yetholm Gypsy
Champion
Skerry blue

But I the seed isn't very clean, so I think disease has got the better of these Confused

And I got some "Forty Fold" from Waitrose that I'm going to try - another oldie which is supposed to be a good roaster?

I've been to 2 "potato" days - I think they're great because you can buy seed by the tuber, instead of by the large bag! Hence the long list of varieties Wink

Six of this, six of that....

Lisa · Posted: Fri Apr 22, 2005 7:27 pm Post subject:

Ooo.... Arran Victory is nice too Nigel....

I'm getting hungry again now - and I've had tea already!! Laughing

I can feel a thread on fav potato recipes coming on soon Wink

nigel · Posted: Fri Apr 22, 2005 7:32 pm Post subject:

That's a good way to do it Lisa, all those days seem to be miles away from us though Sad

all mine have to be mail order. the potaotes are from Thompson and Morgan, but my all time favourite seed companies are

future foods
click on the marrow for the online catalogue, I noticed it doesn't bring up a label any more, but good if you want something slightly unusal

the organic gardening catalogue

Lisa · Posted: Fri Apr 22, 2005 7:44 pm Post subject:

There is one at the HDRA at Ryton on Dunsmore nr Coventry - think that's less than a hour from you Wink

Usually end Jan / early Feb...

You need to get there early if you go, or the popular stuff gets sold out. They did some microplants too last time I went.

Thompson and Morgan do have a good website, don't they, with lots of info on varieties.

Haven't heard of future foods. Thanks, I will check that one out Razz

What other fruit and veg do you grow on your allotment?

I had the best of intentions for mine this year, but I seem to have blinked and a couple of months have gone by Embarassed

Guess where I'll be at the weekend!

Chris · Joined: 15 Apr 2005 Posts: 6 Location: South East

Micro-plant? What's that then Lisa?

nigel · Posted: Fri Apr 22, 2005 7:56 pm Post subject:

this year we have

in the fruit cage

red/white/black currants, gooseberries raspberries and strawberries

top fruit
apples, pears, plums, damsons and if we're lucky quince

greenhouse(and polytunnel when built)
tomatoes, chillies, peppers and salad crop

veggie beds
jerusalem artichokes, potatoes, broad beans, onions, shallots, cabbage, parsnip, carrot, peas, custard squash, salsify, french beans, swiss chard, sweet corn, runner bean, kale

rhubarb and globe artichokes

i think

Lisa · Posted: Fri Apr 22, 2005 8:19 pm Post subject:

Hmmm.... sounds yummy Nigel Smile

If I can get half of that going this year, I'll be very happy

Chris... as far as I understand it, a microplant is a very small potato plant (they arrived in the post, about 3 inches tall, end of May). They are grown in a laboratory - although they are nothing to do with GM or anything like that. They basically grow the potato on, and on, and on, in ideal conditions until they get a disease free plant (not sure how they do that bit). Then they sell them to people who are slightly obsessed with potatoes Embarassed

They are frost tender and the first year I didn't get many potatoes (from 5 plants). I ate a few to taste them Rolling Eyes

and saved the rest to grow on next year. This will be year 3, and I think at least 2 of them have got some sort of scab / netting over the skin Confused

Maybe one of the reasons they didn't remain popular is because they are not very good at resisting diease? Or maybe I was unlucky?

But its nice to have something yummy and unusual. The Butes Blues are very tasty. Champion make great mash. And Mr Little's Yetholm Gypsy is (apparently) the only red, white and blue potato!

Heather · Posted: Sat Apr 23, 2005 9:58 am Post subject:

Lisa

Like you I am a bit behind with sowing / planting - totally missed the time to plant out garlic -doh ! Rolling Eyes

Mainly because our rotovator is broken and I am having to dig manually which is hard work on heavy clay soil !!!

So far I have only sown fennel - and today am going to put tomatoes and chillies in the heated propagator for planting out end of May ish outside

Hopefully will get over to the lottie this weekend and get some more soil breaking down & sowing done but it is looking a bit soggy at the moment

As for potatoes am only putting in pink fir apple and maybe a second early - my friend usually has a few tubers to spare

(yes I know it's a bit late ) Ah well if it grows it grows- got too much else to worry about this year

Heather x

Lisa · Posted: Sat Apr 23, 2005 10:17 am Post subject:

I planted mine really late last year (end April / early May) as I'd only just moved to this allotment. The earlies did better. I think my mains and lates (which I think just means they need a long growing season) suffered because I hardly watered them and they grew on through the summer when they needed the water more. A thicker mulch would have helped too.

I did get some potatoes from most of them, just a lot less than if I'd looked after them better Embarassed

They still tasted great though

Good luck with yours Smile

nigel · Posted: Sat Apr 23, 2005 12:02 pm Post subject:

It's off to the plot for me this afternoon, I have the chickens to clean, the perimeter to mow to stop the electric fencing shorting out and the beds to rotovate, I love it

Nigel

CP · Posted: Sat Apr 23, 2005 12:06 pm Post subject:

Lost the plot, Nigel? OOppss! Sorry, mis-read your post!

Heather · Posted: Sat Apr 23, 2005 5:09 pm Post subject:

Nigel, you are so lucky to be able to keep chickens on your allotment! I have asked 3 times now - but not allowed Confused

I could get lots If I were allowed to . It would be so ideal as the allotment is literally across the road from me

Their reason seems to be that it will attract vermin (though not sure whether 2 or 4 legged kind ! ) and foxes though they won't actually tell me a proper reason Mad

Maybe I should send them some literature on fox proof houses etc and hope they will change their mind ??!!

Heather x

Good luck with whatever you are growing too Lisa - I have moved allotments too this year which is why it needs so much digging doing