Taters Can Be Fun

I know that most of you guys do flowers primarily, and chances are that I would too---but I garden with my partner and she is into veg. The result is that she has the final say with all things veg and I have the final say with all things flowery. We help each other out with planning, planting and harvesting of each other's respective relms of preference, but as I said the deciding word ultimately lies with the respective "boss".
At the moment we are planning next year's spud selection, layout and alloted portions. Potatos are something that I can get VERY excited about. I like all the early phases, but of course harvesting is the thing that brings out the child in me. Every time I lift a potato plant and see the tubers... it's, well...a feeling that I can't describe. Sort of like panning for gold, I reckon. You never know what you'll get, and you always hope for alot of biggish healthy taters under the soil.
Usually she carefully slides her fancy border fork into the ground and levers the plant upwards while I am kneeling and sink my hands into the warm earth underneith them and lift them right out. At the moment they surface, it's a thrill to behold. I tell you, I'm just like a little kid, grinning from ear to ear as I count the treasure pieces.
Here are a few pics of part of last year's harvest:

 

That's a VERY impressive crop!!

 

You all grow great ones .I like the amount and size but I start digging the small ones early as I can't wait to get fresh new potatoes with green beans.

 

Yummy! I like to do what Glendann does.

 

Yes... I know what you mean about the small ones. Alot of folks like them, (including me), those tiny little round ones. They are especially loved here by many people and they have a special name, "krieltjes". You can actually buy small bags of them at the supermarkets. And for the true krieltje-lover you can also get marzipan krieltjes (in season). mmmmm
We grow early and mid-earlies because of the ever-present threat of Phytophthera here in our moist land.

 

Sjoerd those look great!! I also have a huge potato garden. Infact its a huge section off to the side on the lower part of the land here. Something i found that works great is to save all your banana skins an just kind of work them into the ground where your potatos are going to be planted,,,, this is a tip an old farmer from across the fjørd told me to do, because most potato fields have to be rotated every 7 yrs. because they deplete the ground of everything. even with manure an composting, but if you use the banana skins when you rotate it won't take 7 yrs it only takes 3 for the earth to come back to "life". so to speak.

But i'm with your wife on that, i'm more of a veggie planter than flowers. And i love new potatoes, the little ones... mmmmmmm.

Great pics!!!!

 

Yes. Young ones are the best. One can just clean them and cook them skin and all. What a flavour, eh?
The slender taters that you see in the pics are sort of fancy ones called Harlequin. The others are Ottena and Eerstelingen. This year we will only grow the fancy ones and see how that goes. She wants to use this approach because the logic being that we can buy "normal" ones in the markt. Heh heh heh... So we'll do "fancy" this year.
Those skinny opne with the pink ends we call "rozekontjes"... or "pink bottoms"--a name coined by our gardening neighbour. Very apt. They are delicious. We3 gave a few rto a couple of fellow gardners who had never heard of them and they really liked the taste as well. It's was a shame that we didn't have more to share. There were an unbelieveable amount of spuds on each plant (17-24)!!

We have a very small patch actually (1/3 of 100m². According to the rules of the Garden Association we have to rotate every year, The "Potato Police" make their rounds to enforce this.
The rotation schedule is published every year in the "Green Book", so that there can be no mistake.
That tip about banana skins in interesting...it's for the bit of potassium that they have, I suspect.
I have used skins at the base of some flowers in the past (at home and in the garden).

 

That's a great looking harvest there Sjoerd! I did a little "experiment" last summer after hearing that the potatoes you buy to eat won't grow as they have been treated so they wouldn't sprout. I planted a row of sprouting potatoes from my cupboard and another row of seed potatoes. When it came time to dig them up there was no contest. The cupboard potatoes were tiny and few with tough skin and the seed potatoes were large, thin skinned and numerous.
I will NOT plant cupboard potatoes again!

 

That was an interesting experiment.
We are not allowed to do things like that on our Allotment Complex. We can only plant seed potatoes which have been certified--and the certification either has to be on a stick ay the end of a row or you must be able to produce it when asked by the "Potato Police". Strict.
I think the primary reason that they don't want us to do that is so that disease won't be introduced by fellow gardners. I sometimes see the diseased taters they are talking about in the ones that I buy from the market. Having your own land, you don't have to worry about that, of course.
But what an interesting trial you did, though. I like doing things like that.
BTW.... do you chit your spuds before planting?

 

Chit? What does that mean Sjoerd?

 

Mmm I love home grown taters. And I will be planting my banana skins around them from now on.
Nice crop there Sjoerd. I know what you mean by panning for gold *grin*

 

Netty... sorry. I thought that "chit" was an english term. Excuse me. Maybe it is, but British English only. I apologize for the lack of clarity in any event.
Anyway... "chitting" is when you let the sprouts begin growing out of the "eyes" of the seed potatos. When they are grown out a little bit then you plabt them . I always chit mine in egg cartons. I believe they get a slightly quicker start. Chitting is by no means necessary though, as I know many fellow gardners that do not do it.
I think the only disadvantage to chitting is the transportation to the planting site. They are very fragile and break-off with the slightest contact. Your garden is probably just outside your house, but myh garden is about 10 minutes by bike.

 

I've never heard the term "chit" before! I'm always learning here at the stew!
No Sjoerd, I don't chit my spuds before I plant them.