Heya… my spuds lookin pretty good this season…just wondering when to stop mulching them????
I heavily mulched last weekend and since then they have gone crazy…so when should I stop mulching???
Or do I just keep going till flowers appear??
Muschee said:
Heya… my spuds lookin pretty good this season…just wondering when to stop mulching them????
I heavily mulched last weekend and since then they have gone crazy…so when should I stop mulching???
Or do I just keep going till flowers appear??
I can’t grow spuds here. It’s too hot :(
But Yeah, Wot he said.
the main purpose of the mulch is to make sure that the new potatoes forming do not get exposed to sunlight. They say that if you keep piling up the mulch you will get more potatoes forming further up the stem but in my experience that didn’t work. However a good mulch will keep feeding the soil which should result in more, bigger and healthier potatoes. So keep mulching :)
Warning. One year I recycled mulch from my potato crop over to the next season’s tomato crop – BIG mistake! Had diseased plants and few tomatoes. May have been a coincidence but I will never do that again.
bluegreen said:
the main purpose of the mulch is to make sure that the new potatoes forming do not get exposed to sunlight. They say that if you keep piling up the mulch you will get more potatoes forming further up the stem but in my experience that didn’t work. However a good mulch will keep feeding the soil which should result in more, bigger and healthier potatoes. So keep mulching :)Warning. One year I recycled mulch from my potato crop over to the next season’s tomato crop – BIG mistake! Had diseased plants and few tomatoes. May have been a coincidence but I will never do that again.
it is a big no no to rotate tomatoes and potatoes or vice versa.. in the same soil. Fallow in between or use other crops.
roughbarked said:
bluegreen said:
the main purpose of the mulch is to make sure that the new potatoes forming do not get exposed to sunlight. They say that if you keep piling up the mulch you will get more potatoes forming further up the stem but in my experience that didn’t work. However a good mulch will keep feeding the soil which should result in more, bigger and healthier potatoes. So keep mulching :)Warning. One year I recycled mulch from my potato crop over to the next season’s tomato crop – BIG mistake! Had diseased plants and few tomatoes. May have been a coincidence but I will never do that again.
it is a big no no to rotate tomatoes and potatoes or vice versa.. in the same soil. Fallow in between or use other crops.
I didn’t plant in the same spot, but used the same mulch. I learned my lesson :)
i usually mulch twice – once with pine needles to ensure the soil is slightly acid – and once with thick (100mm) pea straw.
you can go on mulching because it – maintains moisture levels – keeps nitrogen levels low which is good because you don’t want all tops and no tubers – suppresses weeds and – as BG said – keeps the tubers out of the sun.
add potash between layers of mulch (wood ash) to maximise the tuber size.
you got no frosts muschee?
pepe said:
i usually mulch twice – once with pine needles to ensure the soil is slightly acid – and once with thick (100mm) pea straw.you can go on mulching because it – maintains moisture levels – keeps nitrogen levels low which is good because you don’t want all tops and no tubers – suppresses weeds and – as BG said – keeps the tubers out of the sun.
add potash between layers of mulch (wood ash) to maximise the tuber size.
you got no frosts muschee?
No luckily no frost.
Sounds like I will throw on some more mulch then…I did add some wood ash yesterday too between showers.
We’ve been blessed with some lovely rain in the last couple weeks.
Muschee said:
pepe said:
i usually mulch twice – once with pine needles to ensure the soil is slightly acid – and once with thick (100mm) pea straw.you can go on mulching because it – maintains moisture levels – keeps nitrogen levels low which is good because you don’t want all tops and no tubers – suppresses weeds and – as BG said – keeps the tubers out of the sun.
add potash between layers of mulch (wood ash) to maximise the tuber size.
you got no frosts muschee?
No luckily no frost.
Sounds like I will throw on some more mulch then…I did add some wood ash yesterday too between showers.
We’ve been blessed with some lovely rain in the last couple weeks.
i’ve got two big crops (15+kg seed spud in the two) and a small bed of certified seed.
we are both out-of-season (which starts in august) – but it’s worth the gamble because they take a lot of water when planted in season.
I’m in SouthWest Victoria. So we expect frosts. I am experimenting this year. I have planted a row of potatoes between two rows of broad beans, so the beans should protect the taters. It will be interesting to see how the competition goes.
buffy said:
I’m in SouthWest Victoria. So we expect frosts. I am experimenting this year. I have planted a row of potatoes between two rows of broad beans, so the beans should protect the taters. It will be interesting to see how the competition goes.
you’ll get frosts there for sure – but pete cundal would cover his spuds in cardboard on windless nights to keep the frost off.
harvesting is a problem here because the spuds get so well buried. i always start harvesting soon after they have flowered and go on harvesting as i need them. this minimises back strain but lowers overall yield because many of the plants are picked before they are fully grown.
these are my best spuds at present – uncertiified snow whites – bought as smalls from the stupidmart.
i have just mulched them with pine needles.
they are a tad pale so i’ll give them some liquidpoo soon.
