planting potatoes soon, got a ?

We;re about to put some potatoes in the the ground soon, some say to do this some say they never have what are your opinions on after cutting the potatoes up, mixing them in 7 dust to keep bugs out of the seed potatoes? do you or don't you? my BIL does but my DH's friend who's an old timer, said he's never done that.

would it be better to do it or not to.

kathy_ann

Nope. Why would it be necessary, and what bugs are you concerned about? Are the spuds gonna sit around in a bug-infested area before you plant them? I'd cut them up, let them heal over (altho even that is not really necessary), plant them. Sometimes I've dusted them with bone meal, mainly just to keep the cut ends from exuding their moisture and to add a bit of phosphorus but haven't really noticed a big increase in harvest by doing so.

I'd go ahead and plant, and have fun!

thanks for the help horseshoe

For a really good crop of taters, you might want to throw in some potassium in your ground. It doesn't take much and you'll get a bumper crop of good-sized spuds! Ain't much better than digging a fresh tater up and chawing down on it!

Have fun!

If the soil is wet or the spot has had some problems with soil pathogens, some people dust the cut surfaces with wettable sulfur, but if you're planting in a good spot, letting them heal up is all that's needed (if it's needed at all, like Shoe said. It's just standard practice). Mmmm... you've got me thinking of boiled baby potatoes with a sprig of mint and dripping with butter.

where does one get potassium

A garden center will have it in their fertilizer section. If not, your local farm store/feed store will have it. It's very cheap.

Edited to add that if you have a wood stove or burn brush fires the wood ash will also add potassium.

This message was edited Mar 20, 2004 9:47 PM

I do burn wood, but isn't the wood ash useless when it's been wet down by rain? that's what I heard, can I use it if it's been rained on

If it's been repeatedly rained on then the "goodies" in the ash are more than likely watered into the ground where they sat. (I tend to collect mine from our woodstove and store them in a metal trash can.)

A bag of 'muriate of potash' costs about $4. a bag tho. Only a cup or so needs to be applied to 100 sq feet; the rest can be used for your other root crops if you like (carrots, beets, turnips, etc).

Here is a picture of mine. They was planted on Valentines day. I took the picture a little while ago.

Bill

wow Bill, aren't you the early bird, LOL We're gttng the ground ready now, it's been raining alot here, got a hundred pound bag to put in the ground, the folks that lived here before us, planted alot of potatoes too and said the ground was good. what if you put too much ash in with the potatoes, it's hard to tell just how much exactly to use. Horshoe, We're hoping to get them in the ground this week. haven't even cut them up yet, never planted this many before, you cut yours just in half or quarters, i've done both ways, and rather the half than the quarter. your opinions? i'll save some wood ash from the smoker, it's going today, I expect we'll have plenty, have to smoke the chickens for 6 hrs,

kathy_ann

ok, I gathered up a 2 gallon bucket full of fresh ash from the woodstove, and there's another 2 gallons of it in the shop stove too, is that too much to spread out on l00 pounds of potatoes? don't ask me wht were going to do with all those taters, LOL

kathy

here's my dh getting the ground ready for the potatoes, that's an old plow someone gave him he rigged it to go on his little kabota, to plow the garden, he's already disked it, I told him I hope he had something to dig those rows it's gonna take forever to plant l00 pounds of taters. LOL

bill, them taters are looking good! Looks like you have some good easy-to-work dirt too! Gonna hill them up some more, or will they make in those beds as is? Purty pic! I'm jealous!

Kathy, nice plow your DH is pulling! Ya'll have nice dirt too~ (I have red clay!)

The wood ash is normally spread at a rate of 5-10 pounds per 100 sq feet. I'd broadcast it so it is not directly in the tater eye furrow but rather to each side of it. As for spreading too much? It can inhibit germination of certain seeds but for taters as long as it's not directly on the seed piece you'll be fine. Too much ash applied repeatedly to your soil will change the pH tho, making it more alkaline. Potatoes grown in alkaline soil are more susceptible to scab. (You can still eat them, it just makes them "un-sightly" looking.)

As for cutting spuds, guess it depends on the size whether you cut them in half or thirds or whatever. I cut them so each piece has about 3 eyes on it. No piece should be smaller than a golf ball (in my book!). If you are expecting any frost I'd make the pieces a bit bigger.

You hubby will probably have a disk set that he can angle so the taters will easily hill up. Come diggin' time I hope he had a "tater plow", also known as a middle buster...that'll really bring them up to the surface easy!

(Now, about them smoked chickens! Say what!!? And here I is, so far far away from ya'll! Waaaaahhhhhhh.....!!!)

Are you whining horse shoe he he, another 2 hrs and they'll be done, dh doesn't like baked chicken, but he says my smoked chickens are the best he's ever eaten, we smoke just about every weekend. and usually fill the smoker up with meat. LOL this time just the chickens.

dh does have something rigged up to dig up the potatoes, and he told me he has something to go down the side of the rows to mound up the dirt on top of the spuds, he's got it all worked out. so why am I worried LOL I'm not i guess. just worried about all the excess work lol. He likes a big garden.

thanks for all the help

kathy

Da heck w/the tater field and tractor...

I wanna see them chickens! And that smoker!

(Ain't nuttin' like a deliciously-cooked good tasting dead chicken!) (Ya'll need to grow some out just for your own eating...there is a good hatchery nearby ya'll.)

My chickens are black as the ace of spades, LOL I usually peel the black off and cut the meat off the bone smoker is a wood fueled smoker we just bought it a month or so ago, it's been well used already. I'll go take a pic and be right back. but it's not gonna do you any good, you won't get to smell them or taste them he he.

ok, here they are, their plum ugly though, but I don't care, their the best tasting things once you pull the black skin off and take it off th bone.

I've wore the paint off the smoker. lol

OH mercy me! I know how good them are gonna taste! I declare! I declare! No fair, no fair!!

I saw a gizmo like that for sale somewhere! When ya'll smoke stuff, does the wood go in the little thingy to the right, and the smoke goes into the main area (where the chickens are)? Or is there a fire going on in both places?

When I's a youngin, my Dad's friend made a smoker out of an old fridgerator...it was mainly used for smoking mullet (loved it!).

Mercy! Mercy me! Thass all I can say! Mercy! ô¿ô

yeah, the wood goes into the thing on the side, you could also use it as a grill putting charcoal or wood under neath the grill on the big part too, I really like it, it's got a thermometer on it, I always get it too hot in there though, still not good at controling the temp on it. we got it at lowe's walmart had one too but lowe's was a better quality.

yep, supper's gonna be good, got to think of something to go with it though.

later

kathy

Those birds are a beautiful thaang there Kathy :)

We have an old burn-barrel converted smoker to do up birds and pork - mercy is right there Shoe :)

Almost got all our seed taters in today, but the winds stopped us. We're trying some new to us this year - Irish Cobbler, Kennebec and Norland - we shall see.....at this point eye just don't know :)

Nice system. Maybe I should get one someday.
Thanks.
(Too bad you ain't got no taters you could put in there to bake...that would go good w/your chickens!)

Smoked mullet :) You make me laugh so hard Shoe !!!!

Used to net 'em strictly for tarpon bait - do you know how hard it is to get that skill down? And I only used that skill once a year!

When the sun is 4 fingers from the horizon.......

Wish I had photos of when my boy was reelin' them in - all I allowed him to do was to take one scale - that's all :)

Now Snook - that's a whole 'nother story; pickled - it's the BEST !!!

Dea! For shame! You tossed them mullet to the tarpons! Them thar's good eatin'! Ain't nuttin' finer! (I really loved fried mullet gizzards! It was a special after-school treat!)

Now as for this "allowed him to take only one scale"...my, my, my!

I've had snook...but not pickled. Reckon you better go catch some pickled snook and bring it to the Roundup, eh?

Oh Lordy, I'm not sure I'm gonna want to go to that round up, Yall are talkin food I have never heard of LOL. I thought I was old too. LOL
just tasted the chicken, I think I have a tad longer, still pink near the bone, but oh so good, late supper tonight, so late, we're having nothing but chicken, LOL but those taters do sound good. I guess I could throw some in the microwave. LOL

was gone for a while, came back and dh was still out back, had these huge deep grooves in teh ground, with another plow he made up, I said, man those are nice deep trenches for the taters, he said, oh , he's just digging up the ground some more, it wsn't deep enough, LOL Atleast I know he'll be able to dig deep trenches for the taters. maybe all we'll have to do is cover them up, but their not getting in the ground tonight, hopefully this week we can get them in there.

I'm anxious for new potatoes and green beans. with my smoked chicken.