Tastiest Potatoes

[Woofster]

I grew
Orla (in plastic bags) -O.K small and not as tasty as others
Lady Christl - very nice
Charlotte - a favourite, will grow again
Cara - had to harvest early because of blight but I liked them
Mayan Gold- harvested early because blight was on its way. Nobody has mentioned these. They are new (Thompson and Morgan do them) and they are wonderful - I plan to grow these again.
I also would like to buy small numbers of various varieties and last year I got my spuds from T & M who offered packs of five of the varieties above except Cara which I got from a local nursery which was selling about 15 varieties loose so you could buy one potato if you wanted. I shall probably go back there for potatoes in future.

[simonthescribe]

Tastiest Potatoes

After an experiment last year with seaweed and a visit to the Ile de Batz, my 4 varieties of potato - Maris Peer, Jersey Royals, Cornish White Sante and some new Cornish potatoes that went wild in the cupboard, were all improved in taste 100% !
See HERE for blog article!

[rainbowminx]

Sewer rat - I gather you don't like maris peer then?!! I was just going to say that although I've never grown potatoes before so have nothing to compare to, I found them to be lovely! I only got my lottie early May so was a bit late, but managed to get a big bag of Maris Peer seed spuds from Wilkinsons and despite getting blight in August during the 10 days we were away in Cyprus, I got back just in time to cut the foliage and the spuds were saved. They were, and still are, absolutely delicious! Supermarket spuds are not a patch on them. They make delicious mash and roast well. They also appear to be storing well in a big sack in my shed at home.

Maybe because I haven't tried the other delicious varieties on offer I am happy to accept a lesser spud?!

Like someone else, I've also been furiously scribbling down these recommended varieties and am probably more confused than ever!

Which varieties are 'early' and when do they go in, which are 'second early' and when do they go in and which are 'main crop' and when do they go in? It's all very confusing to a beginner like me!

Kris

[Snadger]

Sewer rat - I gather you don't like maris peer then?!! I was just going to say that although I've never grown potatoes before so have nothing to compare to, I found them to be lovely! I only got my lottie early May so was a bit late, but managed to get a big bag of Maris Peer seed spuds from Wilkinsons and despite getting blight in August during the 10 days we were away in Cyprus, I got back just in time to cut the foliage and the spuds were saved. They were, and still are, absolutely delicious! Supermarket spuds are not a patch on them. They make delicious mash and roast well. They also appear to be storing well in a big sack in my shed at home.

Maybe because I haven't tried the other delicious varieties on offer I am happy to accept a lesser spud?!

Like someone else, I've also been furiously scribbling down these recommended varieties and am probably more confused than ever!

Which varieties are 'early' and when do they go in, which are 'second early' and when do they go in and which are 'main crop' and when do they go in? It's all very confusing to a beginner like me!

Kris

If you have an allotment you can usually find out from other allotment holders nearby what does well in your area and soil conditions.....and what doesn't!

[Eden]

Hi there,
Pentland Javelin did really well for me this year, lovely big spuds, Edzell Blue also very good but nearly all the spuds were quite small. Golden Wonder did wonderfully, huge spuds and loads of them BUT the slugs also loved them, full of holes, I'd say half of them are quite well 'holed'! Have grown Pink Fir in the past and they did really well, fab flavour and roast with rosemary they were delicious. All the best
Eden

[Carrie G]

Maris Piper - trust me I'm Irish!

[rusty nail]

they sell seed potat0es loose at coolings in Knockolt in kent i dont think thats too far

[coreopsis]

I thought about Golden Wonder as I had some home made chips and there were the best ones-moisture inside,crunchy outside.There's not a lot of varieties here-the most popular ones are Maris Piper,King Edward and Rooster.

[Snadger]

Potatoes aren't supposed to be tasty as they are a staple food.........do you ever get tasty spagetti?

I think texture and colour are the deciding factor for me............and of course taste!

[snakeshack]

am trying pentland javelin and rooster this year in containers made from stacked tyres,ask any tyre shop/garage and they will let you have for free as they have to pay for disposal, they heat up quickly in the sun and can be added to like normal earthing up.they can also be stacked and lined with double polybags to make cheap water butts,or just used to weigh down temporary plastic mulch.

[SuperDad]

I'm surprised nobody has mentioned Desiree yet. Reliable, good yield, good sized spuds with aceptable flavour. My best this year was Juliette, good flavour, moderate yield and little slug damage. Nadine was the most disappointing, very low yield

[SteveMort]

Hi
I like to grow Golden Wonder - It used to be used for crisps, so makes good roast and chips - if boiled goes mushy so good for mashing.
Osprey - large potatoes good flavour.
Stemster - A red nice boiler -offspring of Desiree
Pink Fir Apple & Ratte - cook with skins on! (scrub well)
Eerstelling - German
Linzer Delikatess - Salad
Moulin Rouge - Red skin good flavour
Winston - 1st Early
Lady Balfour - Early Maincrop

Tuckers in Devon usually have some trial packs.
They grow their own where as some suppliers only buy them in to sell on.

Comprey leaves in the hole at planting is a good feed for the tubers.
Soot used to be used to keep slugs at bay - if you can get any!

Taking off the flowers is said to increase the potatoes yield.

Try to grow some differant varieties each year, some do better on clay than they do on sandy soil - find the ones that suit your growing medium.

Good Luck in 2009

[Matt.]

I'm surprised nobody has mentioned Desiree yet. Reliable, good yield, good sized spuds with aceptable flavour.

I'll second desiree. Yield wasn't great but taste was good. Also tried Arran Pilot (ok) and charlotte (rubbish). The Charlottes produced such small potatoes and the skin was bitter. By the time you'd peeled them there was nothing left! The Arrans were really knobbly which gives the same problem.

I'm now looking for a variety that gives decent size with a smooth oval shape. Any suggestions?

[pigletwillie]

I must say Bridgets spot on with the British Queen. I have never tried Ulster Sceptre though and must rememdy that soon.

It is amazing how popular both varieties are over in both Northern Ireland and the Republic.

[SarzWix]

We had Ulster Sceptre this year as the 'Free' pack from T&M. They were good, decent yield, good flavour & texture. I'm going to pay for a pack this year
Apart from that, we're having Maincrop Desiree - my favourite red potato & too expensive in the supermarket; Harlequin - a high yielding, great flavoured salad type; and Sarpo Axona - for the blight resistance. Earlies Ulster Sceptre - as above; Anya - great flavour & texture but not the highest yield; Charlotte - reliable, good flavour & texture, decent yield.

Plus I'm going to choose a couple of other salad types/earlies from the garden centre as loose tubers... We like potatoes