First early potatoes

[.commander]

Ello.

I've got my chitted first earlies ready to go, but obviously the ground is soaking wet. When do you lot put them in? They've got real healthy shoots on them at the moment and I'm concerned if they wait too long it might mess them up.

[mcdood]

Mine will go in last week in March. I have put some swift in containers in a ghouse hopefully for some very earlies..

[Jungle Jane]

Are you keeping them in a window,they should be alright for ages,I plant my last earlies in June,don’t let them get warm it would dehydrate them quicker. Mine are on the shadiest side of the house with no radiator below & ones turned off in the upstairs little bedroom,they like being cool

[bikermike]

My mum (who grew up near Manchester), says the received wisdom was before St Patrick's day. So you've got another 17 days yet...

I've planted them in soil just above the standing water, and in soil that has been subsequently waterlogged and got away with it, but I'd say wait until later if the soil is actually standing-water wet.

[Thelma Sanders]

Earlies go in about St Patrick's day, if it still looks cold then -I'll cover them with a sheet of polythene. The rest will go in when it gets a tad warmer

[mcdood]

Cheltenham festival is the marker round here which is the same week as St Patricks.

[bikermike]

There's always the apparently traditional tests that the soil is warm enough when you can sit on it with a bare bum and read the paper.

Of course there are many variables here - a sensitive indoor-raised posterior able to stay there long enough to read a weekend broadsheet and finish the crossword will require a warmer soil than a farm labourer givng headlines in the Sun a quick once-over...

[Stan79]

Sometime in March. No rush. If you wanted to, you could cover the ground where you’re going to plant them with black weed suppressant fabric or polythene as mentioned above. The polythene would keep any further rain off and warm the soil but you’d get condensation under it. The black weed suppressant would warm it but let more rain through. It would let the water in the soil evaporate out a bit though.

[.commander]

I've got 1/2 the plot covered, so that sounds ideal!