To chop or not to chop !!

[sallyw]

I was at the lottie yesterday admiring my growing skills when a neighbour came and told me that i should be cutting off the flowers on my potatoes no one else seems to have done this and i've looked in the books and can't find any info. Is this what i should be doing or will i still get good results if i keep them on and let them die naturally?

p.s this is my first year at growing veg!!

[Norm]

Just smile at him, say "Yeah, fine" and hope his nurse gets him back to the home before his next dose of medication is due.

[rogesse]

HaHaHa

Hubby's in Scotland and I've been let out again.....

[zazen999]

I do - cut them off I mean. I don't mind the flowers but I want all energy to go into the potatoes, and i see producing flowers as diverting that energy away.

[Flummery]

I don't - I find that generally speaking, after looking pretty for a week or two, they just drop off, so they aren't usually wasting energy setting fruits. It's generally fruits setting that use up energy. If they do start to set the berries then you can nip them out (unless, like me, you fancy trying some spuds from true seed and getting a new variety - Flum's wonder or something!) As with many things in gardening, there are pros and cons - it's up to you.