potatoes for christmas

[hawthorns]

i have just got 4 maris peer seed potatoes from local garden centre. i am hoping to plant them now into a grow sack so they will be ready for christmas.

should i plant now ?

is anyone else trying this ?

would it be a good idea to add blood fish and bone to compost ?

[shirlthegirl43]

Hoping the weather will cheer up and let me get mine in tomorrow. I will be growing in buckets so that they can be moved around depending on the weather.

[sharonr]

My dads are in big tubs in his greenhouse.

[markwcel]

i planted one sack last weekend...got 10 more taties ready for planting next weekend

[peanut]

Can you grow them in the ground if you protect them from frost?

[Alison]

You will struggle to keep them totally free from frost. I'm going to be planting mine in tubs in the garden that I can lift inside the greenhouse after I've moved the summer crops so that they get enough protection through the late autumn and early winter.

[pjh75]

I've done mine today in a mixture of tubs and sacks so that when the frost comes I can lift them into the greenhouse.

[Skotch]

Likewise, planted 4 MP pots at the weekend - the intention is to bring them into the cold frame when the weather turns inclement later in the year. Will be an interesting experiment

Skotch

[greenfingers007]

I planted some in three bins on the 26th of July and the 2 August for christmas I put four in each bin so not sure if they are a little too comfortable, we will see.

[rodofgod76]

Over the past 2 weeks I've planted 4kg of Carlingford seed potatoes. Should be awash with tatties come Christmas

[MaureenHall]

I chitted some Romano (that were on offer on the cheap shelf at the Co-op supermarket) and planted some in tubs. The tops are through already so I've started earthing them up slowly. If it works, great, if not, I've only wasted 40p

[di]

Does it matter which variety you use?

[SueA]

It's better to use an 'early' type variety (Carlingford & Charlotte are popular) because they have a shorter growing period & they need to get plenty of growth on the tops before the weather gets too cold. I've never tried growing them in the ground but I suppose it would work if you mulched them & covered the tops with fleece on very cold nights. You just need to protect the tops for as long as possible by either covering with fleece or bringing the pot or tub into a greenhouse or similar or placing it against a warm sheltered wall.