Potato Invasion!!!!

[potty_pete]

HELP!!!! My potatoes have taken over practically my entire 10ftsq raised bed... They are covering my leeks, my onions and are starting to weave their way through my peas and rocket....
I keep hoping they will flower soon so I can just dig them out but there seems to be no sign of it...
Any suggestions? Can I trim their leaves? I was wondering about just tying a big bit of rope round them all to keep them in check but will that stop their growth?...
Being a novice I obviously planted them too close together but I've learned for next year...

[Pumpkin Becki]

Hi Pete, they do say that potatoes make excellent ground cover for keeping down weeds, I guess you've learned this tha hard way this year. Unfortunately, leeks and onions don't like having competition, even from weeds, so you have to keep them clear of other things.

I would suggest, if you have space elsewhere, lifting your leeks (they probably aren't too big at the moment) and replanting them in a vacant space by making a hole (approx 15cm deep) with a dibber or similar, drop the individual leeks into each hole, don't back fill the hole, just water in.

Someone else may have to advise you on the onions, as I'm never very successful with them!

Best of luck

[Two_Sheds]

don't wait for flowers ... they might never come. Have a furtle, I bet there are spuds down there.

[Burnzie]

hi potty pete,

good luck with your potato furtling.

is your raised bed filled with fresh multi-purpose compost?

sometimes you can find you have a lot of very lush green top growth but very little in the way of potatoes underneath initially.

this has happened to my allotment neighbour

best of luck

burnzie

[potty_pete]

hi potty pete,

good luck with your potato furtling.

is your raised bed filled with fresh multi-purpose compost?

burnzie

Hi Burnzie
There is probably a couple of of bags of multi-purpose compost mixed through with loads of soil so I'm not sure if that is the problem or not?
Will have a 'furtle' (love that word ) tonite when I get home and see what I can find.
Will keep you posted.
Pete

[SueA]

My potatoes in tubs are very lush this year too Pete, I've tied them up loosely with string attached to a cane to keep them upright. As Two Sheds says they don't always flower especially if you're growing first earlies or salad types, I rarely wait for mine to flower but do have a 'furtle' to check the potatoes are big enough. I was told that adding chicken manure pellets to the compost mix as I do leads to lots of green growth & that you should feed them with tomato feed (organic or not depending on your preference) to help the tubers swell.

[teakdesk]

1/ What variety of potato are they?

2/ Lasso the green growth of each plant together and tie them up to make an upright plant

3/ As Becki says, leeks like being transplanted and it is still early enough to move them out and back later

4/ As Sue says, chicken manure pellets tend to be high in nitrogen for top growth; tomato feed is better suited to roots and tubers.

[Two_Sheds]

I was told that adding chicken manure pellets to the compost mix as I do leads to lots of green growth

It is also alkaline, which can give spuds the scab .. they prefer slightly acidic conditions

[potty_pete]

Well I had a bit of a fettle and I found 4 (yes only 4) tiny spuds!!! Biggest one about an inch and a half...
Worth doing though as now I know they're not ready yet...
Will try tying the leaves back a bit to help the rest of my babies thrive and stop them getting bullied...

[Pumpkin Becki]

Keep us posted Pete!