Alternatives to blight?

[amandaandherveg]

I've been away for a few days and a friend was house/garden/pet sitting. When I came back tonight I noticed that the shaws on the spuds in the Morrisson buckets have all turned yellow and have large rusty coloured spots.

Lost all my toms and spuds last year to blight so before I get my knicks in a knot I wanted to ask if it could be something else. I don't think that these would have been watered when I was away and all other potatoes that are planted in the ground look fine. No pics at the moment as it's too dark but there's no blight reports near us at present.

[Snadger]

They are probably just finished there growth and the tops are dying off...........a few of my red duke of york are the same!

[Flummery]

When the plants have finished their growth for the season, the tops die off naturally - they go yellow and brown. If you think back to the time before spuds becoame domesticated, so to speak, this would have been the way they spread. From one tuber you get a dozen, say, and next season all these sprout and the patch gets bigger and moves further from the centre - like brambles.

Panic not! Dig a few up.

[Alice]

It sounds as if they're just ready Amanda. Tip a bucket out and see.

[shirlthegirl43]

The leaves don't usually (in my experience anyhoo) turn yellow with blight - they just get dusty, yucky blobs as if they are rotting. As others have said, yours are probably just dying off as they are ready for harvesting.

[amandaandherveg]

I tipped a bucket today and they were as dry as a bone. Lots of perfectly formed mini spuds though.