Watering techniques for potato plants question

[jencrow]

I am growing potatoes in black plastic potato bags: Earlies, second earlies and maincrop varieties, planted in late March or early April. All three have grown great guns but I am having trouble watering them because the foliage is so abundant it is hard to get to the compost without wetting all the lower leaves. I try to push the bottom branches to the side so I can get the water onto the compost but now my plants are just looking sad and beaten up, maybe from too much manhandling, AND waterlogged to boot. Any tips on potato watering techniques??

[Jax]

I (and this maybe wrong but seems to work) wait till either late evening or early morning before they are in full sun and water from the top. I generally do it of an evening as I dont have to worry about the sun burning the leaves then.

[rustylady]

Jax, I think this is the only way if you are growing in sacks. Jencrow, what are you watering with? If you use a watering can without a rose it should be possible to get between the stems so the compost gets wet without drenching the foliage.

[jencrow]

I use a watering can with a rose attached, but of course I can take the rose off.. duh! I should have thought of that! I will do that when I water in the morning; and of an evening I might just go ahead and water from above. I forgot to water them for a while so now I am trying to water both morning and evening to try and make up ground! Thank you both very much.

[rustylady]

Jencrow, please go to your profile and add your location - you don't need to be too specific if you don't want to, a town or county will do - but it really does help the rest of us when we're giving advice.

[chris]

I use a telescopic watering rose thing - got it from B&Q, has many different modes of watering - but I use it like a shower head. Easy to poke inbetween the halums then!

[bramble]

Jencrow, do you have drainage holes in the bags?

[jencrow]

Yes, there are, if I remember correctly, five approx 1-cm in diameter drainage holes in the bottom (they are black plastic bags from a grow your own potato kit from the garden centre). I have the bags sitting on top of a slightly sloped slab of concrete and I think in the past I have actually seen some water draining from the bottom. I will have to double check though.

Jen C