the wonderf of tatties....

[Grovsey]

Harvested the first of my first earlies last night....is it just me or this ridiculously exciting?!?!?!? They are "arran pilot" and were perfectly formed and tasted like heaven! My 3 year old daughter helped me and we ended up fighting over who was going to dig them out.....fair enough as she is 3 but I really should know better.

After last years debacle with "international kidney" (never again) it is was very satisfying...

Now everything is getting near bearing fruit or maturing it is just brilliant!!!

[heebiejeebie]

Fantastic! Makes me want to dig up one of my arran pilot plants now!

[Flummery]

Trying to hang fire till the middle of next month. There's no taste like it though. You are quite right, Grovsey, it IS ridiculously exciting!

[Waffler]

I'm hoping I've just bought the last of the spuds for hopefully the year! Very soon it'll be new potatoes with everything! Last year our maincrop lasted very well, so I've bought twice as many this year, so they should keep us going for a while (mind you - not if I don't get the last of them in!! )

[Grovsey]

Do you think its still ok to plant spuds? If I did are we lookng at a Sept crop?

[jaykay]

I was thinking the same - maincrops are sat in greenhouse all ready to go. Checked Hessayon's book(Veg expert) and read that maincrops take 22 weeks to mature so I estimate the pots will be ready by the end of October.
Decided to go for it and see what happens - all part of my learning!

[moggssue]

Not that I have a clue what I'm doing, but I planted a second lot of tatties last weekend in old compost bags, they've just started to sprout so hopefully will give me some autumn goodies - not that the first lot are there yet, just had their second earthing up. Next year I have to listen to you guys and get some out nice and early, you're making me envious eating them already!

[Snadger]

After last years debacle with "international kidney" (never again) it is was very satisfying...

I have some International Kidney which are in pots and in flower in the greenhouse at present! I hope to get my first boiling this weekend! Am I going to be 'debacled'????

[Grandpadragon]

Am I going to be 'debacled'????
If I knew where your barcle was Snadger I would remove it for you I need the practice as I recon our 3 daschunds need debarcling noisy little oiks that they are

[Helenclare]

I'm worried too Snadger as I have 30 International Kidney plants growing really well...what is the debarcle with them? I had a fantastic day digging up one Pentland Javelin one swift and one Rocket plant. Had a FANTASTIC yield of beautiful, clean, well formed, and plentiful spuds!!Yum, Yum

[Grovsey]

they just didnt grow well.....the foliage looked great but the tatties themselves were small and leathery.....n ot one decent potatoe from 20 plants!! I was gutted!! It could have been that the season was too wet then too dry last year?

Yours will probably be fine...if they are I may try again next year as they are definatley the best tasting - I presume "Jersey Royals" is there trade name?

[Alice]

I know I've posted these pics before, but if we're all getting excited about potatoes, you can have another look. Cherie (the pink ones) and Charlotte (the pale ones) harvested from buckets at the beginning of May. Think the date on the photo is 7/5. Very delicious they were. Plenty more since and to come. Enjoy your potatoes.

[Salina]

those pink ones are lovely, Alice.
the kerrs pinks we get here are delicious.
how long did it take yours to grow?

[Kimbo]

I am growing maris piper in old compost bags, some of which are starting to form flower buds - is it too late to still earth them up as some of them have quite a lot of compost bag left to fill with a lot of top growth

[Snadger]

they just didnt grow well.....the foliage looked great but the tatties themselves were small and leathery.....n ot one decent potatoe from 20 plants!! I was gutted!! It could have been that the season was too wet then too dry last year?

Yours will probably be fine...if they are I may try again next year as they are definatley the best tasting - I presume "Jersey Royals" is there trade name?

I can safely say I haven't been debacled. well at least I hadn't last time I looked!
Emptied one of my buckets of International Kidney out today and was pleasantly surprised with the amount of tatties I had, about 1Kg of reasonably sized spuds!!!
Still fearing the debacling gene might be in the taste I boiled them up with a sprig of mint and a bit freshly made mint sauce. A few broad beans that I picked at the same time went in another pan and the whole lot was ready to eat about half an hour after they were harvested, lathered with butter of course!!!
If this is debacling I want some more of it!! They were absolutely scrumptious.

So the noral of the story is, don't take any notice of Lesley when she says that International Kidney are tasteless and Grovseys 'debacle' doesn't always run true to form!