Sunday 8 January 2012

Spudulicious

I haven't looked back at my blog to find the exact dates, but I think I'm a little earlier than usual in buying my seed potatoes. One of the reasons is that I knew what I wanted to buy this year. I grew Arran Pilot, a first early variety, last year and was really pleased with them so I'd already decided that I'd grow them again this year. They boil really well, that's something which I've found a challenge with other varieties, many of them turn to mush. The colour of the flesh is lovely too, it stays really white. I've decided against growing any maincrop potatoes this year, and shall be growing my Arran Pilots in containers in the garden. I've always done really well growing my potatoes this way, and it will free some space up for other things at the allotment. Another reason for me buying them early is that because I'm growing them in containers, I'll be able to get some planted a little earlier and start the containers off in the greenhouse so that I get an early harvest.

I think I've mentioned previously that we very rarely have a roast dinner on a Sunday, preferring to have one on a Monday as well as other days during the week. Hubby popped down to the allotment today to harvest some veggies for the week and came home with a cabbage, some parsnips, which are incredibly straight for a change, and some leeks. There's also more purple sprouting broccoli nearly ready for harvesting as well as some cavolo nero and curly kale. I'm really pleased with the harvests which the allotment has given us this winter. We've still got veggies in the freezer waiting to be used up too.

We've had some terrible weather here over the past week, high winds as well as driving rain and hail. I was worried about what we might find at the allotment when we ventured down there, but Hubby reports that everything but the brassica netting was intact. He found the netting from over the brassicas a couple of plots down, but has managed to retrieve it and it doesn't look damaged, so we've done well. I know other people haven't fared so well in the gales so my thoughts are with them. Let's hope we've seen the back of the storms now.

23 comments:

  1. Glad to hear your plot was largely undamaged, and still producing well. At least the milder temperatures have meant that things are continuing to grow. I'm even beginning to be hopeful that my lettuces under cloches might mature!
    I'll be growing my spuds in containers again. They always seem to do well.

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  2. I shall only be growing earlies this year and less of them as they took up a third of the allotment last year, and I was desperate for more space. My container spuds only seem to produce enough for a couple of meals in each container, but I will do it again as insurance against blight.

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  3. I would love to try container potatoes this year but I am not sure that I could keep them watered. I still may try a few though.

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  4. We grew loads of potatoes on the allotment last year - I think we had 12 or 13 rows. We are lucky as our plot is very large. The potatoes only took up about one sixth of the space available. Last year's crop should last us almost until this year's is ready so that's a real money saver for us. We dug up some parsnips yesterday. One was a real monster size, the other couple were more 'normal' looking. We have lost quite a lot of felt off the roof of one of the sheds , so some repairs will have to be done.

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  5. Good luck with your Arran Pilot earlies :) I've given up on proper maincrops this year as well...they take up so much space and are really so cheap at the shops anyway.

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  6. I was musing about the same thing last week. I'm sure they normally don't reach the garden centres until the end of January.

    I'm all sorted for the allotment, plus some "fancies" to grow in sacks. As I may not be fully fit to get to the Potato Days, I've ordered a couple of extra special varieties on line too. We do like our mash here, and since I've been laid up, Howard has discovered he make a pretty spectacular potato salad.

    Another of Howard's favourite pastimes may arrive earlier than expected this year. Word has reached me that Seville oranges are already in the shops. Looks like it's marmalade o'clock, three weeks earlier than usual!

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  7. I can hardly believe you're still gathering things from the garden.
    Everything here is buried in snow!
    Susan

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  8. I think I'm going down the container route this year. Glad to hear your plot is ok after the wind and great to here it's producing so well.

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  9. I'll have to keep eye out for Arran Pilot as I might try them as well. Your bee house (last post)looks great. Happy 2012 in the garden, kelli.

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  10. No hail for us Jo, but plenty of rain and wind.

    WE have plenty of room for potatoes and so grow enough to see us nearly through the year. Even those grown as earlies will store well. Well ours do anyway.

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  11. Just got my seed potatoes this weekend. Just Charlottes this year. We did Charlottes and Swift last year but the Swift were dreadful and the Charlottes excellent. I'm earlier too with my seed potatoes and was reluctant to get them. I'm worried this mild weather is going to mean a late cold spell and I don't want the spuds to chit too quickly but last year we only got the dregs of the seed potatoes at the garden centre because we left it to the end of January. It's nice that the weather has calmed down. I'm hoping the get some gardening done this week.

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  12. I bet your lettuces do well, Mark, the weather is so mild. I've heard many people say that they've had low yields when growing potatoes in containers, but mine have always done really well.

    I'm not growing any potatoes at the allotment this year, Elaine, I shall be devoting my potato space to something else. I'm only growing earlies too.

    The containers do need to be watered well, Becky, I think this is where some people fall down with them. Containers tend to dry out much quicker than the ground does so you have to be extra vigilant.

    That's the way to grow potatoes if you're going to grow them Scarlet, enough to keep you supplied for the best part of the year. I haven't had any monster sized parsnips yet, but I've had some straighter than any I've ever grown before. Hope you manage to get the felt repaired on the shed roof. Our garden shed suffered the same fate this year and it's felt had to be replaced.

    Thanks, Tanya. I think you have to weigh up the pros and cons of potato growing, as you say, it can work out cheaper to buy them in rather than grow them with everything which can go wrong, but I wouldn't want to do without my earlies.

    Thanks for the heads up about the Seville oranges, Blue Shed Thinking, I was thinking of giving marmalade a go myself so I'll have to look out for some. I've never been to a potato day but I'm not going to bother this year with only growing one variety.

    Thanks for visiting and leaving a comment, Susan. I'm really pleased with the harvests I'm getting from the allotment, it's certainly the most productive it's been in winter so far.

    Thank you for visiting, Alison. I look forward to reading about how you get on with container potatoes, I've never had any trouble growing them this way. Good luck with them.

    Thanks, Kelli. I grew Arran Pilot last year and was really pleased with them. They taste delicious.

    We've been white over with hail here, Sue, the sun's out today though. It's certainly worth growing potatoes if you've got room for them, especially as you can be very nearly self sufficient in them.

    It's hard to know what to do for the best sometimes, Wellywoman. I'm not too concerned about the weather as I'll be able to move containers in to the greenhouse if the weather takes a turn for the worse, though it's a problem if they're in the ground. I think the mild weather we're having is lulling people in to a false sense of security. I've never grown Swift before, but Charlotte have been one of the better ones I've grown in the past.

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  13. I think that we all had wild weather last week!
    It's always interesting to see what seed potatoes people have chosen. I'm probably going to grow a few Arran Pilot this year. Flighty xx

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  14. I've bought Rocket seed potatoes early too. Hope I might get some ultra early tubers in a pot in the greenhouse ready to eat at Easter!

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  15. Dear Jo, Your winter harvest is amazing! I've never grown potatoes as they are one of the crops we buy cheap from a local farmer. Sorry to hear about your bad weather and glad you have no damage. P. x

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  16. I've seen Arran Pilot mentioned a few times and will be one on my final list for the potato day at the end of the month.

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  17. I just love digging potatoes up so will be growing more this year. In the book you gave me I love the bit where he says the Irish don't have potato categories, a potato is just a potato. So early varieties become main crop if left in longer. Main crop can be harvested early. Etc. For anyone knew to gardening it takes away the confusion of all the different types. We're lucky to have so much to choose from.

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  18. I always find it interesting to know which potatoes others are growing too, Flighty. Arran Pilot seems to be very popular this year.

    It would be great to have home grown potatoes at Easter, Matron. I might plant a container up extra early too.

    We've got gales again today, Pam, I'm keeping my fingers crossed for no damage again. I think you have to weigh up the costs of growing things against the cost you can buy them for, it certainly needs to be taken in to consideration, and if you can buy potatoes as cheaply as you can grow them then it just isn't worth it as they do take up quite a bit of space.

    I was really pleased with Arran Pilot last year, Damo, though things can change from one year to the next so I hope I'm not disappointed this year. I'll be interested to see what other varieties you come home from the potato day with.

    There's quite a bit of interesting information in the book, Lorna. I left some of my earlies in their containers right up until the end of the season last year and they were just as good as they were harvested early.

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  19. It sounds like you are doing great over the winter for harvesting...my main aim this year is to have more winter produce in the ground. Glad you didn't suffer anything bad from the winds!

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  20. I'm really pleased with my winter harvests from the allotment, Tanya. I've also got the freezer stocked up with summer veggies so I'm not having to buy many veggies from the supermarket. That's good as they're so expensive now.

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  21. Well done on being do organised with your potato order Jo. Still trying to decide :)

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  22. Interesting variety, my Dad grows the Arran Victory maincrop for us (more rainfall than we have so more successful!) and they are my absolute favourite potato ever, nothing compares to them - just have to watch them when boiling but once I got the hang of them, I couldn't look at another potato - the best roasted, etc.

    Glad your damage in the winds wasn't too bad, always a nervous time for gardeners with netting, greenhouses, etc.

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  23. There's still plenty of time yet, Anna. I'm thinking of starting a container off extra early this year and having a go at getting an extra early harvest.

    I've never heard of Arran Victory, Dawn, I'll have to look them up. It's interesting how some varieties do better for some of us than others, as you say, it's all down to conditions.

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