I had one bucket of Anyas left to harvest. It's a bit late in the season for them really and some tubers had rotted but I still got a decent amount which will provide a couple of meals for Mick, Eleanor and myself. Eleanor's never really cared for boiled potatoes, roasts are her favourite. I always boil Anyas, they're a waxy potato with a delicious taste and Eleanor's discovered this year that she really likes them.
The spare potato tubers I had, which I planted very late in the season hoping for some potatoes for Christmas, don't look to be doing very well, their foliage is very pale and doesn't look very healthy at all. I've sprinkled a few chicken manure pellets around in the hope that adding some nutrients to the soil will help but time will tell.
I decided that yesterday was the time to get rid of the bush tomato plants. They've done so well this year providing a handsome crop of tomatoes but they're just about done now. There were three outdoor Maskotka plants, one Totem which was also growing outdoors and two Maskotka plants which had been growing in the greenhouse. I harvested any useable ripe tomatoes and took off any green ones in the hope they'll ripen indoors. As you can see, the plants are way past their best now.
The cordon plants are still going strong though. All in all I picked another six pounds of ripe tomatoes yesterday and this is what the plants looked like afterwards. I have four plants growing outdoors and three in the greenhouse. They look quite sparse as I've removed most of the foliage to allow whatever sunshine we have to get to the tomatoes to ripen them.
There's still quite a few tomatoes hanging on in there and they're still ripening on the vine too.
So that's the end of my potatoes, unless my Christmas containers come to anything, and the end of the bush tomatoes. It's a sad time when the gardening season comes to a close but it won't be too long until we're starting seeds off again.
All that work and hope for 4 potatoes, but now you know they don't grow in your soil, I still have to chop down our tomatoes, but maybe next weekend.
ReplyDeleteNot a good return at all. I won't be growing Bonnie again no matter how tasty they are. I think my cordon tomatoes will hang on a while longer, I much prefer them to ripen outdoors than in if they can manage it.
DeleteI have my seed boxes out ready to go through later. I knew there were gaps and have had an order from The Real seed Co. so am hoping I will not need many more.
ReplyDeleteI usually buy my seed in the sale at the end of summer but I haven't bothered this year, I don't think there's much I need. The Real Seed Co. are good, I've ordered from them in the past.
DeleteYour tomatoes have done well, I hope your potatoes pick up, do you have a greenhouse or somewhere with protection to pop them
ReplyDeleteMy tomatoes have done brilliantly this year. I've got a greenhouse so my potatoes will be moved in there tomorrow hopefully and I'm going to drape some fleece over them to give them a bit of added protection.
DeleteWell you can have a rest , xx
ReplyDeleteIt'll only be a short one, there's always plenty to do outdoors.
DeleteYour tomatoes have been brilliant this year. Hooray for Maskotka, I say! My so-called PFA potatoes look much more like your Anyas. I think they may have been mis-labelled when I bought them. Anya is a cross between PFA and Charlotte, but always comes out much smoother than PFA.
ReplyDeleteI can't believe how well my tomatoes have done, my best year yet, and in a year where we haven't had a summer to speak of. I tried Pink Fir Apple last year but I prefer Anya so I'll stick with them, they're definitely my favourite spuds.
DeleteWhat sort of return did you get on the Anya? they sound like the sort of potatoes that we would like.
ReplyDeleteI think Anya will be a potato I always grow, they're so delicious. They've given a really good yield this year, other years less so, but the taste more than makes up for that in my opinion.
DeleteWell, it looks like the Anyas more than made up for the Bonnie disappointment - those are a lot of potatoes from one bucket! My tomatoes are just about done as well - I removed several more plants today as many of the tomatoes on them were developing blight while still green. So now I only have two varieties left and I have a feeling those will be pulled up by the end of next week.
ReplyDeleteThe Anyas have done really well this year, I'm so glad as now that Eleanor has decided she likes them, I'm using more. Blight is such a devastating disease, you've done well to get what you have from your plants.
DeleteI haven't tried Anya but I always plant Aran Pilot too, I have had a really good crop of them this year! My tomatoes look like yours too I agree it is time to dig them up ;)
ReplyDeleteArran Pilot are a favourite here, I've grown them for the last few years and I'll continue to do so, they haven't let me down yet.
DeleteShame about those potatoes. Well done doing so well with the tomatoes - your best year and probably my worst one.
ReplyDeleteI'm already thinking about next year. Flighty xx
It's always fun trying new things but you win some you lose some. Bonnie definitely isn't a keeper. I'm sorry to hear about your tomatoes but that's the great thing about gardening, there's always next year.
DeleteYum! I get my produce from the grocery store--not quite the same, I'm sure!
ReplyDeleteYou can definitely taste the different in home grown veggies, they're so much fresher and it does show.
DeleteI still have some new potatoes to harvest and \i am yet to dig up my main crop though I don't hold out much hope for them this year.
ReplyDeleteMy tomato plants look just like yours...sad and sparse but hanging in until the bitter end!!
That's it for my potatoes now, they've been good this year though, I've had some good weights from each container. I think my tomatoes are coming to an end now, they don't like the colder nights, though they are still ripening so I won't pull them up just yet.
DeleteI'm not surprised that Bonnie is off your list.
ReplyDeleteVery disappointing. I'm glad I had my favourites planted up and wasn't relying on Bonnie.
DeleteShame about those potatoes ... but then again your tomatoes have been so good!
ReplyDeleteWith gardening, veggie growing there is always something to do ... and looking forward seeds / bulbs to plant.
Enjoy the rest of your Sunday evening, and have a good week ahead.
All the best Jan
I had plenty of other potatoes to fall back on, thank goodness. I do have a bit of a rest during winter, I don't really grow many winter crops, but then I'm raring to go again when spring comes around.
DeleteI bought Anya a few years ago from a local farm....they are delicious.
ReplyDeleteYour tomato plants have been amazing. It has obviously been a good year.
I spent today picking the final pears.....best year I have had. They are one of my favourite fruits, so I am very pleased :)
Anya are definitely my favourite potato, they're so delicious. I only eat them boiled though so I'm not sure what they're like cooked other ways. My tomatoes are still ripening, it's unbelievable how well they've done, especially this year when we haven't had a summer to speak of. Our next door neighbours have pear trees which have been literally dripping with fruit this year too, it must be a good year for them.
DeleteI'm just thinking about which spuds to grow next year. I won't bother with Bonnie!
ReplyDeleteI'd definitely give Bonnie a miss. I can recommend both Anya and Arran Pilot though.
DeleteSome potatoes are hit and miss....Bonnie providing four isn't great but your other yields have been good, it's always a guessing game. Your tomato crop has been simply amazing, I can't believe how many you still have!xxx
ReplyDeleteI think this demonstrates how important growing different varieties of vegetables is, if one fails you've always got another to fall back on. There's more tomatoes on the plants waiting to be picked again, I don't know when they're going to stop. I'm not complaining though.
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