[Goosegirl]

May be a silly question but, when you have a furtle for second-early pots (not dig up the roots) can you leave the rest of the pots to grow on? Seems a shame to me to dig a root up and then discard a lot of marble-sized pots that could have grown on. The other side is, if you leave it too long, then you end up with larger pots that get slug-damaged and don't have that new-pot taste.

[Trillium]

We've always left our smaller potatoes to grow on, which they'll do more quickly once the larger ones no longer hot the nutrients.

I'd think as long as you carefully bury and pack the roots again that slugs would not find easy entry to the remainders. It's better than wasting the whole plant with loads of tiny spuds.

[Goosegirl]

That's what I thought, Trillium - makes sense. My OH has always been a bit late with the first harvest and we end up with big spuds later on. If I write down which plants I have disturbed, I will know which one will have the next furtle, then it's start over again - but - just so don't want to waste the little ones. Will give it a try.