Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat
Growing => Grow Your Own => Topic started by: gadd2508 on June 09, 2020, 10:55
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Morning. I am growing Charlotte potatoes in a large pot and I have a lot of greenery but no flowers. I thought that I had to wait until the plants flowered and died before harvesting is that right? Maybe I am too impatient!
Thanks.
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Some potato varieties produce few if any flowers, although Charlotte isn't one of them.
Flowering is a good indication that the plants are maturing - probably best to wait until the foliage starts to die back to maximise your crop, although there's nothing to stop you 'furtling' down the inside of the pot to see what size your buried treasure has reached.
Make sure they're not short of water from now until harvest.
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I have just lifted my first no dig Charlotte potatoes about two minutes ago and they have never had flowers on them. One or two plants have a few small purple'ish flowers but not many.
As to no dig spuds... brilliant way to grow never used a garden tool of any sort to plant or lift, not an amazing crop but 1.5kg for the first plant I am fine with that!
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According to my records, I've grown Charlotte 3 times, and if I remember correctly, most of them flowered for 2 out of the 3 years, so I'm guessing that weather conditions during the growing season must play a part.
Once the foliage starts to die back the tubers won't grow much bigger - 'furtling' is a good way of making sure they're big enough, but not actually too big for your requirements.
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Yes JayG one or two of my plants have flowers but very few . The plant I lifted today had no flowers.