Potatoe tops

I do, but only if they aren't showing any signs of disease.

I do, but only if they aren't showing any signs of disease.

Diseased plants with blackleg should not be added to your compost heap but tops with blight are OK. Blight can only live on live potato material and will not survive in a compost heap.

What you should avoid is putting potato tubers with blight into your compost heap. These may survive and when they start to grow next Spring will produce blight spores to infect your crop and your neighbours. If you look at the blight map and study the list of outbreaks you will see that 3 have a triangle against them. These are on dumped potatoes which should have been better disposed of.

If you have potato tubers that you want to dispose of, e.g. that have sprouted in the larder and gone soft, put them in the freezer for 24 hours and they will be dead. They will rot and not re-grow.