[GYO Girl]

On his Radio 2 show this morning Chris Evans was talking about growing potatoes in car tyres, which I thought sounded a really good idea.  Does anyone do this, and if so, where do you get the tyres from?  Was wondering whether the local garages would give away used tyres for free?

Chris also said that if you plant the seed potatoes now, you would have a crop ready for Christmas dinner, is he right?

[Kristen]

Was wondering whether the local garages would give away used tyres for free?

Probably - they have to pay to have them taken away.

Chris also said that if you plant the seed potatoes now, you would have a crop ready for Shhh... dinner, is he right?

When I have grown New Potatoes for Crimbles I have always planted in 1st week of August, and in Bags that came into the greenhouse as the temperature started to drop.  Either way they will die down long before Chrimbles itself, so they are left in-situ to be harvested "fresh", but if they are outside they need enough sun to build the plants up, and I think starting now may be a tad late?

I'm curious as to what the point is of using the tyre? compared to a bag, or just earthing them up?

[GYO Girl]

Ooops, did I mention an unmentionable word?  Sorry! 

The idea behind using tyres appears to be that you gradually form a stack, adding another tyre as the shoots appear and gradually earthing up. I am not particularly good at getting them all out of the ground and am sick of them popping up all over the plot, so it sounds like a good idea to me - although I am also considering bags for next year.

Sounds like its too late for this year, but I may pop in to the garage down the road and see if I can bag a few freebies.

[Yorkie]

Ooops, did I mention an unmentionable word?  Sorry! 

There's an in-forum joke that mentioning this particular festival shall not happen before 1 December 

So the forum will auto-correct most norty attempts to circumvent this by posters 

[Nobbie]

Ooops, did I mention an unmentionable word?  Sorry! 

The idea behind using tyres appears to be that you gradually form a stack, adding another tyre as the shoots appear and gradually earthing up. I am not particularly good at getting them all out of the ground and am sick of them popping up all over the plot, so it sounds like a good idea to me - although I am also considering bags for next year.

Sounds like its too late for this year, but I may pop in to the garage down the road and see if I can bag a few freebies.

Just remember that if you don't get on with using the tyres (they take up a lot of space) you'll have to dispose of them and most council tips won't accept more than a couple.

[rubberfrog]

Check that you are allowed to have tires on your plot.  We are not allowed them.  If you are looking for height use and old compost bag.  Tires have an awful air gap to fill which seems a waste.

RF 

[nipper31]

I've been given four Maris Piper seed potatoes, I was hoping to grow in bags in a cold frame. Is it too late to plant them in time for a Crimbles harvest?

[Kristen]

I've been given four Maris Piper seed potatoes, I was hoping to grow in bags in a cold frame. Is it too late to plant them in time for a Crimbles harvest?

I think so, beginning of August is the latest I would plant for autumn growing.

If they are recently harvested?? [rather than cold-stored / conditioned for Autumn growing] they will have a period of dormancy before they will regrow

[nipper31]

I'm tempted to give them a try even so, because the advice on here says I might not be too late so long as I plant them this week:

http://www.allotment-garden.org/vegetable/second-crop-potatoes.php

The seed potatoes were free anyway, so I'm gonna chuck 'em in and see what happens!

[Kristen]

I'm tempted to give them a try even so, because the advice on here says I might not be too late so long as I plant them this week:

http://www.allotment-garden.org/vegetable/second-crop-potatoes.php

I doubt John's advice is wrong.  I'll be interested to hear how it goes, please