Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat
Growing => Grow Your Own => Topic started by: Judd on January 11, 2012, 18:10
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I thought the point of growing your own potatoes was that they had better flavour than shop bought.
I've never grown anything before and was looking forward to growing and eating my own potatoes.I've found all the varieties available to buy are lacking in flavour and after reading this thread where experienced gardeners are not bothering to grow them because they are cheap enough to buy,I don't know whether I should bother :(
Will they taste any better?
I had some given from a fellow plot holder and they actually had flavour and were superb,so much better than any I've ever bought!
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hang on my dear! I said I wouldn't grow maincrop. I will be growing 2 types of first and second earlies though. And I will also be growing runners, broad beans, french beans, 3 varieties of toms, 2 of cucs, 2 of courgettes, 3 of lettuce, spring onions, 2 of beetroot, 5 of chillies, 2 of peppers, 2 of broccoli, 2 of cauliflower, 4 of cabbage, parsnips, carrots, 2 varieties plums, apples, cherries, raspberries, strawberries, blackberries, gooseberries, about 10 different herbs...............oh yes, peas (how could I forget) ETC!
so I am very much into growing my own. It is simply a question of space.................when I can choose to grow all the above!!!!
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ooops, how could I forget the garlic and shallots and 3 types of onions as well............. :nowink:
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It's not a matter of buying more cheaply it's more to do with prioritising available space. If I had the space I would grow them without question. If you have the space then you should definately grow them.
I will, of course, be growing first and second earlies. :)
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Some areas are well supplied wiht farm shops that sell locally grown organic potatoes -- not here :(
I grow maincrop potatoes to keep us supplied all winter (assuming the blight does not strike too hard) and am lucky enough to have enough space to fit these in
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I'm new to having an allotment and I've made the choice that I'm not growing a main crop either. Yes it's definitely a space issue but we want a quicker harvest with this being our first year, plus the fact I don't have space to store sacks full of the beggers.
Guess it's all about what each individual likes really. With main crop I'm more interested in the 'proper' gravy that's poured over them if I'm honest hee hee! :D
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It's a question of balance, as has been stated.
If you don't have the space, something has to give. If you're basing it financially, then you start by culling the cheapest crop to buy. (Peas would be near the top as well :ohmy: )
I will be growing them, but I'm fortune in having about 800 sq yds to play with, others don't.
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ive always grown maincrop, but never botherd with earliers as i find the results are poor in my area. i would try some though as an fully fledged jacket varitie (cara is mine) unrinates all over supermarket bought types for taste,size and ablity to store
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we get sacks of Cara from our local farm shop :)
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nice potatoes? i would buy local but the farm shops around this part of norfolk are onto a good thing and charge silly prices to attracted the libreal tree hugging bregade, who dont care were the food is grow as long as it comes from a shop they can tell there posh freinds about
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the cara potatoes from round here are very good and cheap but then they do grow lots of potatoes locally :)
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I didn't grow any spuds last year because we get given a big sackful of locally grown potatoes from a chap down the road 3-4 times a year.
There is no question that growing your own is best, but like stated earlier, you have to think about space, so I try to concentrate on things that are more expensive to buy in the shops.
Go for it!
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I only have a small plot so can only grow a few rows of earlies and a few for later. I would grow a lot more if I had the space..........there are so many beautiful varieties that you can't buy in the shops :)
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*Plum,I didn't mean to criticise you in any way whatsoever or say you were not into growing your own and I apologise if you thought this :(
The point I was trying to make was that if you can buy potatoes as good as home grown cheaply enough,why bother growing them?
I purely want to get my hands on potatoes that have superb taste and have never managed to get this from shop bought,I've got approx 4-500 sq yds growing area and loads of storage room.
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then go for it! many of us don't have the space.
Keep trying til you find varieties that will knock your socks off :D
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Not many of us can get hold of potatoes as good as home grown, I certainly can't round here. Like a lot of things in life it is a compromise for me to grow first and second earlies so I do have at least a few months of superb potatoes and leave myself with room for other things.
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Once you've fine-tuned your soil for potatoes (and this does take a few years), then you'll have excellent tasters. I lack the space for maincrops so my mum grows them on her farm for us. And they are superb. We and friends who've tasted our potatoes have tried local organic potato suppliers but we've all noticed they're not quite as good as my mum's. So, case in point.
Even my kids, when they were young, always knew when we used grandmas potatoes or store-bought.
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*Plum,I didn't mean to criticise you in any way whatsoever or say you were not into growing your own and I apologise if you thought this :(
The point I was trying to make was that if you can buy potatoes as good as home grown cheaply enough,why bother growing them?
I purely want to get my hands on potatoes that have superb taste and have never managed to get this from shop bought,I've got approx 4-500 sq yds growing area and loads of storage room.
Come a years time, you will also not just understand, but know the term 'out-of-space'. :D
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Yes Gobs,I can understand what you mean :lol:
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Judd,after watching the farmer near us spray his spud fields with goodness knows what,I prefer to grow my own earlies and maincrop and a few for new at Christmas too! They don`t taste any better than shop bought but at least I know how they were grown ;) It would be interesting to know exactly what chemicals they use on maincrop spuds,anyone know?Is it just an anti-blight spray?
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I thought the point of growing your own potatoes was that they had better flavour than shop bought.
I've never grown anything before and was looking forward to growing and eating my own potatoes.I've found all the varieties available to buy are lacking in flavour and after reading this thread where experienced gardeners are not bothering to grow them because they are cheap enough to buy,I don't know whether I should bother :(
Will they taste any better?
I had some given from a fellow plot holder and they actually had flavour and were superb,so much better than any I've ever bought!
The point is almost ALL vegetables that you grow your self will taste superior!! Not just spuds.
Wait til you try home grown tomatoes... or peas straight out of the pod... or sweetcorn cooked in a billy can right on the plot!!! Or strawberries!! Or parsnips that are fragrant, unlike the scentless stumps from supermarkets...
Oh my... i'm struggling to think of anything that doesn't taste better...
Then it comes down to how many kinds of vegetables you happen to like... and how to prioritise them. It's not a knock to the humble spud.
As i said, i still grow maincrop, but thats because i have a potato addiction... :D
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then go for it! many of us don't have the space.
Keep trying til you find varieties that will knock your socks off :D
My words exactly Mum!! lol
No shop potato will ever taste as wonderful as the ones you grow yourself Judd! One of the reasons is that shop bought ones have been sprayed with who knows what! And kept in cool storage for ages.
The most important reason though is, that there is no comparison between walking into a shop and picking up a bag of tasteless potatoes, and wading out into the veg plot, knee deep in mud to dig up those scrummy potatoes that you put in the ground a few months previously! :) :) :)
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I'll be growing Roosters, Maris Piper and Rudolph (if the shop bought potatoes chit). I do have a full plot so plenty of space, but also only growing 5 or so of each- allotment shop sells seed potatoes by the tuber. Will take up less space than brassicas!!!
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So you are not one of those putting their brassica in place of new pots then. :lol:
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A lot of replies to this :ohmy:
You've convinced me though, I'll be putting the pots in as soon as I can. :D Thanks for the replies.
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Judd- I have been out all evening, so don't think I have been ignoring you.You haven't upset me at all - it really is down to space. I have 250 m sq to fill on the lottie. I am disappointed not to grow main crop, having done so for many years - but I have come to the conclusion that I can use the space for other things.
You are absolutely right - there is nothing like the taste of yummy spuds straight out of the soil.
so do not be disappointed with my earlier thread, and understand it is about space only.
Plum x
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Judd,after watching the farmer near us spray his spud fields with goodness knows what,I prefer to grow my own earlies and maincrop and a few for new at Christmas too! They don`t taste any better than shop bought but at least I know how they were grown ;) It would be interesting to know exactly what chemicals they use on maincrop spuds,anyone know?Is it just an anti-blight spray?
A good point to me, even if the taste isn't any better, knowing a crop's provenance is a valuable thing.
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I would grow main crop if I had the space, even though I can buy some locally grown tasty potatoes all year round from a good farm shop. I don't have space though in my back garden.
I will grow New Potatoes though, Arran Pilot as always as I don't think you can buy good New Potatoes in any shops.
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I've only planted earlies and 4-5 main crop spuds up to now as my space was limited but as I have a lot more space this year I'll be planting a lot of spuds.I can't wait.I can feel my sciatica throbbing just thinking about it :blink:
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I love growing spuds as I'm like you and am in pursuit of the best tasters :D You don't need to grow a plot full of each one though do you? You can buy single tubers these days so they need not take up too much room
I had homegrown Desirees today from store (in the shed). Lovely condition still and the only decision to make was shall I chip or shall I mash. Decisions, decisions :)
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If you have just taken over a plot that is a bit neglected, taters can be a god send. I know I used them together with squashes and other 'big' veg that could stand a bit of weed encroachment when I was taming mine.
Like a lot of others who have replied, I only grow first and second earlies now as I have too many other things I want to grow to allow room for main crops.
It may sound a bit sad, but I'm always amazed how much you end up picking from what started as a tiny seed. Digging up spuds when you have planted one little seed potato and end up with a huge heap from each plant is one of the plot's great pleasures, so grow as many as you have room for :D
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So you are not one of those putting their brassica in place of new pots then. :lol:
I'm not a huge brassica fan... apart from pak choi. Whereas we go through buckets of potatoes....
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Hmm well it's not the size of the allotment that's the problem - it's the space given over to fruit trees that has ruled out tatties. The requirement for tatties isn't great around the family but the demand for fruit is always there.