Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat
Growing => Grow Your Own => The Show Bench => Topic started by: Mash Mad on August 18, 2010, 23:10
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Ive been quite interested in a method ive found on a blog, which ive slightly edited.
its to plant one potatoe in a 17diam poly pot filled a 1/4 with peat+vitax Q4 mixed + seaweedmeal in, then a 1/4 more with peat, you put the seed in at this stage, then fill to just under the top. this pot is then put on top of a trench which has had manure and blood fish and bonemeal spread in it. You then line up all the poly pots in the trench and then push soil up the sides to ancor them.
link http://smithyveg.blogspot.com/2010/03/spud-prep.html (http://smithyveg.blogspot.com/2010/03/spud-prep.html)
This is something im going to try next year,
but im wondering were i can buy peat from, also what is peat and the benefit from using it instead of multiperpose compost? Ive heard that most garden centres dont sell it because its not nature friendly or something simular like that.
thanks Green finger
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A quick google came up with a few places to buy "moss peat" bales, but I wouldn't like to recommend them purely because I have never used the companies.
Peat is a finite resource and provides a unique habitat so there is a drive to try to convert people to peat free with mixed results.
I don't know why it is used instead of multicompost, someone else may do, or it may just be a case of it always has been so we will continue to do it this way. Maybe if you go ahead with growing show potatoes you could experiment with both and let us know the results :D
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this old post from 'our' man from JBA seed potatoes, may be of interest ;)
http://chat.allotment-garden.org/index.php?topic=34771.msg416557#msg416557
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this old post from 'our' man from JBA seed potatoes, may be of interest ;)
http://chat.allotment-garden.org/index.php?topic=34771.msg416557#msg416557
cheers :) thanks for the link
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Because im limited for space i think im either going to grow them in peat or compost,
But it sounds like a good idea for when ive got an allotment :)
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Ian does grow them in compost in the bags :)
compost has the advantage of having a little fertilizer already in the mix, but if you prefer to use peat you can still buy it here (http://www.creativegardenideas.co.uk/j-arthur-bowers-moss-peat-100-ltr) for example.
Good luck
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There is some good peat free compost on the market now.
Potatoes don't care what they grow in really as long as it contains feeding for them and they get the correct amount of water.
The yields out of the little bags are tremendous.
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Thanks for that, One of the judges at the show i went to said to grow them in peat, So I thought it would be better, But i now know compost is just as good :)
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Just back from the national championships at Dundee and saw some fantastic spuds.
As usual Sherie Plumb was winning and she grows them in 100% irish moss peat from shamrock.
The skin finish was tremendous and they really stood out.
For the best results you should use moss peat and follow the method as stated above.
Try and plant them in early March and harvest them in the first week of July.
When I say harvest I mean that you would cut the shaws off and place the bags in a cool area which is dry and does not allow the bags to get wet. Wait for about 10days for the skins to set and then take them out of the bags carefully.
You can select through the potatoes and pick all the ones out that around 200gms in weight.
Some people wrap the potatoes in fleece and then store them in brand new dry moss peat again.
I got my eyes opened today when I saw how good the NVS Amour and NVS Sherine were as they were all from minitubers. They were outstanding.
If I can get some pictures then I will pop them on here.
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I guess the emphasis on peat or peat-based is that potatoes prefer acidic conditions.
Never been to a potato competition.. that would be amazing.
-Pip