My first ever potato harvest...argh slugs!

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pulse

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My first ever potato harvest...argh slugs!
« on: July 05, 2008, 16:34 »
In the middle of April I put in Second Earlies, a variety called Nadine. I put in 18 chitted tubers and 18 plants grew nicely.

All the potato plants started to flower about 2-3 weeks ago. All the flowers have since died off. However all the plants still look strong and healthy, bar one which has started to yellow and wilt.

I was unsure when to start to harvest the potatos so I decided to pull up 6 plants today.

Well I pulled up 6 plants are got about 50-60 undamaged potatos of an edible size . Most were the size of an egg, some were slightly bigger and there were also some smaller. No really huge potatoes.

However I was astonished at how many potatoes I had to throw away because of the slug damage. Although I cropped about 60 undamaged potatoes I had to throw away about another 30-40 potatoes that were slug damaged - some had about 4 or 5 slugs still in them. Most of these slug damaged potatoes were the biggest that had grown. I felt really disheartened at throwing away what seemed to be my biggest spuds.
I had no indication above ground the damage being done under the soil.

I can only assume I better pull up my other 12 plants before they all get slug munched.

Should I have pulled up my plants earlier?

Is there a good slug resistant variety of spuds?

I have another question regarding spuds......I have read that only undamaged spuds should be stored? The potatoes I pulled up today all have very thin skin and I have scuffed the skin on most of the potatoes...does this constitute damage? It was really really hard not too scuff some of the skin off.

Anyway here is a pic of my harvest that was not 'slugged'

http://www.flickr.com/photos/25721769@N04/2639380764/

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vegmandan

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My first ever potato harvest...argh slugs!
« Reply #1 on: July 05, 2008, 22:33 »
Apparently "Kestrel" are pretty resistant.

I think if you've got loads of keel slugs then they'll be in them no matter what size unfortunately. :cry:

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robbodaveuk

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My first ever potato harvest...argh slugs!
« Reply #2 on: July 06, 2008, 03:41 »
Throw them away :shock:  :shock:  :shock: . Cut the sluggy bits off and eat the * :wink: .

  Dave,

PS The potato not the sluggy bits, before some smart @rse says it :lol:
If at first you don't succeed, maybe failures your thing.
Don't take life so seriously, it isn't permanent.
Why do Blondes dye their roots black?

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Rampant_Weasel

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My first ever potato harvest...argh slugs!
« Reply #3 on: July 06, 2008, 06:29 »
personally i cut off the damaged bits and eat the rest, were not growing for tesco after all :wink:
funnily enough my first early maris bard had alot of slug damage but my nadines have had none so far :shock: the slugs were little black ones tho dont know if they are keeled or not
also, first and second earlies i leave in the ground and eat them as i need them, i assumed the advice about storing good tubers related to maincroppers that were being dug up for storage towards autumn

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gobs

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My first ever potato harvest...argh slugs!
« Reply #4 on: July 06, 2008, 07:08 »
Yes, it's hard to advise on that, Pulse, as we don't get slug damage in Charlottes, but Sadgit does. You gotta experiment.

Otherwise, a lot of folks pull them up early and store to get less slug damage in them, which just going to increase with time.
"Words... I know exactly what words I'm wanting to say, but somehow or other they is always getting squiff-squiddled around." R Dahl

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codheadred

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My first ever potato harvest...argh slugs!
« Reply #5 on: July 06, 2008, 08:11 »
Hi there

I have just had the same experience with my 2nd earlies which were estima - they went in mid April - I dug up a row yesterday got about 10lb of spuds - half of them had slug damage, and I noticed wireworm damage as well. First time I have tried this variety so you live and learn

In an adjacent bed I had pentland javelin which went in in late March. I got 30lb of spuds out of in early June - without a mark on them.



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