[Nobbie]

Just bought my seed potatoes and they were all quite large, 30 tubers came to 8lbs for £2.99. I'm sure that's about the same as you'd pay for eating potatoes in Sainsburys. Has anybody found any benefit to larger tubers, or do people cut them in half before planting assuming plenty of eyes on the spuds?

[Goosegirl]

My dad-in-law used to be a farm labourer and he always said to get seed pots about the size of hen's eggs but I don't know the rationale about this. We have always followed his advice and not had any problems with the harvest, plus you get more per pound for your money.

[crh75]

I find earlies tend to be digger than main crop.  Also different varieties will be different sizes.

[Totty]

Size of a large hens egg is perfect

Totty

[DD.]

Having just seen countless varieties laid out in front of me I can't agree with the last, sorry. The Sarpo Mira on sale at our nursery are humongous this year. There is a minimum size laid down by DEFRA of 25mm.

http://www.fera.defra.gov.uk/plants/publications/documents/SPCSGuide0313.pdf - item 12.

Other than this you have to take what's in front of you. If they're pre-packed, you have no choice, but from the nursery I can select what I want and always take egg size as a good standard.

Out of interest I weighed one of mine. 64g or 2.3oz. At this size Nobby, I would have expected 56 spuds for the weight you've got, almost double, so yours are quite big. You can cut them in half a long as there are some eyes on each half, but you do run the risk of infection and rot.

[DD.]

Sorry totty - not your statement I'm disagreeing with - we posted at the same time, it's the one before yours.

[Nobbie]

They were sold as 30 for £2.99, so no advantage to picking small ones, but was just thinking that with the first earlies, the larger tuber gives a bigger store of food in case they get frosted a couple of times. Plenty of reserves to throw up more shoots. We'll see, must go and set them up for chitting now

[Baldy]

"To chit or not to chit - that is the question..."
No its not, probably best not to start that old chestnut off. 
My question is - if you've got a suitably large seed potato - and you cut it - do you need to let the ends dry for a few days / dip them in wood ash or suchlike / or can you just chuck them in wet? Lots of different opinions out there - little evidence that I've seen but it would make sense that putting them in wet would increase chances of rot/infection.
If you let them dry then how dry?

Cheers,
Balders

[Totty]

I wouldn't recommend cutting them. Generally there is a rose end on every potato that has the most eyes. This end would throw the majority of shoots, with the other sending up maybe just one or two. You will obviously still get spuds, but the more eyes you have, the more but smaller you get. If you thinned the shoots to one, you would get many less, but bigger.

Totty

[Mark's Sussex Allotment]

When is the best time to start chitting?

[Yorkie]

When you get your seed spuds.  Otherwise they risk producing lots of thin, white, weak shoots.

[Baldy]

Yorkie - am I being thick - not sure I understand? 'When you get your seed spuds"
Mine are ordered from T & M - not sure when they'll arrive...

Oh, and does chiitting work!    (as in provide any proven benefit)

Cheers,
Balders

[Yorkie]

Baldy, I was answering wizzyfax's question immediately above mine - when do you start chitting?  when you get your spuds.  This is because you need to do something with them once they've arrived, and you either put them somewhere that risks weak shoots / chits, or you put them in a cool place in good light, which will keep the chits strong / shorter.

I don't think there's much evidence that it makes a huge difference to yield if you don't chit; I seem to recall a trial about that on Gardeners World some years ago now.  However, it does get your earlies in particular off to a quicker start than if they were just planted in the ground a bit later.

[Baldy]

Right - that makes sense Yorkie. As usual I was being dense... 

Cheers,
Balders

[Mark's Sussex Allotment]

Thanks Yorkie