[Snoop]

My veg patch is still flooded but Mr Snoop has managed to clear some beds elsewhere for my potatoes. However, space is very limited and I'm looking to plant the maximum in the minimum area.

According to the packet instructions, maincrop potatoes need to go 37 cm (15 inches) apart. I've read that Pink Fir Apple is not a very high-yielding variety, so does this mean I can afford to put them a bit closer together?

[8doubles]

I used to get a good yield with pfa and found that the tubers would grow a fair distance from the haulm.

I think the worst that would happen it the plants were crowded would be smaller taters (not a bad thing) or the plants overlapping.

Go for it !

[Snoop]

Thanks 8doubles.

I had such a good harvest from the potatoes I grew last year that I decided to grow more this year (I added PFA to last year's selection) and then a friend also brought me a bag of Purple Majestic seed potatoes and someone else brought a kilo over of Roosters. So instead of the 6 kg I had last year, I now have nearly 11 kg of seed potatoes to plant. It really is too many, especially given the size of my plot.

[sunshineband]

I have also found pfa to be a heavy cropper: we grew them 12in apart and rows 15in apart, and they did need a fair bit of water. Inexperience really as today I would space them further apart.

The ground was virtually solid with potatoes, and delicious they were too 

The foliage gets very tall, so plant them somewhere it won't matter if it flops over a bit.

[Robster]

Same experience as Sunshine band with Pink Fir Apple last year.  12 or so inches apart about 15 between rows.  Had an absolute mountain of potatoes.  The ground was well manured in the winter and I probably scattered a fair bit of BFB during the spring/summer on the developing plants.
Good luck.  Good choice of spud

[Snoop]

Goodness, these spacings are very different to what it says on the packet: 12-15 inches (30-37cm) apart and 28 inches (70 cm) between rows. So in terms of rows you're almost planting half the distance. Well that's good news for me and great news on the yield too. I was under the impression the crop would be small, compensated for by their excellent quality.

Thanks everyone. I'm off to get them in the ground this morning.

[Bohobumble]

I'm also planting my potatoes closer together than the guys on my allotment are saying I should,, suspect the spuds will be ok it's just going to be a hassle for me mounding up between rows :/

[Kristen]

Goodness, these spacings are very different to what it says on the packet

I wonder if the packet is "same for all varieties"?

I find that PFA produce a very dense crop of spuds, and as such I would expect that closer planting would be fine (compared to a different variety that had a lot more "top" and much more spread-out tubers under ground)

[Snoop]

I wonder if the packet is "same for all varieties"?

That's a good point. I've had a look about on the web after you mentioned this. The spaces I found vary quite considerably from the distances mentioned on the packet to 30 cm apart in rows 45 cm apart, so the same as Robster and sunshineband's spacings.

My mood has improved considerably now that I'm actually about to do some planting as opposed to just digging drainage channels that seem to have no effect!

Thanks for the advice, guys.