Companion climber for potatoes

[HelenCate]

I really like your grooved board. Could you tell me where you found it. Please and thank you

 

[Robbie]

I made the board but you can buy them on ebay or Amazon just search for gnocchi board or garganelli board

 

[HelenCate]

Thanks

 

[desman]

Hi HelenCate, I did put my hand in to see if it was wet…it was really warm. Perhaps too much water? I mixed some cheapo potting mix with the sugarcane, maybe this was my mistake, but I dug them all up today

Have you dug down with your fingers to check that the water is actually getting to the potato roots through the sugarcane? I do this also and when I first started doing it I didn't realise just how much water I had to give them to get through a thick sugarcane layer. Now I put the sugarcane on much more loosely to allow water to penetrate down to where it's needed.

Hi HelenCate, I did put my hand in to see if it was wet…it was moist and really really warm. Perhaps too much water and the composting process when mad? I mixed some cheapo potting mix with the sugarcane, maybe this was my mistake, but I dug them all up today and the stems were rotten. Do you just add sugarcane mulch when hilling? What types of potatoes are you planting? I love my potatoes too so if I can grow them it would be awesome

 

[Mandy Onderwater]

I wonder if a combination of moisture and heat started decomposting your plants instead of growing it.

Following this thread as I'm curious too!

 

[JP 1983]

You can also consider mounding/hilling celery. Not many people realise that fancy French "white" celery is just regular celery which has been mounded to prevent the production of chlorophyll in the stem. It tastes like regular celery with a little more mildness. Because the stems are covered with dirt in this way, they do need careful washing before use.

 

[HelenCate]

Hi HelenCate, I did put my hand in to see if it was wet…it was moist and really really warm.

I think that right there is your main issue. The plants themselves thrive in the heat, the root zone not so much. Maybesome insulation around the pot or just simply planting in ground somewhere. With the soil, I just started with some pretty ordinary bagged mix, then I added a bit of coir and some mushroom compost to help it all stay evenly moist. I hill with the sugarcane. Loosely. Checking when I water and covering any tubers. When I harvest a tub, I remove the sugarcane and discard the potato plants. I dig the bottom half of the sugarcane back onto the soil as it's been covered and is breaking down nicely and I reuse the rest to top any other tub that needs a top-up. The more sugarcane that gets dug in, the better the soil is.

 

[desman]

I think that right there is your main issue. The plants themselves thrive in the heat, the root zone not so much. Maybesome insulation around the pot or just simply planting in ground somewhere. With the soil, I just started with some pretty ordinary bagged mix, then I added a bit of coir and some mushroom compost to help it all stay evenly moist. I hill with the sugarcane. Loosely. Checking when I water and covering any tubers. When I harvest a tub, I remove the sugarcane and discard the potato plants. I dig the bottom half of the sugarcane back onto the soil as it's been covered and is breaking down nicely and I reuse the rest to top any other tub that needs a top-up. The more sugarcane that gets dug in, the better the soil is.

Interesting thanks. Yeah mine started well in a similar mix to yours. But I won’t add anything to the sugarcane in future. So when you water do you make sure the sugarcane mulch gets wet, or just gets through the mulch? Just wondering how to stop the sugarcane mulch composting too fast and heating up. Do new roots start in the loose sugarcane mulch (to form new spuds). What types of potatoes are you planting?

 

[HelenCate]

Interesting thanks. Yeah mine started well in a similar mix to yours. But I won’t add anything to the sugarcane in future. So when you water do you make sure the sugarcane mulch gets wet, or just gets through the mulch? Just wondering how to stop the sugarcane mulch composting too fast and heating up. Do new roots start in the loose sugarcane mulch (to form new spuds). What types of potatoes are you planting?

If I dig around and they seem a bit dry I will put the nozzle down into the mulch to make sure I water the soil, but mainly I just water the pots as normal. I grow Sebago and Red Lady currently. I am phasing out Kipflers as they just don't produce a good crop. I may look at La Ratte fingerlings as a replacement for the Kipflers as they seem to be a much better size and a better cropper. Sebago and Red Lady are Main Crop (indeterminate) varieties. Not sure what to advice on the heat issue other than some sort of (possibly shadecloth) insulation for the pot.

 

[desman]

Thanks mate. I will try those varieties and your methods. Just need to buy some more drums and cut them up . The heat is def caused by the composting process, not the sun on side of pot. The potting mix I added seemed to start a compost process that went into over drive - won’t do that again. Do you buy seed potatoes or just get them from the green grocer?

 

[HelenCate]

Thanks mate. I will try those varieties and your methods. Just need to buy some more drums and cut them up . The heat is def caused by the composting process, not the sun on side of pot. The potting mix I added seemed to start a compost process that went into over drive - won’t do that again. Do you buy seed potatoes or just get them from the green grocer?

Sorry, I did see that you had done a mix with your sugarcane. I'd say you would be correct in thinking that was the problem with the heat. Brain fart I used to use eating potatoes a while ago, until someone pointed out to me that just because they look good and don't contain something that's makes them not fit for eating doesn't mean they don't contain something transferable to your soil that will affect quality/quantity of crop. Plus, buying seed potatoes you get a huge variety to choose from, a lot that you won't find in the shops.

 

[desman]

Ah no probs whatsoever. You’ve really helped me. Can’t wait to try your advice. I buy these steel drums from Carbrook. They’re great- blue outside and orange inside. My kids love the colours, but it’s a bit of a mission to get them and then cut them up with a grinder. Once I get motivated to do that, I’ll be straight into your methods

 

[HelenCate]

I'm glad to have been some help

 

[JP 1983]

If you want a fun project, let a potato go to seed and grow next year's crop from seed (the fruits are toxic - don't eat them, but 1 fruit will have more than 50 seeds in it). It won't be true to type, but you'll start getting your own backyard variety which could be fun.

 

[HelenCate]

@desman I managed to forget a bit of important information. I throw a good handful of blood and bone around at planting time. The blood meal is higher in Nitrogen and helps to get the green parts growing. It's used up in about a month or so. The bone meal continues to fertilize for a total of about 3 months and is higher in Potassium and Phosphorus for the tuber development.

 

[desman]

@desman I managed to forget a bit of important information. I throw a good handful of blood and bone around at planting time. The blood meal is higher in Nitrogen and helps to get the green parts growing. It's used up in about a month or so. The bone meal continues to fertilize for a total of about 3 months and is higher in Potassium and Phosphorus for the tuber development.

Ah thanks HelenCate, I’ll make sure I do that as well.