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Potato nesting

hollyenglishhollyenglish Posts: 10
in Problem solving
Hi all, I'm new here and just looking for some guidance really. I found a potato this spring which I wanted to replant because I really wanted to grow more of it (it is shaped like a horse), so I put it back in the ground and kept an eye on it. I have now moved it to it's own spot and it's leaves look really healthy and are getting quite tall, I just wondered if you could tell me when the little ones will be ready? And if there is anything else I should be doing?
Thanks so much in advance,
Holly
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Posts

  • FireFire Posts: 17,305
    I'm not sure that's what she was suggesting. Maybe that she just wanted more potatoes.
  • josusa47josusa47 Posts: 3,530
    Hallo Holly, and welcome to the forum.  Potatoes need watering if they don't get rained on for a few days, and if you see any flower buds, it's best to nip them off as they divert the plant's resources from fattening the tubers.  Towards the end of the summer, the foliage will start to wilt and fade in colour.  Once that happens, the potatoes won't get any bigger, and you can dig them up any time you like.  But don't expect a big harvest from one seed potato; you'll probably get enough for one or two meals.
  • hollyenglishhollyenglish Posts: 10
    edited July 2020

    Treeface said:
    I really don't think that you can expect every potato to be horse-shaped.

    Ah that's a shame I thought it might be genetic. Thanks For letting me know anyway, I won't get my hopes up
  • hollyenglishhollyenglish Posts: 10
    josusa47 said:
    Hallo Holly, and welcome to the forum.  Potatoes need watering if they don't get rained on for a few days, and if you see any flower buds, it's best to nip them off as they divert the plant's resources from fattening the tubers.  Towards the end of the summer, the foliage will start to wilt and fade in colour.  Once that happens, the potatoes won't get any bigger, and you can dig them up any time you like.  But don't expect a big harvest from one seed potato; you'll probably get enough for one or two meals.

    Thank you so much for all of the great advice! I don't mind if there are not too many potatoes, I just couldn't eat that little horse.
    I have my potato in a nest rather than the ground, so maybe I should be watering it more regularly in that case?
  • B3B3 Posts: 26,412
    I googled it. It looks like you can grow them in a contraption filled with hay
    In London. Keen but lazy.
  • GemmaJFGemmaJF Posts: 2,286
    Seems like Holly is miles ahead of a lot of us! Not heard of it either, looks like a great space saver that a lot people might want to try.

    https://youtu.be/R833pkaDBSY
  • strelitzia32strelitzia32 Posts: 767
    You learn something every day on this forum! Although I got half way down this link and decided I'd rather stick to potato bags, far easier...

    https://boredomtherapy.com/straw-nest-potato/
  • B3B3 Posts: 26,412
    You had to persevere to find it and then they wanted to assure me that my privacy was important so I buggered off.
    In London. Keen but lazy.
  • FireFire Posts: 17,305
    I've seen the above done in permaculture circles but with banked up straw. I'd not heard them called nests before. (Or Horse Nests)
  • hollyenglishhollyenglish Posts: 10
    Treeface said:
    What is a potato nest?

    Oh I'm not sure, I was just growing it in a ball of grass and mud, I would call it a nest? It looks like a nest to me
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