Potatoes, from the Patch

digitS'

Garden Master
Joined
Dec 13, 2007
Messages
25,720
Reaction score
28,730
Points
457
Location
border, ID/WA(!)
This is the first year that I have intended a late harvest of potatoes in a long time. I'm wondering, why does the foliage die before frost?

Yes, I expected it. But, it looks like disease. It just occurred to me what should be a very nice harvest of potatoes may be compromised!

When I began growing potatoes again several years ago, my harvest of appropriate varieties began very early and leaves were only turning yellow. Understand the new potatoes (mostly with peas) are important to us. That was the schedule this year and mostly involved the Yukon Gold. For several years, I would harvest everything from one end of a bed to the other, completely digging out the bed over several weeks. This made the task quite easy as I would do this through the entire month of August.

The foliage would be cut as harvesting proceeded and I would try to give the un-harvested tubers 10 days or so to toughen their skins after taking off the foliage before they were dug. It makes a difference.

I rushed through harvesting a few veggies at the garden, yesterday. A primary reason for being there was to return Garbanzo the Dog to DD and send along whatever veggies she thought she could use. Then, I loaded the car and headed home. Had only looked at the failing potato plants.

Oh, there are plenty of Russet Burbank, Red Norland and Purple Majesty tubers attached to the foliage. After thinking that I'd better cut that foliage off soon, I'm on my usual break from that garden. But, if they were tomatoes, I'd think that they were dying of septoria. I'm not very familiar with early blight, having only thought that I was losing a tomato plant from it once. I read that potatoes can be infected - including the tubers! It's time for them to die back but .... LATE blight caused the Irish potato famine destroying tubers after harvest! I have never heard of that disease locally. Have you had problems with storage that showed up on foliage first? I sure didn't see any problems with the "new" potatoes.

Steve
who may be fretting needlessly ;)
 

flowerbug

Garden Master
Joined
Oct 15, 2017
Messages
15,885
Reaction score
23,783
Points
417
Location
mid-Michigan, USoA
i think you are fretting needlessly, but i don't know much about growing potatoes either. historically they are a short season crop growng in upland habitat. the plants that stored as much energy into the tubers as possible would be the ones that survived. so the plants that can die back and suck as much energy from the stems before the frosts do the damage to the cell structures and pathways would be the ones that would have the edge there. at least that is my just-so story for them. :) good luck. :)
 

digitS'

Garden Master
Joined
Dec 13, 2007
Messages
25,720
Reaction score
28,730
Points
457
Location
border, ID/WA(!)
Only one potato plant had unusual problems in today's excavation.

I may have missed some things. I'll see tomorrow after they are washed. There were a couple that were "chewed on," by what, I haven't a clue. There were no signs of gophers or voles.

Anyway, that may have been the problem with the one plant that had decaying tubers. Chewed on first.

Very productive potato season! Red Norlands led. Yukon Golds and Russet Burbanks weren't far behind. The Purple Majesty did just fine but ... they sure are hard to see in the dirt and rocks, wet from last night's rain ;).

Steve
 

digitS'

Garden Master
Joined
Dec 13, 2007
Messages
25,720
Reaction score
28,730
Points
457
Location
border, ID/WA(!)
Spuds in the cellar room (with a few of the onions):

3B44496E-2EFE-42F3-9E39-AF824CEEB8B2.jpeg

Shelves above will be used for the winter squash again this year. You can get an idea how this 120 year old cellar was attached to a basement built later. That's a concrete lined entrance to the basement on the right. There is a door separating the rooms. Originally, access to the upstairs was at a right angle to that entrance. The stairs are long gone but the sloping soil remains under what is now a bedroom but must have once been a dining room ;).

There are several sheets of newspapers down there from the 70's. Moving them around while sanitizing the shelves and still not wanting to toss them, I discovered one from 1957.

By the way, the dairy that owned those milk crates is several years out of business. (Didn't want you to think that I stole them ;).)

Steve
 

Gardening with Rabbits

Garden Master
Joined
Oct 24, 2012
Messages
3,502
Reaction score
5,543
Points
337
Location
Northern Idaho - Zone 5B
I would like to try potatoes again. I have no idea what I was doing wrong. I had really good luck a few years and then scab on them and very few potatoes the last couple of years, but I have not planted them for at least 2 years, maybe 3 now.
 

seedcorn

Garden Master
Joined
Jun 21, 2008
Messages
9,627
Reaction score
9,882
Points
397
Location
NE IN
Spuds in the cellar room (with a few of the onions):

View attachment 44361

By the way, the dairy that owned those milk crates is several years out of business. (Didn't want you to think that I stole them ;).)

Steve
Good thing you typed that at end as I was about to report you to the FBI....
 

Gardening with Rabbits

Garden Master
Joined
Oct 24, 2012
Messages
3,502
Reaction score
5,543
Points
337
Location
Northern Idaho - Zone 5B
Scab is always somewhat of a problem.

Not being willing to order and pay shipping, I can't shop for scab resistance types. Dependent on what I can find at the farm store or garden center and that has been okay.

Steve
I did pay for purple potatoes one to be shipped and they were nice. I also bought potatoes in CDA, Judy's Greenhouse and they had seed potato one year and they were red inside and they were scab free, so maybe it is the potatoes and not my ground.
 

digitS'

Garden Master
Joined
Dec 13, 2007
Messages
25,720
Reaction score
28,730
Points
457
Location
border, ID/WA(!)
Here's a webpage from the University of Maine on scab link. My spuds have never looked as bad as some of the pictures ...

But, they are right, Yukon Gold is a susceptible variety. I just went down to the cellar and yes, it's the only one that appears to have the problem. They are a prime variety to be dug early and don't have much of a problem way back in the summertime.

This website used to be maintained by North Carolina State, I believe it was. One of the people who put it together, apparently, moved it a few years ago. It's becoming dated but a lot was recorded about many different vegetable varieties, how and when they were developed, etc. It isn't just about the potatoes but that page gives you an idea about some of the disease resistance of many of them link

Steve
 

Latest posts

Top