What are you canning now? - Page 646

I am going to be canning potatoes next week.  Got to dig them first.  We like them to just heat up and melt butter over.  I can in either quarts or quart and a halfs (3 pint jars otherwise known as Syrup jars)

Quote:

Originally Posted by BarefootMom 

I am going to be canning potatoes next week.  Got to dig them first.  We like them to just heat up and melt butter over.  I can in either quarts or quart and a halfs (3 pint jars otherwise known as Syrup jars)

I planted potatoes for the first time this year.  I just can not tell when to dig them up.  I just dug up a plant that was dying and got 4 itty bitty potatoes.  I am so NOT TOUCHING the other plants for a while.  How long does it take for the plant to turn itty bitty potatoes into regular size potatoes? ? ?

Quote:

Originally Posted by math ace 

I planted potatoes for the first time this year.  I just can not tell when to dig them up.  I just dug up a plant that was dying and got 4 itty bitty potatoes.  I am so NOT TOUCHING the other plants for a while.  How long does it take for the plant to turn itty bitty potatoes into regular size potatoes? ? ?

I don't know about Florida, but in New Hampshire, I put them in the ground at the end of April this year/beginning of May.  By the fourth of July, I should have new potatoes (itty, bitty, quarter/half dollar size).  By August/September I have full size. I don't dig them up for storage until the plants have totally died down.  I tried a new (for me) variety last year (Purple Viking - blue skin, pure white interior) that has been an excellent long-keeping variety.  I still have about ten left (albeit sprouting), and it's June!  I put some of them in the ground along with some other varieties.  I have never canned potatoes before, but I am definitely going to try Vfem's recipe this year.

Quote:

Originally Posted by math ace 

I planted potatoes for the first time this year.  I just can not tell when to dig them up.  I just dug up a plant that was dying and got 4 itty bitty potatoes.  I am so NOT TOUCHING the other plants for a while.  How long does it take for the plant to turn itty bitty potatoes into regular size potatoes? ? ?

After the plants have bloomed and died there should be potatoes under them.  I have been digging some up to eat on and have been finding baseball and bigger sized potatoes.  How far down did you dig? The bigger ones will break off when you pull the plant and the smaller ones will hang on.  What kind of potatoes did you plant?

Quote:

Originally Posted by BarefootMom 

After the plants have bloomed and died there should be potatoes under them.  I have been digging some up to eat on and have been finding baseball and bigger sized potatoes.  How far down did you dig? The bigger ones will break off when you pull the plant and the smaller ones will hang on.  What kind of potatoes did you plant?

These are red potatoes and the seed potatoes were sold at our local Ace Hardware.  I dug at least a foot down.

I found four itty bitty potatoes.  When I pulled up the plants, there were no long reach stems / root systems like the videos I saw on U Tube.  I don't know if the 10 inches of rain from the recent tropical storm caused a rot issue or if I didn't cover them up right or what ....

when did you plant them? I am not sure either, it has been super dry here (we have had about 1-2 inches of rain in about 2 months).  We dug one 30 ft row tonight and filled a 50lb burlap bag.  Some are softball sized or bigger.  We planted ours on St Patty's day.  I have about 4 1/2 more rows to dig... if I could give ya some I would lol!

When I plant I just plant them with the eye up and cover them enough that the chickens don't find them.  Some people say to plant in hills or in straw or in containers, but I plant the way I have always planted and it works for me.  

Quote:

Originally Posted by math ace 

Quote:

Originally Posted by BarefootMom 

After the plants have bloomed and died there should be potatoes under them.  I have been digging some up to eat on and have been finding baseball and bigger sized potatoes.  How far down did you dig? The bigger ones will break off when you pull the plant and the smaller ones will hang on.  What kind of potatoes did you plant?

These are red potatoes and the seed potatoes were sold at our local Ace Hardware.  I dug at least a foot down.

I found four itty bitty potatoes.  When I pulled up the plants, there were no long reach stems / root systems like the videos I saw on U Tube.  I don't know if the 10 inches of rain from the recent tropical storm caused a rot issue or if I didn't cover them up right or what ....

Where ever you put the spud, the potatoes grow ABOVE that point, not below.  The soil needs to be loose, not hard compacted.  My plants start emerging early in the spring (and sometimes die back if we get a cold frost or snow) and I usually harvest in late summer.  I have a couple plants right now flowering (they have white flowers), but the plants are still nice and green.  When the plant starts to die back, that's when you dig.

Quote:

Originally Posted by math ace 

These are red potatoes and the seed potatoes were sold at our local Ace Hardware.  I dug at least a foot down.

I found four itty bitty potatoes.  When I pulled up the plants, there were no long reach stems / root systems like the videos I saw on U Tube.  I don't know if the 10 inches of rain from the recent tropical storm caused a rot issue or if I didn't cover them up right or what ....

Ok, same question... when did you plant?

I grow mine 2 ways (I switch throughout the years):

I either trench them... dig long deep rows, just cover the potatoes, then when they sprout over the soil line I cover them with more dirt. The sprout up again... I cover them... so on and so forth until there is actually a mound where there was once a trench. Like Barefoot said, the potatoes grow up the vine, but under the ground so you gotta offer more ground going up from the potato seed.

I do the same thing, but with buckets other times. Not this year though.

This year I planted the last week of February. (Mild winter and all here) My potatoes NEVER flowered. They just started dying and it looked like Verm Wilt. So I basically threw my hands up with it and quit. Starting ripping out dead plants and I wouldn't have thought about digging anything up when a baseball size potatoe happened to get putted up with the very last plant in the bed. From there, I dug the shovel deep and WALLA potatoes poured out everywhere. I had some huge ones bigger then my hand even. I was impressed to say the least. Best year yet.

Like you though, the no flowering thing threw me off. Same thing with my garlic... no scrapes... I was so disappointed since those are so yummy to eat off the grill.

Quote:

Originally Posted by vfem 

 

Ok, same question... when did you plant?

 

I grow mine 2 ways (I switch throughout the years):

 

I either trench them... dig long deep rows, just cover the potatoes, then when they sprout over the soil line I cover them with more dirt. The sprout up again... I cover them... so on and so forth until there is actually a mound where there was once a trench. Like Barefoot said, the potatoes grow up the vine, but under the ground so you gotta offer more ground going up from the potato seed.

 

 

I planted them at the end of Feb.  So,  it has been at least 3 months.... I dug a deep trench, layed the potatoes in the bottom of the trench and shoveled a thine layer of dirt over the poatoes... Then covered them as they sprouted the first time.  They were not very tall when I covered the plants the first time.   Then covered them again as they sprouted 5 - 7 inches above ground.  Then I covered them a 3rd time as they sprounted above ground another 5 - 7 inches.  Now they are up above the dirt for a fourth time... The trench was a good 12 inches deep when I started.  The plants are 18 - 24" tall now.  They don't seem to be growing at all now. 

Here is the hole from the one plant I dung up...

Here are the itty bitty potatoes found in the hole.

Here is what a current plant looks like.  This one had a few flowers on it 2 - 3 weeks ago...

Here is ANOTHER plant,  but this one is near a tree and gets shade from it.    Excuse the mess of my garden.  I am in Florida and the weather has either been wet or hotter than Hades.  I haven't been able to get out in the gardens and take care of weeding.  UGGGH... It is a mess right now....

Quote:

Originally Posted by math ace 

 

I planted them at the end of Feb.  So,  it has been at least 3 months.... I dug a deep trench, layed the potatoes in the bottom of the trench and shoveled a thine layer of dirt over the poatoes... Then covered them as they sprouted the first time.  They were not very tall when I covered the plants the first time.   Then covered them again as they sprouted 5 - 7 inches above ground.  Then I covered them a 3rd time as they sprounted above ground another 5 - 7 inches.  Now they are up above the dirt for a fourth time... The trench was a good 12 inches deep when I started.  The plants are 18 - 24" tall now.  They don't seem to be growing at all now. 

 

Here is the hole from the one plant I dung up...

 

 

Here are the itty bitty potatoes found in the hole.

 

 

 

 

Here is what a current plant looks like.  This one had a few flowers on it 2 - 3 weeks ago...

 

 

Here is ANOTHER plant,  but this one is near a tree and gets shade from it.    Excuse the mess of my garden.  I am in Florida and the weather has either been wet or hotter than Hades.  I haven't been able to get out in the gardens and take care of weeding.  UGGGH... It is a mess right now....

 

 

Hmmm... do your potatoes usually do good in your garden? The soil looks very sandy to me????