Nevadans?

[americanvalkyrie]

I definitely want in on this again. I love the fingerling potatoes and this year won't be interrupted by a move. I don't even need 2.5 lbs of each cause I want to grow a large variety, so if someone wants to split the smallest order on a few of these I'm up for it.

I'm down for splitting, if nobody else is. I'm also big on variety. Quantity is really important to us as well, but obviously not that important if I'm still not growing russets.

 

[SunnyDawn]

Mmmm those sound great. I think I'm going to do Laratte, since I've heard great things about how prolific they are. Red Thumb for sure! I think I want to try Augusta because they sound beautiful, and Adirondack Red. AR was sold out by the time I ordered last year. The big performers for me were Purple Majesty and Peanut, but I think a lot of that had to do with where I planted them... right beside beans! All of the potatoes that did extremely well were beside beans, and I think that had to do with the nitrogen from the roots, in horrible dirt. But there will be a lot more compost in the garden this year. And since I'm not doing squash over there next year, all of that area will also be for potatoes.

If we can get more than 50lbs in an order, it's only $1/lb shipping.

lol Hasn't she heard of flat rate shipping? JK, I don't mind. Her seedlings were awesome last year.

I'm down for splitting, if nobody else is. I'm also big on variety. Quantity is really important to us as well, but obviously not that important if I'm still not growing russets.

Cool. I'd love to share the Red Thumb and Larattes with you. I'm also open to trying the Adirondack Reds. They were on my long list but got cut at the last. hahaha They look sooo pretty! Not up for a whole 2 &1/2 lbs, just to see what the cute taters taste like, but I'll split a bag with ya.

Ron I wouldn't mind sharing an order of Purple Viking with you if you are gonna get them from her. The health of Gurney's potatoes weren't super impressive. I've been happy with everything else though from there. This ladies potatoes are seriously awesome!!! There were eyes and sprouts everywhere on these things and they stayed good looking for a long time. I wish I didn't know this but you know...

 

[americanvalkyrie]

lol Hasn't she heard of flat rate shipping? JK, I don't mind. Her seedlings were awesome last year.

Yep, the shipping does make me wince. But I also ordered some seed potatoes from St. Anthony, Idaho that was free shipping... and $9 for 1/2 pound of seed potato. So in the end, it was still cheaper to get them from this lady. But to the Idaho people's credit... I did have a problem where my order didn't arrive and I called them about the problem, and he fixed it by sending me 3 times what I ordered at no additional cost. I'm big on customer service so I'd order from them again. They offered about the same varieties, though. A few more blue ones.

 

[SunnyDawn]

Yep, the shipping does make me wince. But I also ordered some seed potatoes from St. Anthony, Idaho that was free shipping... and $9 for 1/2 pound of seed potato. So in the end, it was still cheaper to get them from this lady. But to the Idaho people's credit... I did have a problem where my order didn't arrive and I called them about the problem, and he fixed it by sending me 3 times what I ordered at no additional cost. I'm big on customer service so I'd order from them again. They offered about the same varieties, though. A few more blue ones.

I agree customer service is important. Her seedling potatoes last year were tops though. Have you ever had a customer service issue with her? Although I do like the blue potatoes I think I'll be fine with the All Blue variety I mentioned above. Still it doesn't sound like the shipping will be over $25 for one of us and probably a lot less if Ron and others share this order too.

Hey, how hard are sweet potatoes to grow? I would love to try a couple of those varieties! We went on a business trip to St Louis once and there was a restaurant there that served the most dynamite sweet potatoes (they called them yams but they weren't). We asked what variety they were and they said they were grown just for their chain of restaurants and were not available at any market. I want to grow a sweet potato that tastes like those!!! They were divine!!!!! Don't they grow better in sandy/loamy soil? I can add compost to my sandy soil and try. I know they don't do well in clay.

 

[americanvalkyrie]

I've never had any actual problems with customer service. It's such a small company that calls don't get answered immediately. When I ordered my garlic, I called and left a message that I needed to update my credit card information. It took her two weeks to call me back, and it was a weekend. I put the number in my caller ID so I wouldn't miss the call. (I ignore most out-of-state calls.) So it's obvious that this is a part-time thing for her.

I've never grown sweet potatoes, but Russ wants me to. I believe they're a long-season crop, like 120 days or so, which is why they're mostly grown in the south or in California. Loamy soil for sure. It's probably something that would work well in a good container like a wine barrel, with some kind of structure to protect it from frost. I love love LOVE sweet potatoes, but it might be one of those things that are just easier to buy on sale, like watermelon. My son really wants me to grow him some watermelon, but it's just not a good crop for this area.

There's a tutorial on them here:
http://urbanext.illinois.edu/veggies/sweetpotato.cfm

 

[sherylreno]

Count me in on the potato order too. I'll check them out and will let ya know what I'm looking for.

 

[SunnyDawn]

Yea I just spent a bit of time revisiting the information I'd read last year, just now. Longer season definitely, loamy soil, aged manure added to bed in fall, no fresh manure right before planting. Treat plants gently, they don't like to be bumped and bruised.

Warming the soil up is as easy as laying down red plastic ahead of time and covered rows can add an extra week or so to the end of the season. Yes they are 90-110 days. Unlike normal potatoes the leaves and shoots on a sweet potato plant are edible. Often used for stir fry. They are not part of the nightshade family.

I'm not crazy about the varieties sold in stores so for me this would be a plant worth working on. I need to find a supplier that has some delectable and unique varieties. The hay method, with aged manure underneath can help a lot to keep soil warm and to give a more tender plant room to grow without bruising. I really want to try a few great varieties of sweet potato this next season. Time to start preparing is now.

 

[Lacy Blues]

I read once, many years ago, that some guy wanted to grow sweet potatoes so badly that he dug a huge hole in the ground and put a water bed mattress in it with the heater. I also read that this method proved successful to him. Don't remember any other details though.

 

[pigtail21]

Seth I am here for you!


I am officially nuts......final bird entry count is 40! YIKES! Hmmm I will be inspecting feather quality closely this weekend to see if anyone needs to stay home.

Seems there will be a lot of waterfowl at the show this year.

 

[Peep_Show]

ooooooh...... All this potatoe talk is making me

I'd crawl across the floor to get me some sweet potatoe fries!

Just curious: How many pounds of potatoes will an average seed potatoe produce?