Potato growing question?

[nao57]

Some stray cats and my neighbors chickens kept digging out my potatoes so I got a bunch of them out and replanted them in a pot. The potatoes that are still in the ground are constantly resprouting greenery. The potatoes in the pot have nothing showing up. It really makes me wonder what the difference is for the ones in the ground to resprout and the ones in the pot are not.

That's hard to answer right now because a big issue is the chemical they paint on them in the store that inhibits them growing.

But a work around is that you can 'chit'/(sprout) them first before getting them in the ground. And do that. Then they should take off.

 

[Birdsonghill]

I have taken early potatoes like others have stated they did and with care, no problems noted. I am not sure if it reduced or improved the total harvest when done successfully without damage to the plant. I do know that store bought potatoes will fail or disappoint often due to treatments used on them. Pre sprouting will make a difference but it is best to buy the seed potatoes or store your own, if that is possible for you to do long term storage successfully. Potatoes need water to do well and must not be neglected and allowed to dry out too much, but care must be taken to avoid constant wet soil and hope for no extended period of heavy rains as they may rot in the ground here. Armadillos love potatoes but will pass them by for sweet potatoes! Have found living plants with no potatoes only little cone shaped funnel like holes surrounding the plants. They have "radar" noses and seek the potatoes with great accuracy and efficiency. No wonder my grandfather ate Opossums and Armadillos, they were fed on his Irish or sweet potatoes and went back well with them slow roasted, he said. My early potatoes do well with less care than later plantings here in zone 7 and usually get enough rain to crop well.

 

[nao57]

I have taken early potatoes like others have stated they did and with care, no problems noted. I am not sure if it reduced or improved the total harvest when done successfully without damage to the plant. I do know that store bought potatoes will fail or disappoint often due to treatments used on them. Pre sprouting will make a difference but it is best to buy the seed potatoes or store your own, if that is possible for you to do long term storage successfully. Potatoes need water to do well and must not be neglected and allowed to dry out too much, but care must be taken to avoid constant wet soil and hope for no extended period of heavy rains as they may rot in the ground here. Armadillos love potatoes but will pass them by for sweet potatoes! Have found living plants with no potatoes only little cone shaped funnel like holes surrounding the plants. They have "radar" noses and seek the potatoes with great accuracy and efficiency. No wonder my grandfather ate Opossums and Armadillos, they were fed on his Irish or sweet potatoes and went back well with them slow roasted, he said. My early potatoes do well with less care than later plantings here in zone 7 and usually get enough rain to crop well.

I just found out you were right. I think they are using MORE spray on them to make them not bud also. Before this year, it was easier to beat the spray where I could just wait it out and the spray would delay them sprouting but usually not entirely work. This year it was different where many of them did fail to sprout (but not all).

Thank you very much.

 

[Birdsonghill]

I keep trying to use grocery store potatoes when they have a variety I want to grow, cheap. They often do poorly, but sometimes they do make a decent response and yield is good. I just don't rely on them for my potato crop.

 

[nao57]

I keep trying to use grocery store potatoes when they have a variety I want to grow, cheap. They often do poorly, but sometimes they do make a decent response and yield is good. I just don't rely on them for my potato crop.

They used to work better. Its the spray for inhibiting sprouting, which was meant for just the store selling period. :S They've upped it somehow or upped its strength. I used to get store potatoes to sprout so much that it was a problem.