Thinking of early early potatoes

**chilli_grower** · 31-01-2013, 10:38 AM

Hi Darcy,

First of all good luck with the greenhouse, have you got a good solid base? Is it glass or polycarb?

I do not know about potatoes. But I will be sowing spring onions this weekend into modules, and onion sets into small pots.

These will then go into the greenhouse until it gets warmer....

Hope this helps....

**Aberdeenplotter** · 31-01-2013, 10:40 AM

If you can keep your early batch frost free and still warm enough to be growing then you should be ok. Bear in mind though that early spuds take 10 weeks, will take a lot of space in your greenhouse and will need to stay there till the risk of night time frost is past.

**redser** · 31-01-2013, 10:53 AM

That's what a lot of people do darcy. I'll be doing that in the tunnel soon once the seeds have chitted a bit more. I also read on my gurus blog, she puts some of her tubers in 2 lt pots of compost and lets them grow on until march and then transplants them into her outside beds. She totally organic so does everything she can to plant early to avoid blight. I'll try this with a few main crops this year as an experiment.

**solway cropper** · 31-01-2013, 10:59 AM

For the last few years I've grown first earlies in containers in the greenhouse and this allows me to get a crop by the end of April/early May. They are chitting as we speak and I'll be mixing up the compost this weekend in readiness for planting mid-late February. I let the compost warm up in the greenhouse for a few weeks beforehand and this means less of a shock to the tubers when they go in.

**Paulieb** · 31-01-2013, 10:59 AM

Last year I planted some earlies in tubs in my greenhouse and got an early crop.

Once they start showing above ground, if its forecast to be a frost then I covered with fleece overnight.

I'd recommend 1 spud to a morrisons flower bucket. I think 2 is too crowded. And from this link, it seems a lot of the bulking up is done right at the end, so trying to leave them as long as possible will help increase yields, which is difficult when you want a quick crop when nothing else is available.

http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gra...ml#post1076582

Good luck.

**Potstubsdustbins** · 31-01-2013, 02:35 PM

Been doing this for some years now.

My spuds arrived today so they are now chitting my first earlies will go in their pots back end of Feb and I shall be looking to start the harvest in early mid May.

As pointed out above with first earlies its the last 2 to 3 weeks of the growing cycle that really counts. However like many others I find it very difficlut to wait for new spuds so I start to have a look at them about week 8 or 9.

Potty

**Madasafish** · 31-01-2013, 02:39 PM

I am chitting some to plant out early Feb into my greenhouse - shortly to be electric heated.

**Doive** · 01-02-2013, 01:24 AM

I'm puzzling what to do with mine. Chitting on a windowsill just now, potato bags ready to go as and when. It's where to put them once they're planted. Outside will be too cold, don't have a greenhouse yet, shed is bright enough but cold, garage is pitch black but a bit warmer. In the house would be nice

**SeleneMourie** · 01-02-2013, 07:32 PM

I'm in your situation minus dark garage... i just have a dark shed lol

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