potato earthing up - why?

[Vecten]

Potatoes, like tomatoes (same family) root easily from the stem. Earthing up potatoes encourages more roots from the stem - more roots means more potatoes.

[Snadger]

Have you never been 'Tattie picking' when you were a bairn then veg4681?
50p a day and free bucket of spuds is what used to be the going rate.
Forgot to mention you got a free mug of sweet milky tea at noon, made with milk directly from the coo's teet, none of your pasteurised stuff!
Rows and rows of ridges from what I recall!
No ridges for me though, no dig and mulch, mulch, mulch equals clean spuds with no greenies!

somones showing there age me thinks

Yep.......I'm an old fart and proud of it

[Snadger]

Potatoes, like tomatoes (same family) root easily from the stem. Earthing up potatoes encourages more roots from the stem - more roots means more potatoes.

Would planting the tattie deeper not give the same effect then?

Farmers seem to ridge and plant at the same time!

[Sirius]

Have you never been 'Tattie picking' when you were a bairn then veg4681?
50p a day and free bucket of spuds is what used to be the going rate.
Forgot to mention you got a free mug of sweet milky tea at noon, made with milk directly from the coo's teet, none of your pasteurised stuff!
Rows and rows of ridges from what I recall!
No ridges for me though, no dig and mulch, mulch, mulch equals clean spuds with no greenies!

somones showing there age me thinks

But jings that takes me back!! The October school holidays were specifically the Tattie Holidays, the whole point in the schools being off was so that us bairns could go tattie howking! No idea why they have the break nowadays, since they're barely back to school and have the Christmas holidays to come too.

[areia]

i know bout those holiday's my son cant wait to go back to school, i'm an evil mom i make him work

[JO,JO]

hi
i grew spuds in a plastic dustbin last year,but i filled the dustbin to high up,but still got alot of potatoes,this year i have only put a small amount of earth in then the tubers on top cover with a thin layer of earth,then when the tops show cover again and so on the tops were 3 ft out of the dustbin last year before they flowered and then left about two weeks before i started to lift them,i gently removed them with a trowel for me to eat i got potatoes for 3 months

[hypnophil]

I found spuds growing in my compost heap today!! must have sprouted from peelings, i was gonna rip the stem out thinking they should be rotting down, will they be ok and why havent they composted?
i think earthing stems, whether toms or spuds aids root production which wont happen ordinarily.

[Paulottie]

Ok, my question is why do we earth up potatoes grown in the ground - if it is to make sure the tubers and well covered, why not just plant them deeper?

And, why, when growing potatoes in containers is it suggested that we earth them up in stages - why not just fill up the container once you've planted the tubers? Does covering the stem repeatedly after it has reached the light make it produce more stolons (the bits with the potatoes on the end)?

If you plant them too deep they run out of energy before they eventually make it up. It is the leaves that are the power house after all. (although,at a push, you can get away with burying those in preference to a frost scorching earlies) Yes, you are right they do produce more stolons. if you look at a chitted spud you'll see the roots coming off the emerging stem (very similar to tomatoes rooting from stem). As Paul Wagland says the earthing up process kills weeds. If you grew them in a deep trench and then slowly filled that up to finish level it would be hard work digging them out(always miss a couple as it is!)

Undoubtedly, the best lazy method I've found is through Mypex with a bulb planter (better than builders plastic, as it allows water through, but I have used seep hoses before). I often use this method for clearing weedy ground. Spuds are all near the surface but not green at harvest. Here's a photo of a bit I was clearing last year.

[Flummery]

Ooooh! triangular! (You're not Joe Swift are you?)

[ClayGarden]

Ooooh! triangular! (You're not Joe Swift are you?)

Thats what i was thinking

Jamie explained on his programme this week about this earthing up potatos, first time i've understood it to be honest. It is about encourage more of those bits the fruit grows from.

[Paulottie]

Ha, No I am not EUYOOOUUUFFHORRRBIA Joe. bless him- I missed GW Friday and all I seem to be able to watch on BBCi is 30 seconds of him going on about how the locals just didn't understand his triangles, and how it was his allotment and he'd do what he liked. Topped off with a quick moan about how hard a days work it was!!!!welcome to the world of the real gardeners Joe!!!

To defend my geometry the bit to the left...with my kids wandering off, is the main path to the lotties. It cuts across the top corner of my plot. As someone has been kind enough to dump loads of rubble and their garden waste beyond that it would be quite difficult to move further left and to the right under the blue plastic is where we have been getting the muck delivered- now its nearly cleared and the whole area is going to be blackcurrants.

[Cutecumber]

Paul - thanks for the info above. You've answered my question very well

[Paulottie]

My absolute pleasure CuteC. glad if I've helped....What variety are you growing this year?

PS just planted your Tomato seeds from last year

Jamie explained on his programme this week about this earthing up potatos, first time i've understood it to be honest. It is about encourage more of those bits the fruit grows from.

Yeah, but who told Jamie...his team of gardeners, off camera 5 mins before?...how long has he been gardening anyway? It seems only hours ago he was just nauseatingly everywhere like a rash being nicely rewarded for encouraging us to shop at Sainsburys. ('yeah sod the planet! cover it in chemicals and wrap it in plastic...I'll take the devil's dollar') I'm sorry but this paradox(or would oxymoron be more appropriate?!) It really irritates me... that he can be preaching to us the benefits of self sufficiency now just takes the cake. (or he just riding the gravy train at least)...apologies rant over

Just to be pedantic..you (or was that a quote from Jamie?) mean tubers... the fruit is the bit after the flowers and is poisonous.

Again sorry I'm sure he's really a good chap and he has to keep JOOOls and the kids and I'm sure he means well and he has recently done a lot to promote quality food for all. I'm glad if he makes food gardening more accessible- but just had to let that one out.

[ClayGarden]

Yeah, but who told Jamie...his team of gardeners, off camera 5 mins before?...how long has he been gardening anyway? It seems only hours ago he was just nauseatingly everywhere like a rash being nicely rewarded for encouraging us to shop at Sainsburys. ('yeah sod the planet! cover it in chemicals and wrap it in plastic...I'll take the devil's dollar') I'm sorry but this paradox(or would oxymoron be more appropriate?!) It really irritates me... that he can be preaching to us the benefits of self sufficiency now just takes the cake. (or he just riding the gravy train at least)...apologies rant over

Just to be pedantic..you (or was that a quote from Jamie?) mean tubers... the fruit is the bit after the flowers and is poisonous.

And breathe.

I sense you dont like him then? I dont care whether he was told it or not. In fact i presume you were also told? or did you witness a familty member get poisoned and thats how you know its poisonous? We all have to start somewhere, and i'll remember not to mention his venomous name around these parts again.

[Cutecumber]

Well I can't stand the bloke and he's absolutely no gardener, and this is my thread so I'm going back on topic, so ner ner ner.

Paul - I have Foremost, International Kidney, Anya and Cara this year.

I hope the tomato crop is better this year - I know you lost a lot from blight.