Sarpo spuds in the shops

redser7

Disaster with blight this year. So might try one of the sarpo varieties next year. Has anyone ever seen them for sale in shops/supermarkets? Have heard mixed things about the taste and would like to try some first.
Cheers

Cardinal Richelieu

redser7 wrote: »

Disaster with blight this year. So might try one of the sarpo varieties next year. Has anyone ever seen them for sale in shops/supermarkets? Have heard mixed things about the taste and would like to try some first.
Cheers

See them rarely in shops, they are only sold as organic. Have you tried asking around in the allotment to see if anyone is growing them? They might be able to do some bartering with you.

redser7

Thanks. Good idea, must ask around. Cheers

bookworms

They taste fine!!I think my husband picked them up in a garden centre this year. They are looking great at the moment despite the favourable blight condidtions. Good luck with your search.

redser7

Thanks Bookworms

maryb26

Have grown these for the past few years. Taste great. Nice floury spud. Seed can be bought by mail order from Mr. Middleton.

redser7

Cheer Mary. Good to know. Are you growing them? How are they looking? I saw them in the Mr Middletons but went for roosters and Mayan Gold. Both got it

btw - saw the thread on GM spud trials. Why aren't naturally resistant spuds like the sarpos grown more in Ireland?

Sgt Pepper 64

I dont understand how you can get blight in a small garden?
If you use fresh soil in a different patch and use only new seed spuds, you should avoid it I thought?

redser7

It's an allotment plot If there's one place you're likely to get it, that would be it I would imagine

redser7

Anyway I dont think that would matter? It's airborn spores so can be country-wide

Cardinal Richelieu

redser7 wrote: »

Anyway I dont think that would matter? It's airborn spores so can be country-wide

Yes its airborne so hard to control. You might be doing a great job of prevention using spray treatments but your neighbours in the allotment or down the road might not be.

Cardinal Richelieu

redser7 wrote: »

Cheer Mary. Good to know. Are you growing them? How are they looking? I saw them in the Mr Middletons but went for roosters and Mayan Gold. Both got it

btw - saw the thread on GM spud trials. Why aren't naturally resistant spuds like the sarpos grown more in Ireland?

Simple answer is that breeding blight resistant varieties the conventional way often means you have to compromise on some other attribute like taste, yield, texture, storage capability etc. GM is seen as a way to overcome this. Also there seems to be a level of confusion among veg gardeners caused partly by the misinformation spread by gardening experts. Sarpo Mira has high resistance to blight, that doesn't mean it can't catch blight.


Propitious Esculent- The Potato in World History

"Ever since the first epidemic struck Europe in 1845, late blight has been the major evil that potato-growers face, and breeding resistant varieties is still a preferred means of dealing with it. High levels of resistance have been attained, but durability is elusive- the pathogens always manages to find a way through whatever barrier the plant-breeders have introduced.

Zuiderzee

Sarpos are a good spud for eating, and very good against blight - my two ridges this year did not get blight despite their neighbours getting a touch.

My favorite blight resistant spud in terms of taste and texture is Setanta.

Toluca also seems to be quite promising, not ready for harvest yet - but foliage is good.

redser7

I presume you dont use sprays at all then? THanks for the info. Where do you source your seed?
Cheers

Tora Bora

My garden is like a Paddy Field, with all the rain. Shame I hadn't the foresight to plant rice:rolleyes:

johngalway

Zuiderzee wrote: »

Sarpos are a good spud for eating, and very good against blight - my two ridges this year did not get blight despite their neighbours getting a touch.

My favorite blight resistant spud in terms of taste and texture is Setanta.

Toluca also seems to be quite promising, not ready for harvest yet - but foliage is good.

How are the Sarpo compared to Roosters for eating?

I'm going to try a few different varieties next year to see what's what.

My Desiree seem fine, but I have sprayed a few times.

sirpsycho

Roosters far superior to any sarpo, well to my tastebuds anyways. Sarpo just ok for eating, not great but not too bad. Havent seen any in the shops although I have a feeling they are sold in Superquinn.

Only way is to spray (with dithene) to avoid the blight in this poxy wet country!

muckyhands

Ive grown Sarpo axona and mira the past few years- never have blight troubles with them on my allotment. Have found they need to be boiled carefully- dont go off and forget about them or youll end up with soup, like me- cookings not my fortay.

Taste is fantastic when done right. Boiled with butter or roasted with butter and melted cheese, Mmmm.

Get mine from Mr Middleton and Tullys nursery in Ballyboughal started stocking them this year so far as I know.

redser7

Thanks Muckyhands, so I am assuming you dont spray them at all? Hearing around the plots that this year even with spraying some people got hit

Technophobe

Redser,

Mr Middleton has bags of Sarpo Peer and Charlotte for sale in city centre shop...Got some Charlotte myself there today;)

redser7

Cheers Technophobe. What's the deal? For Christmas spuds?

muckyhands

redser7 wrote: »

Thanks Muckyhands, so I am assuming you dont spray them at all? Hearing around the plots that this year even with spraying some people got hit

No I dont spray and so far so good.

geordief

Is noone familiar with the idea of spraying the very young plants regularly with a very diluted asprin solution?

I tried it myself a good few years ago and results were perfect but I didn't have the appplication to continue and just put up with having to cut the haulms to ground level (and remove) as soon as the blight arrives (I normally can continue using the tubers right up until the new year normally)

Apart from that I spray is a fairly disorganised way with a bordeaux mixture that I make up freshly with builders lime and copper sulphate crystals.
I think I would have better results with this if I was more organised.

I also don't grow them all in the same spot and sometimes the blight will leave one area alone at least for a few weeks.

Technophobe

redser7 wrote: »

Cheers Technophobe. What's the deal? For Christmas spuds?

Yep advertised as Christmas spuds..9.95 :eek: for a bag of seed potatoes

redser7

Wow wont be bothering with those, what a racket

paddy147

Dont worry,give it another 2-3 years or so,and we will be eating GM Spuds from County Carlow.

Thanks to Teagasc and the EPA

redser7

Patented spuds. Soon we wont even be able to grow our own veg. Keep saving those seeds!

paddy147

redser7 wrote: »

Patented spuds. Soon we wont even be able to grow our own veg. Keep saving those seeds!

GM crop fields will mean a further decline in Bees and butterflies too.:(

Cardinal Richelieu

paddy147 wrote: »

GM crop fields will mean a further decline in Bees and butterflies too.:(

Links?

liamhana

I dug two rows up entirely last week due to blight & will now have to take up the rest early as well as the leaves are gone & the few I've picked are showing signs.....Sarpos next year...

paddy147

Cardinal Richelieu wrote: »

Links?

Theres been studies done on GM fields over in the Uk and they saw a 68% drop in bees and butterflies.:(


http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2012/0727/1224320884878.html



....."An Taisce said it was concerned that conducting GM field trials in an open air environment could result in the cross-pollination with non-GM potatoes. “In addition, research on GM crops on farmland biodiversity in the UK, which was carried out on more than 200 plots, have demonstrated worrying trends. Bees and butterflies were found to be 68 per cent fewer in the GM field”.............