Digging/storing spuds

Hesh's Umpire

I planted a few drills of spuds on 4th June and 14th June (a bit late I know). Have been happily digging and eating them for the past 6 weeks or so.
My question is, with frost imminent, do I need to dig all the remaining spuds? I presume I do.

And my second question is, how to I best store them? I'll probably have 5 or 6 stones of spuds to be stored.

They're roosters and records if it matters.

jprboy

Hesh's Umpire wrote: »

My question is, with frost imminent, do I need to dig all the remaining spuds? I presume I do.

Not necessarily but if we get the extremely low temps that we got circa 2009/2010 they won't survive. I left some records in the ground until Jan 2013 and they were fine.

Hesh's Umpire wrote: »

And my second question is, how to I best store them? I'll probably have 5 or 6 stones of spuds to be stored. They're roosters and records if it matters.

Best way is to make sure they are fully dry. Soil will stick to them much easier after the recent wet weather. Knock as much of the clay off as you can and air dry them in a shed/garage. If you get a sunny day try and leave them outside too. Even though the sun is weak and low in the sky it still has some drying capability.

When fully dry store in a cool dark area (e.g cardboard box in garage)

TheBody

jprboy wrote: »

Not necessarily but if we get the extremely low temps that we got circa 2009/2010 they won't survive. I left some records in the ground until Jan 2013 and they were fine.



Best way is to make sure they are fully dry. Soil will stick to them much easier after the recent wet weather. Knock as much of the clay off as you can and air dry them in a shed/garage. If you get a sunny day try and leave them outside too. Even though the sun is weak and low in the sky it still has some drying capability.

When fully dry store in a cool dark area (e.g cardboard box in garage)

I definitely would NOT leave them out in the sun. Light causes them to make toxins. See here:

https://www.fsai.ie/faq/green_potatoes.html

jprboy

TheBody wrote: »

I definitely would NOT leave them out in the sun. Light causes them to make toxins. See here:

https://www.fsai.ie/faq/green_potatoes.html

Yes, but that would be over a prolonged period.

You'll see this with potatoes that have had the soil covering them eroded for a long time before they are dug out.

A few hours in the sun won't do any harm.


I should also have said that I had potatoes stored in cardboard boxes in the garage during one of the severe winters in 2009 or 2010 and the frost penetrated all the way in and made mush of them. Very rare event but worth keeping in mind.

peadar76

I vaguely remember my Dad storing potatoes outside. He use to form a triangular shaped mound. Then he would cover with straw and then soil. I'm not sure what time of year it was or for how long they were stored this way

jprboy

peadar76 wrote: »

I vaguely remember my Dad storing potatoes outside. He use to form a triangular shaped mound. Then he would cover with straw and then soil. I'm not sure what time of year it was or for how long they were stored this way

That's the pit method.


http://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/vegetables/potato/storing-potatoes-in-ground.htm