Landacre wrote in with an interesting problem. He husband planted potatoes, but "...all he got was a green bush and the same potato attached at the bottom." I've had years when my potoatoes weren't very large, but I've always gotten a few from each plant. And since growing anything underground for the entire season is a leap of faith, it's got to be very disappointing to pull up nothing.
Poor potato production is usually caused by one of two things:
- The temperature stayed too warm. Potatoes like to cool off in the evenings. Keep piling on the soil, as the plant grows, or at least give it a good 4" of mulch.
- Too much nitrogen, too little phosphorous. We always talk about wanting our plants to develop a good root system, but this is one time when it really matters. Choose a fertilzier with a low 1st number (nitrogen) and a high 2nd number (phosphorous)
Potatoes also need a lot of water, especially while they're in flower. But since the tops of the plants grew well, water probably wasn't the problem. Have any of you experienced this and do you have any advice to share with Landacre?
Comments
6-24-24 fertlizer for below ground root plants such as radishes, potatoes,beets and others.
the first year i planted potatoes I grew only tops bearing what looked like small cherry tomatoes and nothing under the soil.10 years later and many successful harvests since the neighborhood still talks about it. now I am growing deer truffles in my strawberries.
Deer truffles? That doesn’t sound like a good thing. What are deer truffles?