Harvest before frost
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Meadowlark
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Your broccoli can tolerate temps into the upper 20s F but if its forecast to be lower than that will not survive and should be harvested now. Personally, I think it actually tastes better when it has had a light frost...but not freeze.
As for potatoes, the tubers in the ground won't be affected but the tops will die in a frost and the tubers should be harvested right away.
If you are looking at marginal conditions, i.e. light frost, you can help your plants considerably by thoroughly watering them and providing some protective covering in advance.
As for potatoes, the tubers in the ground won't be affected but the tops will die in a frost and the tubers should be harvested right away.
If you are looking at marginal conditions, i.e. light frost, you can help your plants considerably by thoroughly watering them and providing some protective covering in advance.
Why do tuners need to be harvested if they don’t die? Is overwintering an option for potatoes?
Meadowlark
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"tuners"? Perhaps you meant tubers? If left in the ground, they will rot...at least certainly rot here in my climate. Others may be able to leave them overwinter but for sure not here. If they freeze, they will for sure rot and so if you do leave them, they must be well covered with mulch and soil.
I am in zone 9b. Per Master gardener program at local university here, they recommend planting potatoes until fall: August. I planted a few potatoes later than that
Leaves came out a few weeks ago and I was under the impression that I would harvest it after a while; around 3+ months from planting.
Meadowlark
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What type of potato was that? Different varieties have different days to maturity. Red Norland for example runs 75-85 days but Yukon Gold is more like 90 - 100 days. Other varieties can take even longer.
By early Dec. you should have a good crop to harvest. If I'm lucky here, that is when I will harvest mine this fall also but often get a frost before that. I start mine in Aug. also.
By early Dec. you should have a good crop to harvest. If I'm lucky here, that is when I will harvest mine this fall also but often get a frost before that. I start mine in Aug. also.
I think they are Russet potatoes.
Meadowlark
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Those are 95 days.
The "Idaho" potato?
They didn't grow too well here and I'm in a cooler climate than you. Kennebecs do real good here. Meadowlark (I might be mistaken) has stated that red potatoes do better for them. @Meadowlark pull up your tater charts. I haven't tried red potatoes here.
Meadowlark
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As you wish:
| Rank | Type | Rating | HK PRO | GAR PRO | QUAL | Taste |
1 | Red Pontiacs | 40.3 | 8.0 | 13.0 | 10 | 9.3 |
2 | Sarpo Mira | 38.8 | 6.2 | 12.6 | 10 | 10 |
3 | Dark Red Norland | 38.5 | 8.9 | 10.2 | 10 | 9.3 |
4 | Elba | 33 | 7.2 | 7.8 | 9 | 9 |
5 | Yukon Gold | 33 | 6.9 | 7.1 | 10 | 9 |
6 | Caribe | 31.5 | 5.8 | 6.4 | 10 | 9.3 |
7 | German BB | 30.6 | 5.3 | 7 | 10 | 8.3 |
8 | Rose Gold | 29.9 | 4.3 | 6.6 | 10 | 9 |
9 | Russet | 28.4 | 5.4 | 6 | 9 | 8 |
10 | Kennebec | 27.2 | 5.5 | 6 | 8 | 7.7 |
11 | Huckelberry Gold | 23.6 | 4.6 | 3 | 8 | 8 |
12 | Prarie Bush | 22.6 | 3.9 | 4.3 | 7 | 7.3 |
13 | Charlotte | 21 | 5.2 | 3.8 | 5 | 7 |
Russets were in the lower half in my results.
In search of potato for East Texas
Third today was my own standard potato I've raised for decades, the "Red Pontiac". Easily the largest producer in-ground in this study so far. It would be interesting to have done all this work and find out what I've been growing all these years is the best there is in-ground. Maybe it is...
So were the Kennebecs... about equal producers in your test. Kennebecs totally outperformed in quantity and size grown here in the very same conditions. I won't grow Russets again unless I just have to. That is interesting. Meadowlark is closer to your USDA zone so I would start with that. @gary350 also does alot of potatoes and is closer to my USDA zone so I wonder what he says?
WHAT are the acronyms? HK PRO? GAR PRO? QUAL?
I want to grow 4 month potatoes this year but need the NAMEs of some white potatoes to see if I can buy seed potatoes.
I will grow 3 month Kennebec potatoes this coming April.
Red Pontiac potatoes are a hot weather crop they love TN 100°f hot blistering sun. In the past Red Pontiac plants produce 4 lbs of new potatoes from each plant but we don't like the flavor or these red potatoes. I very much enjoy growing Red Pontiac I fell like I did something great with a BIG harvest & zero work potato crop. Red Pontiac out produce white potatoes 4 to 1.
I finally learned Cobbler potatoes are a 3 month crop of white potatoes.
I want to grow 4 month potatoes this year but need the NAMEs of some white potatoes to see if I can buy seed potatoes.
I will grow 3 month Kennebec potatoes this coming April.
Red Pontiac potatoes are a hot weather crop they love TN 100°f hot blistering sun. In the past Red Pontiac plants produce 4 lbs of new potatoes from each plant but we don't like the flavor or these red potatoes. I very much enjoy growing Red Pontiac I fell like I did something great with a BIG harvest & zero work potato crop. Red Pontiac out produce white potatoes 4 to 1.
I finally learned Cobbler potatoes are a 3 month crop of white potatoes.
Meadowlark
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It's all explained in the referenced thread...but "HK Pro" = Hügelkultur container production of new potatoes per one pound of seed potato", GAR PRO = " Garden production of new potatoes in garden soil from one pound of seed potatoes", and QUAL = "Quality" a subjective measure of the health of the plants, the lack of any diseases and/or insect damage, and overall condition of the new potatoes".
Generally, Maincrop potatoes are the longest maturing potatoes and perhaps the most common of these is the Russet Burbank, a thick-skinned, white flesh potato that takes 120 days to mature. We had a good discussion of the Russet at:
Russet potato harvest results
I sprouted and grew some Walmart Russet potatoes this year. I'm not exactly sure of the variety but I am assuming they are Burbank. Harvested some today (83rd day from planting) as the vines are dead. I don't think these grow well here or something. 14 plants averaged 7.14 oz of potatoes each...
Yes, we've been through that claim @gary350 wrote that "Make 16 cuttings with 1 eye each you have 16 plants from 1 lb of seed potatoes. 16 Red Pontiac plants will grow 16 x 4 = 64 lbs of new potatoes" discussion. I remain highly skeptical of those claims including the claim 16 plants per one pound of seed potato is even possible and 4 lbs of new potato per plant.
I get about 1 lb of new potatoes from each plant sometimes less here in TN. I think 1 lb per plant is a terrible harvest but its the best I can do in TN we have 100° hot dry weather June to Sept. At the moment I have several boxes if Red Norland potatoes that need to be planted but not going too grow any more potatoes until April and maybe none then. I can sometimes grow 4 lbs of new potatoes in winter under an upside down fish aquarium. I can usually grow 10 lbs of new potatoes in each of these tiny green houses. I can't grow russet in TN in April we have 100° weather June to Sept and 1" of rain every month. I grew 4 lbs of russet under this fish aquarium 4 years ago from a hand full of potato peelings that sprouted and grew plants, LOL. I am wasting my time and wasting garden space growing potatoes, 10 lbs of grocery store potatoes only cost $6.
When I lived in Illinois temperature never got above 90° soil was soft and sandy and we had a small 1/2" rain every evening. I put cuttings on the soil surface then rake soil over them and 3 months later we had a huge crop of potatoes. I can't do that is TN.
When I lived in Illinois temperature never got above 90° soil was soft and sandy and we had a small 1/2" rain every evening. I put cuttings on the soil surface then rake soil over them and 3 months later we had a huge crop of potatoes. I can't do that is TN.
Meadowlark
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I've been growing potatoes here in East Texas since about 1980 and never once grew them to save money but always for the taste, the nutritional value, and the fact they are 100% chemical free. All these years of growing them, I've never had a bumper crop in the fall, but this year is looking very different.
I took the most aggressive spuds from my spring experiment and dedicated them for seed potatoes for fall. I forced them to sprout in mid August and planted them in 110 deg F day time temps. It wasn't until mid September that the temps started dropping below 100 deg. F...and as a matter of fact today will set a record for the hottest day ever Oct. 28. We've had a couple of mild cool fronts and that seemed to result in explosive growth of the fall spuds both in the ground and in HK containers. See photos.
If I can extend the growing season another three weeks or so without frost/freeze, I'm confident this will be the greatest harvest of fall new potatoes I've ever had.