[Market-farming] New potatoes in the rain
Allan Balliett
aballiett at frontiernet.net
Thu Jun 11 06:31:11 EDT 2009
My remarks were from experiences with the often recommended 'make a
loose bed, just push the seed potatoes in the ground and then cover
heavily with old hay. I have done this into beds that received
compost in the fall. I have never done it with formulated fertilizer
in the spring, so there can be other factors at play in my
experience. I've certainly never found loose clean potatoes in the
hay mulch though. Most of the spuds would be laying on the surface of
the soil even though the plants had very well penetrated the mulch
>You say that you didn't get much yield with hay mulch, Allan? Is
>that compared with hilling or some other kind of mulch? How did you
>plant the potatoes? Into a furrow or on the ground with dirt hilled
>up on top of them or some other method? I planted my paltry 500
>lbs. by hand, on the ground, then threw dirt on top with my hilling
>discs on my Super C. I suppose I could hill them once more, then
>roll out round bales on top. Or I could try several treatments and
>see which works best.
>
>Kurt Forman
>Clearview Farm
>Palmyra, NY 14522
>
>--- aballiett at frontiernet.net wrote:
>
>From: Allan Balliett <aballiett at frontiernet.net>
>To: Market Farming <market-farming at lists.ibiblio.org>
>Subject: Re: [Market-farming] New potatoes in the rain
>Date: Mon, 8 Jun 2009 10:15:31 -0400
>
>>How thick does the mulch need to be over the plants, Pat? I have
>>some old round hay bales I thought I would try, in spite of any
>>potential weed seeds imparted from them. Unlike you early birds, my
>>spuds planted on 5/23-24 are just emerging. Do you think I will
>>hurt the plants, if I roll hay on top of them as they are just
>>coming out of the ground? I formed small hills at planting with my
>>hilling discs.
>
>if they are under 5 inches and stout, I've rolled over them before
>and it's worked just fine. I just didnt' get much yield with hay mulch
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