Early potatoes

InTheMoorlands · 5 February

Just wondered how advisable it is to plant out potatoes in my containers. In the wild the plants would presumably be OK in the ground and just grow when ready, so why not in a container?

Allotment Boy · 5 February

The problem is in the erratic weather. When it's mild they may grow but then if we get late frost, like last year, it will kill the tops and they may not recover. Remember they are native to S AMERICA not Northern Europe.

war garden 572 · 5 February

in south America they are grown on terraces beds on the side of
mountains.

Allotment Boy · 6 February

Frost will still kill the tender, tops of the cultivated interbreed varieties we have here. They may have originally come from native cultivars but are a long way from them now.

InTheMoorlands · 7 February

Thanks everyone. I just imagined them as frost resistant. I'll leave it until April.

Allotment Boy · 7 February

Yes , sorry to disappoint but, we get similar questions from a lot of enthusiastic folk at this time a year. It's understandable that you are keen to get going but it's best to wait till conditions are suitable. If you really want to sow something now, Broad beans are tough enough, but even then they will only crop a couple of weeks before later sown ones.

InTheMoorlands · 8 February

Everywhere is now covered with a thick layer of snow - good job I asked here and didn't go ahead

Early potatoes

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