Forum home› Fruit & veg
This Forum will close on Wednesday 27 March, 2024. Please refer to the announcement on the Discussions page for further detail.

1st & 2nd Earlies

Andrew KennethAndrew Kenneth Posts: 277
in Fruit & veg

Been in since April 1st. They now have flowers fully opened. Will they be ready for harvest?

Can't wait much longerimage

«1

Posts

  • fidgetbonesfidgetbones Posts: 17,615

    Have a ferret around  in the soil. You might find they are still very small..or you could have a  nice surprise.

  • Lupin 1Lupin 1 Posts: 8,916

    Andrew do as fidgetbones says, the ones I planted on 10/3 are only just ready, but I have grown in sacks. image

  • No expertNo expert Posts: 415

    Sowed my Queens on 3rd April, they are flowering but very small yet. I'd wait till early july for spuds sown on April 1st.

  • Zoomer44Zoomer44 Posts: 3,267

    I grew spuds in bags for several years and would by now be delving into the bags to see if they were big enough for eating but grew them on an allotment for the first time this year.

    It's ever so tempting to start digging up, my first earlies are at the same stage as yours although some haven't flowered yet. The second earlies are also beginning to flower...image...

    Start digging one plant up at a time at the beginning of a row, that's my plan this weekend and if happy with the size I was going to dig up a full row, they store well in the ground and in bags after harvesting...that's if kept in the dark and don't start sprouting for a couple of months, 1st and 2nd earlies won't store like main crop though... 

  • Lupin 1Lupin 1 Posts: 8,916

    Zoomer, I can usually store 1st earlies ok in a paper sack in the garage, we finished last years in April of this year and they had only just started to sprout.

    Hope you find a bumper crop. image

  • Andrew KennethAndrew Kenneth Posts: 277

    Ok thanks, will take a look this weekend.

  • Mark 499Mark 499 Posts: 380

    I think you need to allow at least 12 weeks between planting & harvesting spuds, that's what I allow anyway.

  • Zoomer44Zoomer44 Posts: 3,267

    As KEF says spuds do store better in paper bags or hessian sacks. I tend not to grow enough for them to last till April, ate the last of mine in January and the last bag was emptied in October.

    I still have some 2nd earlies chitting from January this year as there wasn't enough room to plant them out.

  • iGrowiGrow Posts: 183
    90 days for first earlies and 110 days for second earlies. As you planted at the beginning of April your first earlies should be ready at the end of June/beginning of July.
  • Andrew KennethAndrew Kenneth Posts: 277

    OK 73 Days have past and I dug up a plant today. They look marvelous. Slightly larger than an egg.

    Just dug up 2 more plants!

    Maybe they have advanced because I grew them under black plastic ??

Sign In or Register to comment.