Potatoes Off To A Great Start

[bp fick]

Three more rows to do today, but the heat has been so brutal this week. I may only plow up another row and await some cooler weather promised for week's end.

 

[radioman]

cute kids! great crop!! Ill be diggin my potatoes in sept I think.
Did you use a middle buster ?

 

[tulenutn2o]

Update: Tater digging time.

Plowed up a row of potatoes for the kids to pick up. It's our family gathering week, so it seemed an ideal time to demonstrate to the kids where food actually comes from. The rule was simple. You pick it up, you can take it home. Looks like everyone will be going home with a big 'ol sack of new potatoes.

BTW, best production year ever, at first glance. Looks to be 7 or 8 to one.

Seven or eight pounds back for each pound of seed. 50 lbs were planted, so I would expect between 350 and 400 pounds return. Good year.

What is your normal crop like? I dug a row last week and got 4-5lbs a hill. Quite a few tipped the scales at over a pound. Been really super hot rainy summer here. 70lbs out of first row.(this is a guess on the last 10lbs cause been diggin to eat for a couple of weeks out of the same row). However I did sell the other 60lbs. Need to dig some more but ground is way too muddy after another 2" rain last night.This is my second year on potatoes, so I didn't know how well I was doing. I only planted 1 eye per hill by hand and was very meticulous with weeding and hilling until they got bushy enough to keep weeds out. I'll dig more in next day or so before the next rain and post pics of the biggins.Nice lookin garden there!

 

[bp fick]

Yes, I use a middle buster, aka potato plow. Works very well, but there is still a lot of hand work. I think I only found three nicked potatoes out of hundreds and hundreds. The 'lil BX is a bit of a lower rider for these tasks, but got it done.

These were Pontiac Reds and the crop is producing in spades. May be the best ever. This year has been very hot, with adequate and somewhat timely rains.

Thoughts already are turning to next year. Going to go with some Yukons and some Russet types, I think.

 

[Duffster]

Update: Tater digging time.

Plowed up a row of potatoes for the kids to pick up. It's our family gathering week, so it seemed an ideal time to demonstrate to the kids where food actually comes from. The rule was simple. You pick it up, you can take it home. Looks like everyone will be going home with a big 'ol sack of new potatoes.

BTW, best production year ever, at first glance. Looks to be 7 or 8 to one.

Seven or eight pounds back for each pound of seed. 50 lbs were planted, so I would expect between 350 and 400 pounds return. Good year.

I dug some of mine today and got thinking about your figures and now I am scratching my head.

I have two 40' rows planted with ~7.5# of seed. We dug ~10' of one of them today and I weighed the bucket and it was 35#. If I subtract 5# for the bucket and the dirt, or should I say mud, that would be 30#.

30# x 8 = 240#

240# / 7.5 = 32#

So 32 to 1.

 

[bp fick]

I dug some of mine today and got thinking about your figures and now I am scratching my head.

I have two 40' rows planted with ~7.5# of seed. We dug ~10' of one of them today and I weighed the bucket and it was 35#. If I subtract 5# for the bucket and the dirt, or should I say mud, that would be 30#.

30# x 8 = 240#

240# / 7.5 = 32#

So 32 to 1.

Well, here is how I am doing the numbers, FWIW. If I plant 10 lbs of seed potatoes and get 50 lbs back, that is a 5 factor. That is about what I am running on the first half I have dug to date, perhaps more like 6.

You planted 7.5 and got back 30. That is over 4 factor return. Unless I am doing your math wrong, which is a possibility.

 

[Duffster]

Well, here is how I am doing the numbers, FWIW. If I plant 10 lbs of seed potatoes and get 50 lbs back, that is a 5 factor. That is about what I am running on the first half I have dug to date, perhaps more like 6.

You planted 7.5 and got back 30. That is over 4 factor return. Unless I am doing your math wrong, which is a possibility.

The 30 is only an eighth of the crop. So I planted 7.5 and got 240.

There is ~60 plants so that is only 4# per plant though.

 

[tulenutn2o]

Well, dug our potatoes today. Got them coming out the ears! Numerous weighing in at 2lbs.+ .Here is a couple:

 

[bp fick]

The 30 is only an eighth of the crop. So I planted 7.5 and got 240.

There is ~60 plants so that is only 4# per plant though.

I think the best way to figure yield is pounds of seed giving total pounds of harvest. 50lbs of seed in, 500 lbs out, for example.

Right now, my harvest is not complete, so I am guessing. Hope to finish that this week.

 

[bp fick]

Well, dug our potatoes today. Got them coming out the ears! Numerous weighing in at 2lbs.+ .Here is a couple:

Nice!!! Very nice. Congrats.