TODAYS SEAT TIME

[Molalla1]

That doesn't seem fair this time of year for your neck of the woods or do I have that wrong ?

gg

No Gordon it is not, in fact it's suppose to be in the 50's this weekend :cool2: . . . but I did just get about 2" of the crud, but it's just about gone now :thumbsup:.

 

[sixdogs]

Last year was my first year, and the potato bugs didn't find me. Potatoes have never been planted in this field before, I lease this land from next door farmer. This year though, yeah, I have to spray. Probably will use mix of Neem oil and spinosad (Bob's Dead Bug) to keep spray organic, though dumping lots of 34-0-0- so not organic overall. I have a pull behind gas powered orchard sprayer that has rear nozzles, but will probably just use the gun. I made the rows extra wide so my Gravely garden tractor pulling the sprayer would fit in between, at least in beginning.
I can sit comfortably on the Gravely and spray while riding along. Figuring I'll have to spray twice, but honestly, have no experience in this, just wish I could find Neem oil locally in larger quantities to get the price down. Expensive stuff.

Some folks pick the bugs off, but that's too much bending over for me, so spray it will be.

Might want to ask your extension agent about rotating that field after this year. There are lots of potato diseases that can wipe out a crop. Rotation is one way to deal with it. We got hit after successive plantings. Warmer climes like ours don't give the cold winter temps to hold things in check. In the north, potatoes are rotated with small grains and that helps. Just my two cents.

 

[check]

Put 6 hours on the 1620 today and burnt through 7 gallons of diesel blowing snow. A fellow firefighter got stuck last night in the blizzard heading to the station for a call. Fast forward to 9am this morning, and this is how we found his truck :laughing:.

~10" + 50-60mph winds = buried ford


Had to snowblow about 300 yards worth of road that peaked at ~5' drifts. The 1620 is definitely getting a turbo and a few more ponies after today.


I'm standing in the truck bed in this pic

That would be SO much fun! The most I got to blow this winter was maybe 18”.

 

[daugen]

Might want to ask your extension agent about rotating that field after this year. There are lots of potato diseases that can wipe out a crop. Rotation is one way to deal with it. We got hit after successive plantings. Warmer climes like ours don't give the cold winter temps to hold things in check. In the north, potatoes are rotated with small grains and that helps. Just my two cents.

smart idea, thanks. Doesn't work for me though, I only lease 1.5 acres and I use it almost all for potatoes. No place else to go...
If I do this again next year, not sure, I'll put the potatoes where the collards are now for what space that is. My understanding is there are chomping bugs both above and below. Rotation would be only way to deal with underground bugs I guess. I'm avoiding any strong chemicals so my choices are limited.

 

[hunt4570]

smart idea, thanks. Doesn't work for me though, I only lease 1.5 acres and I use it almost all for potatoes. No place else to go...
If I do this again next year, not sure, I'll put the potatoes where the collards are now for what space that is. My understanding is there are chomping bugs both above and below. Rotation would be only way to deal with underground bugs I guess. I'm avoiding any strong chemicals so my choices are limited.

So whats the deal with potatoes? Good money in it or something? I've never grown potatoes, seems bags of them are pretty cheap. Just curious..

 

[TheMadOne]

So whats the deal with potatoes? Good money in it or something? I've never grown potatoes, seems bags of them are pretty cheap. Just curious..

I plan on doing potatoes for the first time this year. You just can't buy good potatoes anymore, at least around here. Something, and I don't know what, changed. Local spuds are now just as tasteless as the stuff imported from out of state.

A lot of things I remember being better in my childhood have proven to have been better. Heritage tomatoes instead of tasteless fast growers, scrapple with enough lard to actually taste right, patty-pan squash have all but vanished. Symptoms of urbanization, I guess.

 

[daugen]

So whats the deal with potatoes? Good money in it or something? I've never grown potatoes, seems bags of them are pretty cheap. Just curious..

no money in at all...one of my bucket list items for retirement was to grow food for the poor/hungry so this is what I'm doing.
100 percent goes to local food pantry. Last year they said I fed the county poor for a month with my red potatoes.
doing twice that this year, since I have a guy who will bring in his professional potato harvester and do a much better job than
I did last year with a middlebuster/potato plow. Most of the volunteers are seniors, and digging potatoes out of the dirt is hard work.
Hopefully that machine will lay them on top.

Froze my butt off this morning, started at 5am, getting the field ready for a planting party at 1pm. First I hilled one more time with the little Massey to fluff it up, then ran the pull behind tiller over the rows at the highest setting, so it just levels and fluffs the top of the hill. Makes a nice seedbed. All we are going to do is just push the potato piece in the dirt, it's so soft that isn't hard to do. Then I'll come along with a rake when everyone is done.
Hoping to get three or four volunteers for this, nice to have, lot of bending over...

Part of my motivation is hearing from the food pantry that they get asked constantly "do you have any more of those good potatoes?" :thumbsup:
I work for thank you's and compliments, not money on this one, all good. But I'm turning 69 next week with severe arthritis and I admit not sure how much longer I can do this. I get by with a little help from my friends.

One more 50 pound bag of potatoes to cut still, but I had to come in and get warm, have a hot cup of coffee and put a heat wrap on my neck.
Ahhhh. I don't do well in the cold any more.

 

[hunt4570]

no money in at all...one of my bucket list items for retirement was to grow food for the poor/hungry so this is what I'm doing.
100 percent goes to local food pantry. Last year they said I fed the county poor for a month with my red potatoes.
doing twice that this year, since I have a guy who will bring in his professional potato harvester and do a much better job than
I did last year with a middlebuster/potato plow. Most of the volunteers are seniors, and digging potatoes out of the dirt is hard work.
Hopefully that machine will lay them on top.

Froze my butt off this morning, started at 5am, getting the field ready for a planting party at 1pm. First I hilled one more time with the little Massey to fluff it up, then ran the pull behind tiller over the rows at the highest setting, so it just levels and fluffs the top of the hill. Makes a nice seedbed. All we are going to do is just push the potato piece in the dirt, it's so soft that isn't hard to do. Then I'll come along with a rake when everyone is done.
Hoping to get three or four volunteers for this, nice to have, lot of bending over...

Part of my motivation is hearing from the food pantry that they get asked constantly "do you have any more of those good potatoes?" :thumbsup:
I work for thank you's and compliments, not money on this one, all good. But I'm turning 69 next week with severe arthritis and I admit not sure how much longer I can do this. I get by with a little help from my friends.

One more 50 pound bag of potatoes to cut still, but I had to come in and get warm, have a hot cup of coffee and put a heat wrap on my neck.
Ahhhh. I don't do well in the cold any more.

Outstanding, Kudos to you!

 

[Molalla1]

no money in at all...one of my bucket list items for retirement was to grow food for the poor/hungry so this is what I'm doing.
100 percent goes to local food pantry. Last year they said I fed the county poor for a month with my red potatoes.
doing twice that this year, since I have a guy who will bring in his professional potato harvester and do a much better job than
I did last year with a middlebuster/potato plow. Most of the volunteers are seniors, and digging potatoes out of the dirt is hard work.
Hopefully that machine will lay them on top.

Froze my butt off this morning, started at 5am, getting the field ready for a planting party at 1pm. First I hilled one more time with the little Massey to fluff it up, then ran the pull behind tiller over the rows at the highest setting, so it just levels and fluffs the top of the hill. Makes a nice seedbed. All we are going to do is just push the potato piece in the dirt, it's so soft that isn't hard to do. Then I'll come along with a rake when everyone is done.
Hoping to get three or four volunteers for this, nice to have, lot of bending over...

Part of my motivation is hearing from the food pantry that they get asked constantly "do you have any more of those good potatoes?" :thumbsup:
I work for thank you's and compliments, not money on this one, all good. But I'm turning 69 next week with severe arthritis and I admit not sure how much longer I can do this. I get by with a little help from my friends.

One more 50 pound bag of potatoes to cut still, but I had to come in and get warm, have a hot cup of coffee and put a heat wrap on my neck.
Ahhhh. I don't do well in the cold any more.

Your a good man Mr. daugen . . . :thumbsup:

 

[TheMadOne]

Second saddest seat time today.

Drove the L3301 over to the garage and pulled the Pat's system, swapped out the pin stabilizers for the turnbuckles, and emptied the toolbox.

I'm still excited for the L3560, but I'm gonna miss the old girl.