I set out for the allotment this morning with one job in mind. The potato harvest.
I have already picked a couple of hands full over the past week so I knew there were spuds down there. It was with great anticipation that I grabbed “The Big Fork” and sallied forth. The ground was soggy due to all the rain we’ve had which made it heavy going. Not a job for whimps as muscles were flexed, earth went flying, The Big Fork got red hot! (I have been known to exaggerate.)
If you promise not to laugh I will show you the results.
Here it comes ……….
The potato harvest
On the plus side I did have a good work-out.
Don’t know where I went wrong, perhaps the heavy rain hasn’t helped, but I’m not wasting tears over it – so I got on with the next planting.
This time I’m growing King Edwards and I’m going to use bags rather than plant them in the ground. I laid the potatoes on a layer of good compost and organic fertiliser. I’ll be topping up the soil as the plants grow, until I get to the top of the bag.
Here are three of the bags already in place. Just behind the green bag you can see a small bed of potatoes that I will be digging up in a month or so. Hopefully there are some spuds underneath all that greenery.
I knew what I was doing when I named this blog “Allotment Adventures with Jean” because gardening is an adventure. You put in the effort, you give tender care, and you may get zilch. (Do you remember the catastrophic rhubarb?). On the other hand, some stuff gets neglected and grows like Topsy.
When I set up this blog I had to decide between two names. It’s been on my mind today. The other name I thought of using was “Optimists Anonymous”.
Happy gardening.
Jul 18, 2012 @ 18:34:34
Regretfully dear optimist that bucket is not half full.
Jul 18, 2012 @ 19:10:42
Nigel that is very funny. You are so right.
Jul 19, 2012 @ 02:24:28
I intended to start a garden this summer but as of yet, haven’t even begun. So rest assured your potato harvest is abundant compared to mine! 😉
Jul 19, 2012 @ 09:27:31
Do start your garden when you have the time. I get great pleasure from mine, the trouble is, it can take over your life!
Jul 19, 2012 @ 05:47:02
Better luck next time. Because its been so dry here, our potato plants are dying off early, so I think we’ll end up harvesting 6 rows of baby potatoes. Unless it’s ok to leave them in the ground longer. I don’t know, we’ll have to consult a friend with more experience.
Jul 19, 2012 @ 09:29:25
I’m not sure how long you can leave them in the ground either Heidi. My potatoes were small but as the ground was sodden I didn’t want to leave them there to rot. Anyway, tiny little new potatoes are delicious.
Jul 19, 2012 @ 07:42:14
I am with you there on the spud harvest Jean! We spent $15 on special seed potatoes knowing that Tasmania is the ultimate climate for spuds and that they were growing in silt in a paddock that we saw a little while ago…apparently they are allergic to our ‘dirt’ as we didn’t even get a colander full of them! What we did get was delicious but we could have bought more from a local spud farmer for that initial outlay…sigh…sometimes you just have to know when to call it quits! I am glad that you are going with bags…Jamie Oliver certainly seems to think its a good idea 😉
Jul 19, 2012 @ 09:32:09
Growing potatoes in bags – if it’s good enough for Jamie Oliver it’s good enough for me. The main benefit as far as I am concerned is that when I harvest the bags I can tip them out and make sure I get every spud and nothing left lurking in the ground.
Jul 21, 2012 @ 21:46:29
Ahhh Jean…that harvest is still better than any we have managed here!! We have tried everything, bags, mounds, ground…still only ever small crops!!! Must say the bags were easier to harvest though…i always keep digging when they are in the ground as i keep thinking there must be more!!
Love that you are embracing the adventure though!!! Optimists Anonymous…..love it!
Jul 23, 2012 @ 09:37:22
Hi Jode. I did exactly the same as you said in your comment – I kept digging just KNOWING that there must be more spuds in there hiding away! I have great hope for the bags. The big advantage as I see it is that once you empty the bag you know you get the whole crop, teeny or not. I like your last sentence. I have a feeling that my gardening is pretty well an ‘optimistic adventure’. But I always end up with something on the dinner plate – not just the pattern!
Jul 24, 2012 @ 15:29:12
Hehehe your harvest of spuds looks like mine did earlier this year! I dug up one plant and got off a great lot of spuds, then with great expectations when it was time to dig up the rest I was highly disappointed as they were very very slim pickings lol. Will be doing more prep this year and see how we get on 🙂 Will be interesting to see how you get on with the spud bags and growing them in those, I shall be watching with anticipation to see the result you get with them 😉 Regards, Ruth