Rocket Man
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I planted 192 potato cuttings with 1 eye each. We hope to have about 500 lbs of Red Norland potatoes and about 300 lbs of Kennebec potatoes in about 4 months.
"Potato cuttings with 1 eye each"..... That's a new one for me?
I guess you take a potato with a few eyes chitted, then cut so it is in smaller pieces - each with one eye...?
Are the eyes buried? Is the eye exposed to the sun? - I understand the eyes produce roots and top growth from the side of the spud, so the piece of spud is simply providing the initial food (starch) for that growth. So how small a piece will allow a chit to develop successfully? - Your spuds look exposed. When do you bury them? I think in my garden, the birds, slugs 'n all, would eat the spuds before the chits had grown into viable plants. My spuds are always buried whole when chitted.
Interesting that you plant your potatoes so close together. We plant ours about 2 to 3 feet apart in rows at least 3 feet apart to give the plants enough room to grow.
"Potato cuttings with 1 eye each"..... That's a new one for me?
I guess you take a potato with a few eyes chitted, then cut so it is in smaller pieces - each with one eye...?
Are the eyes buried? Is the eye exposed to the sun? - I understand the eyes produce roots and top growth from the side of the spud, so the piece of spud is simply providing the initial food (starch) for that growth. So how small a piece will allow a chit to develop successfully? - Your spuds look exposed. When do you bury them? I think in my garden, the birds, slugs 'n all, would eat the spuds before the chits had grown into viable plants. My spuds are always buried whole when chitted.
skittle humor here being a city boy how do I plant mashed potato powder Lol I get my eggs and orange juice in bags . I still get milk in a plastic jug so we still need a few cows lol . Our traveling Streetrod group used to go to an annual old time fam breakfast . It was really good with nice big waffles and for those that like real male syrup it was svailable. They even had real egg coffee for those that are coffe people . And the teens had a little corner where they had real Indian tobacco Often over run by parents LOL. Of course good old tractor pulling .
The virus killed this off unfortunately
I choose to go for more ground use efficiency than that.
Presently using what I call paired row planting for our spuds.
So 2 rows around 20" (50 cm) apart (enough room so that I hill in between the rows at least once) and then a bigger space of somewhat short of 36" (thinking 32 to 34" actually (80 to 85 cm)).
Now I work in compost the fall before and I'm watering if I'm not getting 1" (2.5 cm) of rain in the week.
Hilling around the plants about three times trying to get lots of looser ground for the developing underground buds. (Quite sandy soils here - - the very heavy clay soils I grew up on we went to just putting the potato chunk on the ground and hilled it at planting and that was about it for ground work (except for weeding).)
Thinking of adding some phosphate and potash this spring to boost the size of the spuds at harvest.
Please - - - this is from memory but each potato bit (circa 1" cube) produces up to 4 and sometimes even 5# of spuds when digging some close to 4 months later.
(More northerly latitudes get more growth due to longer daylight periods I think.)
HTH
Snickering - - - - why bother emptying out the garden muck?Mashed potato powder is best fed to cattle isn't it? I would not even buy it and put it in the charity food bin... But I believe it will not be affected by nuclear fall-out when the bomb drops... I just won't be there to eat it.
I'm a Towney. Cities are too impersonal and convenient, for me. Villages waste too much time repeating the same gossip with the few people there, but Townies talk to each other, just not too much. And we have better bars, shops, busses, etc. Hospitals just a bus ride away, and cemeteries within walking distance. You don't need a Hearse, just the wheel barrow. (Empty the garden muck out of it first!).
K2
I've told my kids to put my carcass out in a wooded part of our property for the vultures. I've enjoyed watching their social order and grace in flight for many years, and they provide a valuable service in cleaning up the dead critters. Just seems reasonable to give them a few good meals. Should some sniveling bureaucrat put the cosh to that idea then they are asked to put me on the burn pile and round up hats similar to the goofy "Viking" hats at the end of History Of The World Pt. 1 where the central portion of the hat lifts off in honor while the horns remain connected to the head Happy that some of the closest neighbors are about as goofy as I am, they'll join in. Maybe smoke a nice brisket by the house while I smoke in the rear of the property. Bet the brisket will smell better. If the burn pile is the way the kids know to put the ashes in the garden, peppers always can use a bit more potash and potassium.Mashed potato powder is best fed to cattle isn't it? I would not even buy it and put it in the charity food bin... But I believe it will not be affected by nuclear fall-out when the bomb drops... I just won't be there to eat it.
I'm a Towney. Cities are too impersonal and convenient, for me. Villages waste too much time repeating the same gossip with the few people there, but Townies talk to each other, just not too much. And we have better bars, shops, busses, etc. Hospitals just a bus ride away, and cemeteries within walking distance. You don't need a Hearse, just the wheel barrow. (Empty the garden muck out of it first!).
K2
Sounds like we should broach the topic ...Well done sir! Broaching is something I have never tried. My Dad made the (rare) internal keyway with a reground special boring bar, mounted in the lathe while making the bush, and using the main saddle travel with locked mainshaft (not rotating!), and turning on the cut a couple of thou per cut. Took time, but he had spare buckets of that.
K2
another brilliant day 80+ forecast rain Sunday . Yesterday it got to 85 really funny it was too hot to walk up to get the mail . How crazy is that low if 50 last night . I left the windows open it’s supposed to get to 87 today . This is mid summer weather . The yard is still soaked and of course a mess once grass starts growing it will push the clutter up . Mowing will take care of it from there I hope . I’m going to put all the model steam stuff away for a couple weeks as I have some minor surgery scheduled nothing serious hope. My back is finally healing . Another day or so and I’ll be back to hobbling around again . One of the old hot toddlers puts on a spring warm up that guys bring their noise and fume makers to for a barbecue and BS. Session . It usually a fun event if you are into powerful really noisy cars usually a couple funny cars dragster burning nitro and alcohol . A couple of us really old guys usually get our pictures taken There are only about 6 of us left there are sons and grand kids so lots of old days BSING On guy has his grand dad 32 ford racer un restored. It has a real Arden hemi conversion head flat head engine one of very few left. It was actually run in the 60’s This is probably the oldest car event here in Minnesota or anywhere I was probably only 19 or 20 the first time I came out. If it’s 85 degrees it will be a very hot dusty day But that’s what we did back then . It will be interesting to see how many are “ carrying” . I’d bet half or better . I don’t know if any animosity among us so I would not expect a mass shooting . However in todays climate I’ll be watching my back as well as my my long time friend’s . Nearly all of us won or lost very controversial races so there were some hard feelings. The method of settling things was usually a winner take all race then shut up . I can’t remember any hard feelings after this Nobody carried guns back then I can’t even temper any pushing or shoving after the final race . So I think it will be a safe event . I hate to even think this way but after the funeral attack in the nation capital you have to be careful at many of these we laugh about old things . It actually a pretty select group as we all have known each other for 50 years or more . So we are looking forward to the event . I’ll post after it just for fun . Maybe a couple of pictures . Ironically most of us look at it as it might be our last time together . Kinda like ww2 vets and nam vets have done
Nice solution.
It’s hard to believe it’s 70 deg already today going to 80. A week ago I had a foot and a half of snow to shovel now there are only a few ice piles that are melting fast .
Wonderful work. I live in Michigan and my garlic was up before Christmas.I planted 192 potato cuttings with 1 eye each. We hope to have about 500 lbs of Red Norland potatoes and about 300 lbs of Kennebec potatoes in about 4 months.
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