The upcoming weekend will find many Prince George area residents in their yards planting flowers and vegetables. Full moon is May 23rd and after that, chances of having a night frost should be reduced, however you can never predict the weather! It is always good to keep a sheet of reemay  handy.  It is a light protective blanket that allows light and moisture to go through but stops up to –4 temperatures from killing frost tender plants. Frost tender vegetable plants are corn, beans, squash, cucumbers, tomatoes, and peppers. Others, such as cauliflower, cabbage, onion leeks, peas, and spinach can withstand a few degrees of frost. Root crops can be planted now because by the time they come up the threat of frost should have passed. Potatoes for example will have the new growth killed by a frost but will produce new growth, which in turn will give you a later crop!

Growing potatoes in the garden is a staple for many and who can resist the taste of freshly dug baby potatoes! They are easy to grow with few problems if done correctly. An important first step is to start with a healthy disease free tuber/seed potato so buy new certified seed each year, as this will not add any over carrying disease or problem. Potatoes sold in the supermarket for eating will not grow as they have been treated with a sprout inhibitor, which prevents them from growing. Small seed potatoes that are 2-3 ounces are planted whole but larger potatoes can be cut into pieces with each piece having 2-3 eyes. Wait 24 hours before planting cut seed, as you want the wound to heal or form a callus, which will reduce the chance of disease entering the potato. Potatoes grow best in a sunny location and in a well-drained soil. Dig a 4-inch deep trench and space potatoes 10-14 inches apart depending on how big you want the potatoes to grow. The closer together the seed are planted the smaller the potato for eating. Next, cover the seed potato with 4-6 inches of soil and space rows 2 ½ feet – 3 feet apart. Once the plants have reached a height of 4-6 inches you want to hill them in, which is done by hoeing the soil up around the plant leaving the top of the plant uncovered. This is done a couple of times until the hills are 12-14 inches high. Doing this will keep the moisture in the soil and prevent the new forming potatoes from turning green from sunlight exposure which makes them inedible. Water potatoes evenly and consistently to increase disease resistance, high crop yield, and prevent hollow centers, caused by an unsteady growth. Potatoes should be fertilized with 6-20-20 when they are planted and then again in mid July.

The common problem of scabby potatoes can be remedied by adding ‘Tiger 90’ to the soil before planting. Try to rotate the garden so that potatoes are not planted in the same place as last year, especially important if scab is evident. Never add wood ashes or lime to the soil where potatoes are to be planted, as this will add to the scab problem. Some varieties of potatoes have more resistance to scab than others; varieties such as Nooksack, Norgold, and Russet Burbank are among those that are more scab resistant.

There are many different varieties of potatoes that are divided into 3 basic groups depending on when they mature. Some early maturing varieties are Warba, Epicure, and Norland, which is a nice red baking potato. Mid season crops include Shepody, Norgold and the yellow fleshed ‘Banana/Fingering, and Selinder. Main crop varieties are the good keepers and these include Kennebec, which can grow in clay, Nooksack, and my favorite, the yellow fleshed Yukon Gold.

Have a great long weekend and plant a few potatoes!           

 

 Jos.