I've seen the "older generation" just cut some of the tops of the new growth off. And then they plant as usual.

I always keep over some potatoes from last year's potatoes for seed. I leave on the long sprouts and plant them in trenches with just the tops of the sprouts showing. I don't cut any of the tops of the sprouts off. The potatoes grow fine. Although, I do have a large garden and plant a lot so I can't compare trenches vs hills and what their production compares like. I then just hill up the whole trench later in the summer.

Brenda

Ditto what Brenda said about saving them for seed and planting them sprouted. Mine have had big sprouts like that too and have always grown fine. Although I have no veggie garden this year, *sniff*.

Don't feel bad Gil, I don't have a veggie garden yet either. It might go in in time but I'm thinking not. We're just about finished doing drainage and hubby is working on reducing the mounds of dirt from digging the trenches but we still have to build the raised beds. I'm thinking they will be ready to go next year.

Syreeta

I've never tried potatoes in trenches before, just in a "hill". I've always been told to cut off the shoots if they were too long, but I think potatoes would grow either way anyway.

So Brenda and Gillian, have you always just used your old potatoes for seed the following year? My mother swears on getting new seed every few years, because she says the harvest seems to diminish after awhile using the same potatoes year after year. My grandmother said that years back neighbors would trade potatoes for seed, and the thought was that the potatoes would get "used to" the soil in your garden and not produce as well. So I was just wondering what everyone's practices here was......buy new seed or use old?

I had never heard to just cut off the sprouts...I would have thought it would diminish their food stores to have to resprout and maybe not grow as well? Hmmm. I think I'll still do trenches.
Laurie, I heard that its a good thing to get new seed once in awhile, too. Seems like a wise practice. People say it helps keep the scab down, as well. I tend to keep some, buy some and sometimes get some from a neighbor. We like taters :^)

Speaking of scab, an agriculture guy once told me to dip scabby seed potatoes in some type of solution...just can't remember what. Anyone else know?

I was told that scab is caused by ground that has manure in it. Something about a bacteria or a fungus that is in the manure reacting with the potatoes.

I know when we first had a garden we put manure over everything and all the vegetables loved it except the potatoes. They were just full of scabs. I have noticed every year since we have had less and less scabs on the potatoes and now for the last 5 years or so there are no scabs. It is time to add manure to the garden again but then the potatoes would be scabby again.

Brenda

I'm a lazy potato planter - I don't even do trenches. We just use the tiller a couple times, and shove the potatoes down as far as they'll go - 4-6 ", then till between rows later, and hill the rows. We always end up with nice sized potatoes, and more than we can use. Last year a friend of mine planted her potatoes with the sprouts sticking out of the ground, and they did fine.

Connie

Brenda, I never had scab until I put manure in the garden either. I also got some horrid little nematode things that drilled holes in the taters. Luckily the didn't go all the way in and I could still use them.

Couldn't you add manure but leave a patch with none for potatoes?

Sure I could but we have opted now to put fertilizer down only on the vegetables that need it...eg. corn, instead of getting manure (and all its weed seeds and twine) hauled in.

Actually, now that I am not planting the garden anymore.....

Brenda