The Garden In January / February
Written by Rob on 24th January 2011January is a very quiet month, particularly after the excesses of Christmas, so my allotment has not had very much attention recently. However, now February is nearly here, I am thinking of the growing season ahead of me and all the gardening fun it holds in store.
And what better place to plan all that needs to be done than the allotment itself!
Here in Birmingham, where I have my allotment, we have a wonderful ‘social’ area where we can sit after a hard days work, chat with our allotment neighbours and exchange ‘words of wisdom’ and tips. Also, in the summer months, we will leave any extra produce we have grown here and so use it as a ‘produce swap’ area.
Today, I have potatoes on my mind!!!!
In the next few weeks there are plenty of Potato Days around the country. This week’s Saturday Telegraph mentioned several in their gardening section. These days are well worth going to. They are organised by local groups and Garden Centres and some can be quite big affairs. There is one in Coventry next week which I will be going to.
There are experts on hand to advise on growing and all the different varieties which are available. You will also find a diverse range of seed potatoes available for purchase.
Seed potatoes need to be ‘chitted’. This means leaving them in the light – I put mine in egg boxes. This encourages the new shoots to grow. You will need to knock off some of the shoots – you will only need 3 per potato.
Start chitting from late January in warmer parts of the country or February in the cooler parts. Six weeks after the start of chitting you should be able to plant then out.
Frost damage is the main concern when planting potatoes. If frost is forecast, then draw some soil over them, or better still, plant them with a cover of polythene over them until the danger of frost has passed.
Try not to plant them in frost prone sites.
Hi Rob,
Thanks for this update – I’m really pleased to hear that someone else has potatoes on the brain so early in the year. We might be nuts, but at least we’re nuts together!
I’ve got a question, and I wondered whether you might be able to help with your gardening experience.
A while ago, I met a really skilled allotment gardener – he passed on to me something that someone else had told him, but which he had not tried. Apparently, if you plant a potato plant and a tomato plant, when they are a suitable size you can graft the tomato onto the potato and create a plant which produces potatoes underground and tomatoes above! Well, it sounds like so much fun that I have to try it. My concerns would be that both the potato and tomato would be weak – that’s a lot of ‘fruit’ for one plant. Also, a particularly strong growing potato paired with a weak tomato might result in too many potatoes and not enough tomatoes (and vice versa). Do you have any particular varieties that you think might work – or conversely that you think I should avoid?
Thanks Rob – looking forward to hearing your potato (and tomato) thoughts!
Jackie
Hi Jackie,
Thank you for your enquiry. I have indeed heard of this type of plant. I myself have done a certain amount of grafting, although not with tomatoes and potatoes. I can, however, give you a few hints on how you might obtain good results.
1. Grow both tomato and potatoes in good soil in a large pot, where they can grow side by side. This helps them to ‘get to know’ each other.
2. Remember to use a very sharp knife for the grafting.
3. Use a well tried variety for each. I recommend moneymaker (which this plant could well be for you) and Vivaldi for the potato.
A strange phenomenon with this combination of plants is that you can actually hear them grow.
I myself graft lettuce with tomatoes, which produces a wonderful plant called the ‘Lettato’. Last year was my most successful to date. The lettuce seedlings are grafted on to the tomato when the tomato is 4” high. A graft cut is made – sharp knife again – and the roots of the lettuce are held in place with selotape.
Use Romaine lettuce seeds and Alicante tomatoes, which give a mediteranean tang to the produce. Both tomatoes and lettuce will be produced with deep green and red stripes against a stunning sunset yellow background.
I hope this has been informative for you and I leave you with one last thought to ponder.
There once was a lady called Jackie
Who spliced a tomato and tattie
She smiled as it grew
Not just one crop, but two
She said ‘Thanks Rob,you’ve made me so happy’
I should love to hear from Jackie how she got on with her potato/tomato plant? It sounds like fun!
Pam