First spuds in

Had a busy day today cutting back a tree and some shrubs to let in more light in an area I plan to grow several rows of spuds. I managed to plant 10 bags of 'Winston'. I had a disastrous year with spuds last year so I really want to give them a good go this season.


First I dug a trench, lined the bottom with some of my homemade compost and scattered a few slug pellets on the top of this. I half filled each bag with fine compost, added a handful of Vitax Q4 and some seaweed meal and then planted 3 spuds in each bag (probably too many......2 should be the maximum I'm told). Another few inches of compost is put on top and I'll top the bag up as the foliage starts to peep through......in effect 'earthing up'. The main roots should come through the holes in the bottom of the bag and into the soil below. Meanwhile the developing tubers will grow in the compost in the bags and should come out very clean and require the minimum of cleaning. The 'feeder' roots in the bag will utilize the fertilisers.

















I also thinned down my parsnips today by pulling out the surplus ones, to one side and up. Most top growers do it this way I'm told, rather than cutting them at sand surface level as I have always done in the past....until now! I always thought pulling them this way could disturb the one you intend to keep but it seems that is not the case. The same method will be employed when I come to thin my long carrots....sometime in mid-May.