"Hmmm..what's up with these potatoes? Every veteran gardener I've read says that your potatoes are done when they've been flowering for a couple weeks.....jeesh, mine haven't even flowered at all. It's been almost 3 months, what's the problem?!... Hmmm.....I know I screwed something up.....man, I need this space for corn.....soon! .....uuuggghhh...I suck!...Was it too much water? ....... Not enough?......hhmmm.........Maybe it's getting too hot......dang Florida, I knew I should have planted them earlier! If I still lived in New England I wouldn't have this problem...........hhmmmm...... Maybe I shouldn't have used the top soil from the woods......I bet it had diseases in it!.............Wait a minute.....I read somewhere where you can dig down next to the plants and pull one potato out without hurting the plant........hhmmm....let me give it try."
So I stuck my hand right into the dirt and started to feel around (which is awesome fun for a 12 year old stuck in a 40 year old body!) .........and.......what ..........wait .........what's that? Well look what I found:
My first potato harvest. The ones pictured are Purple Viking & Red Potamac. I had my youngest daughter help me, and I love the picture with her dirty hands holding the potatoes she picked. Awesome!
Oh yeah......................... they were delicious!
Ooo, incredible! I've never seen purple potatoes, I hope they taste as delicious as they look!
ReplyDeleteGood job, Dennis! :)
Dennis, I know exactly what you mean by the - I need this space for corn - lament. My grand potato experiment started on Oct 25th. I think they will be ready in two weeks (they better be!) I should have started earlier. I'm in Bermuda. My conditions are somewhat similar to yours (so I fully understand your frustration).
ReplyDeleteWay to go Dennis!! Nope, you are not the only one that has those silly gardening conversations with yourself!!!
ReplyDeleteSilvia- They were very tasty....I would say they were more tender with an increased creamy/sweet flavor.....just awesome! I am amazed how much better garden veggies tast over store bought. I knew tomatoes tasted better but everything else I figured tasted the same.......I was wrong.
ReplyDeleteBy the way......that wooden bowl holding my 1st potato harvest.....I got it in Romania.
Prospero- So you're from Bermuda?! Is that the 51st state? lolol...just kidding. So have you dug down to see if you have any potatoes yet? I looked at your blog and it looks like you planted about 1,000 potatoes!
Darla- I knew it. lol!
Those purple potatoes are cool, they are the ones with the white interior right? I am growing Russets & Fingerling potatoes in a bin this year. Maybe next season I will try out these Purple Viking's.
ReplyDeleteYum - mashed potatoes! Didn't even know you could grow those down here. Here is a link about a space saving way to grow potatoes you might want to try: http://tinyurl.com/dlyq3u
ReplyDeleteI have had weird things happen with potatoes. One year I thought that they were a total loss--plants looked pathetic and never flowered. Guess what--MEGA potatoes. Then I had a year when I had huge plants and only a so-so harvest. I haven't figured them out. Going to try again this year, though! I'll be planting in a few weeks. :)
ReplyDeleteThey look great! I LOVE reds! And I know exactly the flavor you're talking about!
Very cool. And a great lesson for the children.
ReplyDeleteDan- Yep...they have the white interior....and taste awesome. If I can do a good job of harvesting & then saving, maybe I can send you a couple.
ReplyDeleteWG- I've seen the tire system before.....but I'm not short on room, plus......tires don't excite me.
April- I notice you're having writers block again! lol. The taste is so much better that potatoes have just risen to #2 in my homegrown veggie rankings, which means somebody's getting kicked to the curb! (probably cabbage)
SG- I was thinking the same thing as I watched her digging around looking for a treasure.
All the good things came from Romania!! :))
ReplyDeleteI know for sure that every veggie taste different from the store. My mother made a veggie garden 2 years ago and last year my daughter learned the real taste of all veggies (she had 6 months in august 2008). Organic, of course.
It's incredible!
PS: in Romania, as you may know, the organic veggie garden is a common type of garden. Everybody has an organic garden. We eat very healthy!
Silvia- Yes, I ate lots of veggies from Romanian gardens......tomatoes, potatoes and my favorite....cherries from cherry trees!
ReplyDeletehttp://theconservativegardener.blogspot.com/
Dennis, have you thought about canning your potatoes or do you not have that many? They look awesome! VN8
ReplyDeleteVN8- I haven't thought about canning them yet......I still haven't fully harvested them yet so I don't know how many I'll have. I mean they're potatoes so I know they store for awhile, plus I want to save some for seeds to plant in Aug/Sept. IDK...we'll see. They do look awesome......everybody seems to really like the purple ones and I have to admit......they taste the best!
ReplyDeleteI assumed all gardeners talked to themselves. I don't even mind the voices that talk back anymore! Great job on the potatoes. Before I started reading I thought that Purple Viking was a beet. Very cool. I'm going to plant some in a half barrel for my little guy. It will be our first attempt at potatoes of any kind.
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by my blog. You just brought back so many wonderful memories for me! My Gramp was a gardener and as I am forced to eat store-bought veggies now, I miss growing up on produce literally three minutes out of the garden & into the pot. Potatoes are some of my favorites & I am always disappointed in the ones I buy at Publix (and sadly they're the best I can find). I hated the way dirty potatoes felt in my hands--they always made them feel so dry!--but I would help out my Gramp all Summer long by picking potato beetles off the plants!
ReplyDelete'ness- You know....you're probably right. How can you be out there digging in the dirt and not be talking to yourself?
ReplyDeleteDawn- Have you noticed that far less Floridians grow veggie gardens compared to New Englander's? Anyway......I'm looking forward to April 6th..... opening day!
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