I'd better explain, for fear of scaring off the casual or accidental visitor to this blog, that the picture to the right is a tray of pink fir apple seed potatoes, laid out in the study for chitting, rather than some sort of visceral modern art installation.
Chitting, for the uninitiated, is the process of exposing seed potatoes to sunlight and a tad of warmth so that they put out shoots from their eyes and begin to grow before they are planted. It isn't absolutely essential - the tubers will grow without being chitted - but it's one of those practices that gardeners swear by, evincing their own method as The One True way™. Most people use egg boxes to put the tubers upright, allowing the shoots to grow freely. It can take anything from two weeks to two months, depending on the conditions and the variety: seek advice from your seed potato supplier. Then when it comes to planting, remove all but one, two or three of the shoots, depending on your preference. (I am a two-shooter for what it's worth.). The shoots will be well away as soon as they are under the ground, giving the plant a head start and guaranteeing lots of delicious spuds.
PFAs are known to be fussy chitters (my, doesn't that sound unintentionally rude) so while the other potato I am growing this year (Sante, I think) are already thoroughly chitted, the others lie sullenly in their polystyrene tray, shootless. I've moved them from the garage to the study, which although warmer isn't as warm as the rest of the house.
Provided they now get growing, the PFAs will get planted by the middle of April at the very latest. In the meantime I am also going to reconcile my rather forlorn to-do list with what I've actually managed to achieve so far, and attempt to comfort myself, at least by sowing some artichoke and tomato seeds.
Oh! So chitting is what I unintentionally do with the potatoes that are sitting in my pantry. I never knew I was such a good gardener. I can get them to sprout like a champ. Not that I think about it it does seem like a good thing to do. I'd probably get a bigger potato crop, as the seeds potatoes tend to rot in the damp soil our wet Pacific Northwest springs give us. Not that I have trouble growing potatoes, other than remembering to water them. I normally plant Yukon Gold, but one year I tossed some Russet potato peels onto the garden in the fall to let them compost, and they sprouted and cross-polinated with the Yukons, so now I have my own type of potato hybrid which I've lovingly named "Russet Gold". They have joyfully taken over most of my veggie plot, which is fine with me. Now that I'm limited in my gardening hours I need to invest my time in veggies that everyone in the family will eat.
Posted by: Gabrielle Adams | March 08, 2005 at 07:32 AM
'The bean with a message in it is being born!'
I would like to know what this is too, my plant has started to grow so big I don't know what to do with it. Is this the invasion of the body snatchers all over again ! lol. If you find out what these plants are let me know.
many thanks
Craig.
bingo007@hotmail.co.uk
Posted by: Craig | June 10, 2006 at 12:40 AM