What is wrong with my potatoes

[a.brooke.c]

This is my 1st time growing potatoes and I'm not sure what's wrong with them....

Im zone 8b
I planted them March the 1st
I'm not sure what kind they are other than they are suppose to be red potatoes?....

Ok so they started out great! I wasn't having a problem at all until stink bugs got into them.... That's when all the brown spots and some wilting started. I assumed they was from the stink bugs somehow. I put seven dust on them and the stink bugs left but now I feel like they are not really growing like they was and some wilting is still happening.

[imafan26]

Is that a metal horse trough. If it gets hot to touch on a hot day, try putting some pieces of styrofoam and unsulate it. Metal will get very hot and plants will wilt in the afternoon and it will dry out the soil faster.

Some of that looks like physiologic leaf roll
http://mtvernon.wsu.edu/path_team/Case- ... potato.pdf

[a.brooke.c]

It is... I'll keep a eye on how hot it gets and put insulation around it if needed. I would think all of them would be wilting but it's only random ones doing it. As for the left curling is there anything I can do for that?

[jal_ut]

Usually when plants wilt, it means they need water. The roots of a potato plant in the ground will go 4 feet wide and 4 feet deep. Ya, that is a large tub, but it doesn't give the roots that much room. Do you irrigate there or just rely on rainfall? If you see wilting, give them some water.

[jal_ut]

Crazy software. Don't know why I get a double post? Guess I ain't smart enough to make it run right?

[applestar]

Be sure it's draining well, too.

[Lindsaylew82]

How is the drainage?

If it's just the one plant wilting, and the others are looking fine, I would think something more like bacterial wilt or something like that.

[imafan26]

potatoes are susceptible to a number of viruses and they can cause leaf curling as a symptom.

http://vegetablemdonline.ppath.cornell. ... _Virus.htm

[a.brooke.c]

Usually when plants wilt, it means they need water. The roots of a potato plant in the ground will go 4 feet wide and 4 feet deep. Ya, that is a large tub, but it doesn't give the roots that much room. Do you irrigate there or just rely on rainfall? If you see wilting, give them some water.

I irrigate but only once a week if we don't get a inch or more of rain.

[a.brooke.c]

How is the drainage?

If it's just the one plant wilting, and the others are looking fine, I would think something more like bacterial wilt or something like that.

As far as I can tell its draining well. I have holes in the bottom and also about three or four inch up on the sides.

[a.brooke.c]

I keep seeing that is say aphids cause most of the problems i am having but I really have seen any. I'll go and inspect them closely tomorrow.

What is the best way to control my problems?

Fungicides?
Home remedies?
Pest control?

What are the best ones to use??

I didn't really think potatoes could be this big of a problem. They done so well to begin with. I didn't think I would have to do to much to them. Was told they do not like ferltizer and don't need much water..... Grrrrrrrr

[Lindsaylew82]

I would give them a good soaking to start with, and see what that does for you. The MOST common causes of physiological leaf roll and wilting are environmental. Not enough water, not enough root space, too hot, stuff like that. So, before you knee jerk and dump a bunch or real unnessecary chemical on your food, I would start with the simplest thing first. Water.

And I mean water them good, that's a big planter!

[a.brooke.c]

I would give them a good soaking to start with, and see what that does for you. The MOST common causes of physiological leaf roll and wilting are environmental. Not enough water, not enough root space, too hot, stuff like that. So, before you knee jerk and dump a bunch or real unnessecary chemical on your food, I would start with the simplest thing first. Water.

And I mean water them good, that's a big planter!

Well between Tuesday and yesterday we have gotton two inches of rain but I'll still water them.... As long as they can drain alright they will be fine?

Also what I thought was stink bug are really squash bugs?

[Gary350]

I don't grow in, pots, containers or raised beds I never had much luck with it and it is not natures way. Your growing success has a lot to do with, your soil, your geographical location, weather conditions, and the conditions each type plant needs. I use to grow good potatoes in Illinois and not even try. I have never had good luck with potatoes in TN until this year. I planted a different type potato that is more suited for TN weather and planted potatoes a different way. I planted 3 different crops of potatoes 3 different times they are all doing very well so far. What works for other people on this forum may not work for me or you.

[rainbowgardener]

RE: Well between Tuesday and yesterday we have gotten two inches of rain but I'll still water them.

Don't ... two inches of rain is plenty!

Squash bugs and stink bugs are closely related and both are bad garden pests. I think your guy is the squash bug. As the name suggests, they prefer squash family plants, but if you don't have them in your garden, they will travel to other things.

They can cause damage from sucking the juices from the plant:



under heavy attack, the plant will wilt:



They are a difficult pest to get rid of. Put a board or shingle flat on the ground. Come back in the morning and lift it and you may find them congregating under it. Diatomaceous earth may be effective against them (but they are pretty hard-shelled, so maybe not). Thorough watering brings the squash bugs out in open to the top of the plants, where they are easier to capture. If you have a little hand vacuum cleaner, you can try vacuuming them off your plants. Check the undersides of your leaves frequently for their eggs, laid in neat rows:



again all of this would be much more common on squash family plants.

[Lindsaylew82]

I doubt they're squash bugs on your potato. Maybe leaf footed bugs? Potato isn't a host for squash bugs.

That sevin's you put on them should have killed them. I wouldn't treat with anything else. If the wilting persists, I would pull the plant. If it's just dry, you should see it perk up within an hour or two.

As far as rain.... Is the 2" spread out? Is the soil nice and moist about an inch beneath the surface? If it rained 2" at once, but no more the rest of the week, then that's NOT enough.

Main point I'm trying to make is to stay active in your garden. Use your senses. Do they look wilted? Curled? Does the soil feel dry? Do you see a pest? That kind of stuff! Potted plants, even in big pots, will require more water, and metal pots do get HOT, which was already mentioned.

If you see more bugs, pick them off and stomp them, or toss them in a cupful of soapy water. I won't make any comment on the dusting, but I wouldn't add any more. For such a small space, you'll easily be able to manage with hand picking pests.

[catgrass]

You do seem to have a problem. Looks like leaf footed bug to me. However-it should be about time to harvest your potatoes. I would dig down around one plant and see what you come up with.

[a.brooke.c]

@ Lindsaylew

I looked up a picture of the leaf footed bug and they are very similar looking to the squash bug. I'm sure you are right! it sounds like they do pretty much the same thing as a squash bugs??

Yepp! your correct, the 2ins has been spread out over two day but we still have more rain coming.

I have a soaker hose I buried along with the potato plants I turned it on for a hour today.

I am active in my garden. I'm out there every day but i do tend to follow instructions to a T. I have never grown potatoes before and was told one inch of water a week and they really don't need fertilizer. That had been working fine until the bugs got into them and that's when they started to decline in health so I just assume it was from the damage the bugs had done to the plant. the reason I hadn't thought water was the issue is because it's only been random potato plants that are wilting. I figured if it is from lack of water all of them would be wilting.

[Lindsaylew82]

The big difference is the legs are wide and flat on the backs of the leaf footed bugs. Skinny back legs on the SBs. I don't think bugs did that kind of damage. IME, plants can take a good beating from sucking insects. The actual physical damage they inflict. But bugs are vectors.... And there are some wilting viruses and bacterium carried by the little nasties.

Buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuut....

Most of your plants in that trough do have physiologic leaf roll. When I see that, it generally means the plant is not happy because it's too hot, not enough water, not enough root space, or too much fertilizer.

They may just be reaching harvest time, too...

[a.brooke.c]

IME?

So do you think the bugs gave the potatoes a virus or something thing bacterial?

I will make sure they get way more water And see how hot the trough gets and figure out how to fix that problem.

Also being that I have not fertilized them any do you think I should?

[a.brooke.c]

Also you said that they may be getting close to harvesting. what do I look for in that? All I know is that when they die is when your suppose to dig them up >.<

[Lindsaylew82]

IME = in my experience

I think fertilizing them right now, while they're showing signs of stress is likely a bad idea. It would likely exacerbate the stress/ leaf roll/ wilting.

It may be possible that there is something pathological going on, but all your plants are showing signs of leaf roll, which makes me think it's just environmental, not viral or bacterial. The one plant that's super wilted is weird.

I would just do like you said. Check the soil for moisture, and check the tub for temp (for now).

[a.brooke.c]

Thank you!
I ended up diggin up one of the plants to see how the potatoes was growing. After that I just decided to dig all of them up. The 1st picture is from the 1st plant I Dug up and and 2nd is after i Dug all the potatoes up. Also almost everyone of my potato stems had ants living in them. Never seen any signs of them above the dirt......... >.<

[applestar]

Wow, looks nice -- it sounds like you made the right decision. And ants IN the stems? No wonder the poor plants couldn't function properly.

[rainbowgardener]

But I expect the ants were the result, not the cause of the problem. Ants don't really attack living, healthy plants. But if your plants developed some kind of disease or stem rot, then the ants would show up to clean out the dead tissue.

[Lindsaylew82]

Nice harvest!

[a.brooke.c]

Thank y'all! I I didn't know if it was a good harvest or not... :] I also just figured out that new potatoes are not a variety
So when I get to plant potatoes again when should I dig them up for so I can have new potatoes. :]

[rainbowgardener]

Once your potato plants are blooming, you can start looking around for new potatoes.

[Gary350]

You did good. Nice crop of potatoes. Red potatoes are more suited for hot weather.

[Taiji]

Nice harvest! My potato plants looked horrible last year and I just dug them up to get rid of them and make space. I was so surprised to find a harvest of early red potatoes similar to yours. You never know!

[Run65]

Can someone tell me what is wrong with my potatoes