- rainbowgardener
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 25279
- Joined: Sun Feb 15, 2009 6:04 pm
- Location: TN/GA 7b
potato question
So my potato plants appear thriving, almost three feet tall and bushy and spreading and very dark green at the top. My concern is that a few of the oldest leaves at the very bottom are turning bright yellow. Is that something I should worry about? A sign of nutrient deficiency? Or just that the bottom leaves are aging?
- applestar
- Mod
- Posts: 29950
- Joined: Thu May 01, 2008 7:21 pm
- Location: Zone 6, NJ (3/M)4/E ~ 10/M(11/B)
The entire leaf? ...remember, potatoes can get all of the common diseases tomatoes are known for. One year, when I tried growing them on a raised wide row behind a deep swale, they got too much water and went down with early blight before the tomatoes which were in a bed in FRONT of the swale ever showed any significant symptoms. (In hindsight, I should have known better because potato doesn’t like too much moisture — I think they were stressed from overwatering as well.)
*a swale is constructed across a slope — in this instance I’m thinking FRONT as the higher side and BEHIND as lower, so the moisture in the bed in front drains into the swale and supplies the bed behind.
*a swale is constructed across a slope — in this instance I’m thinking FRONT as the higher side and BEHIND as lower, so the moisture in the bed in front drains into the swale and supplies the bed behind.
- Gary350
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 7018
- Joined: Mon Mar 23, 2009 1:59 pm
- Location: TN. 50 years of gardening experience.
Yellow leaves are often a low nitrogen problem, also not enough water & hot weather can make plants leaves turn yellow & fall off. Potatoes do not need much nitrogen but they do need nitrogen an plenty of P & K & calcium. Look on the under side of the yellow leaves for tiny bugs. Your not very far south of me you have probably been getting just as much rain as us, I don't think too much rain is your problem unless raised beds are holding water like a sponge but too much water usually gives potato plants root rot.
- rainbowgardener
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 25279
- Joined: Sun Feb 15, 2009 6:04 pm
- Location: TN/GA 7b
- applestar
- Mod
- Posts: 29950
- Joined: Thu May 01, 2008 7:21 pm
- Location: Zone 6, NJ (3/M)4/E ~ 10/M(11/B)
Are they still developing yellowed leaves?
As I mentioned elsewhere, my extremely pot-bound tomatillo starts were developing bright yellow lowest leaves like you described for the potatoes. I took some of them off but left a few in place when I planted them out to see what they would do — I’m curious if those leaves will be able to recover after settling in/adverse conditions are reversed.
Since they were pot bound, lack of nutrients and water that Gary350 mentioned are definite possibilities. But it’s also possible they got waterlogged from overcompensating and/or soaking in rainwater all night.
I was thinking that since you mentioned companioning them with corn, that if the corn had reached the next phase of growth when they need extra nitrogen -and at the recommended schedule for side dressing- they might have suddenly sucked up all the available nutrients?
If the yellows leaves are not functional/lost cause, then I think you might as well remove them and hill up or mulch the stems higher like jal_ut suggested. You could just pile leaves or straw, too.
As I mentioned elsewhere, my extremely pot-bound tomatillo starts were developing bright yellow lowest leaves like you described for the potatoes. I took some of them off but left a few in place when I planted them out to see what they would do — I’m curious if those leaves will be able to recover after settling in/adverse conditions are reversed.
Since they were pot bound, lack of nutrients and water that Gary350 mentioned are definite possibilities. But it’s also possible they got waterlogged from overcompensating and/or soaking in rainwater all night.
I was thinking that since you mentioned companioning them with corn, that if the corn had reached the next phase of growth when they need extra nitrogen -and at the recommended schedule for side dressing- they might have suddenly sucked up all the available nutrients?
If the yellows leaves are not functional/lost cause, then I think you might as well remove them and hill up or mulch the stems higher like jal_ut suggested. You could just pile leaves or straw, too.