TZ -OH6
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PICTURES of micro-minitubers!!!


I went to toss out my spare-parts-plants and I found these runts that didn't get planted.

The plants are about 3 months old (started with the tomatoes) and obvioulsly were not taken care of since plant out. They were in 8 oz drink cups of potting mix.

Note the red and blue segregation from the All Blue seed.

I'll plant these minitubers as soon as the eyes pip, and hope for something before frost.



https://www.flickr.com/photos/51251503@N03/4735148435/in/photostream/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/51251503@N03/4735148437/in/photostream/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/51251503@N03/4735148439/in/photostream/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/51251503@N03/4735148441/in/photostream/

garden5
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Man, I've wondered about potato seeds. Thanks a lot, TZ, for the great info. If there is ever a seed-starting forum, that should certainly be considered for a sticky.

TZ -OH6
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Edited to included this very nice article by a home gardener on pollinating potatoes


https://daughterofthesoil.blogspot.com/2010/06/how-to-breed-your-own-potatoes.html


and this additional detail from Tom Wagner on starting early to grow microtubers


Grow the seedlings to about 12 weeks, allow the soil to dry down a bit during the senescence, and allow the plant vine to totally die down for a few days to several weeks before harvesting the tiny tubers. It does not matter how small they are, I harvest tubers the size that can be laid out 8 to the inch and they will still grow a few months later.

The problem is with these tiny tubers is that they don't store as well as larger tubers and like any potato ...the tubers should not be harvested off of green plants....as they shrivel fast otherwise. Therefore the tubers harvested now (end of June) won't grow until Sept at the earliest becuse of dormancy issues, but at that time could be planted in 3 inch pots or smaller to grow another plant out, stunt it a bit and harvest the tubers say in December.






Because of formatting transfer problems it is easier for me to edit the big post here and then cut and paste it into a word document for my own reference file instead of the other way around. That is why I keep adding little bits and pieces as the new information comes in rather than waiting longer and doing big revisions.

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applestar
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My little potato seedlings are growing!! :D

These were grown from seeds in dried up potato berries I harvested last year -- All Blue or Adirondack Blue and Rose Gold was also in the bed though it flowered earlier so I don't know/think if there had been any cross pollination.

The plants are very hairy and I sort of see the resemblance to "potato leaf" tomatoes, but these leaves are much rounder. SOOO excited! :()

I haven't started yours TZ, but I'm still planning to so as to get baby spudkins out of them to plant next year. :wink:

tomc
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Oh what a good post this is.

DoubleDogFarm
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Applestar, Marlingardener, Cynthia, Roger please make this a Sticky.

:D Eric

DoubleDogFarm
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Thank you

Eric 8)

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Trisha
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thank you guys so much for all this incredible info, SO much to learn. Ive been thinking alot about growing potatoes, not finding great info out there.

the 'survivalist' in me always leads back to, if the $h!t really did hit the fan, could I fend for myself? growing your own veggies, yes, definitely the way to go, and your common greens, tomatoes, peppers are easy, but my god would you be hungry. I find myself repeating 'potatoes, carrots, corn' as if my stomach would somehow forget its shrinking.

I noticed that my store bought potatoes were I believe 'chitting' is the correct word for it. I read the word virus once and threw them all away. So I'm grateful to become less ignorant of all the facts. this knowledge is so excellent, even if only for the fact that I LOVE POTATOES... so thank you!

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applestar
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This year's TPS :()

left-most 4 soilblocks
image.jpg
right-most 3 soilblocks
image.jpg
image.jpg (54.01 KiB) Viewed 17980 times
...in total I actually have 11 soilblocks with three tiny seedlings per block for insurance.

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applestar
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They are so slow to grow! But I know from previous experience that once they reach a certain point, they'll bulk up into tomato like plants and grow shoots that are more familiar like those grown from spuds.
image.jpg
The soilblock with label was the only seeds saved from my patch of All Blue,
Adirondack Blue and Red Gold to sprout. All of the others are from DDF/Eric's
seeds derived from Tom Wagner's.

Rairdog
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Lookin good! I really need to try TPS. Maybe next year in the new bed.

Vanisle_BC
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Anyone trying TPS this year? (2016 :)) Applestar how did yours work out in 2015? - oops, when was it?? I've been given some "purple potato" seed and my paper towel test says it's viable. I'd like to try growing some, a little later on. Not much though; I haven't much space. Tom Wagner says in his video that the seedlings will need full sunlight including UV (so no glass intervening.) That could be hard to come by here just when it's needed. I'm thinking bright fluorescents might be sufficient. I think they put out lots of UV.

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applestar
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I have to admit that last year's TPS growing didn't go so well. This is what happens when you try to juggle too many projects going on at the same time, AND run into trouble with one that you particularly placed a high priority on -- the others get left behind along the wayside.... :oops:

I harvested a very very small number of mini tubers, then kind of forgot about them. I found they had sprouted during the winter -- some had dried up due to not being planted. I really should have planted the baby tubers in individual pots to grow egg-sized tubers to plant this spring. I only have a handful of the sprouted mini tubers left -- I'm trying to coax those into growing.

I also had some growing in a 3 gallon container, then forgot to harvest from it. :roll: I was trying to remember what happened to that particular container last fall after the freeze -- a bunch of stuff had been hurriedly dug up and potted to bring inside for overwintering just before the frost began. I was drawing a complete blank -- I may have dumped it out and used it to plant something else. I might have mixed the old potting mix (and the unharvested mini tubers) with fresh potting mix and planted with it... In that case, I might have potatoes starting to grow in one or more of the overwintering containers. I nut don't remember. :lol:

But it's really funny you should ask, because just today, I received a trade packet of some TPS from an enthusiast in Canada. So, yeah, I guess the answer is YES, I will be growing some TPs again this year. He recommended starting them about two weeks before starting tomatoes... Basically around same time as peppers. :()

They grow fine under fluorescent shop lights, and after sprouting and growing a couple sets of true leaves which take a little longer than tomatoes because TPS seedlings are so tiny, can grow in cooler conditions than tomatoes (40's to 50's). :bouncey:

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applestar
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This year's TPS. Lady Patrol was on duty this morning :D
image.jpeg
image.jpeg (38.87 KiB) Viewed 17712 times
3/7 was uppotting date. These were started on 2/18 I believe.

Vanisle_BC
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Update on progress of my TPS (donated seed of purple spuds.)
11 March - Started in soil blocks under fluorescents; ~75% germination.
25 April - Blocks into V. small pots & began "hardening off."
Mid May - Up to 4" pots outdoors. Amazed to see pea-size tubers already formed.

I'm now treating them like in-ground plants; building up pot soil level as they grow. Not sure what to do next; bigger pots or into the ground? Space is hard to find. I'll likely try growing most of then under mulch, (lawn clippings) which I've not tried before, and a couple in pots.

By the way there was a tiny - pea size - redskin potato in our spud basket, hosting an impudent sprout bigger than itself. Planted in a pot, just as an experiment, it's growing vigorously!

BettaPonic
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Where can I get some TPS? I have been interested for a while in creating my own variety for a while.

RadRob
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This is the only places I know of but if you join KPP in the Facebook link you'll find everybody grows TPS.

https://www.mariannasheirloomseeds.com/ ... seeds.html
https://www.cultivariable.com/
https://garden.lofthouse.com/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/316831657858/

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applestar
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Some of the more "wild" potatoes will set fruits after blooming -- many of the blue and red fleshed ones do. For fun, you could let these fruits mature, then harvest and process seeds like you do with tomatoes.

RadRob
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TPS is getting more popular, I found another place selling seeds.
https://doublehelixfarms.com/true-potato-seed-TPS



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