Lazybeds, drills, and potato spacing...

Conmaicne Mara

Bear with me on this one, thinking aloud.

Last year I did drills, I have nice spuds and I was happy with the yield.

This year I want to do lazybeds/ridges. Because that's the tradition here and I also like the look of it.

Now, in the drills I made last year I only had to space the seed potatoes along the line of the drill singularly.

A lazy bed will be a lot wider, a yard +. Usually there will be three lines of seed potatoes planted in a ridge, all along it's length.

So, to my question. Will I get a lesser yield with the same variety of spud planted in the lazybed compared to the drill?

My father told me they used to space the seed potatoes about ten inches apart. I've not yet really picked his brains about it, just casually mentioned it.

For the lazy bed, the idea being mark a length of ground a yard wide (for arguments sake) lay down my fertiliser (old dung/seaweed). Cut a flap half a yard wide along each edge and fold over the fertiliser.

Then, take some soil from my ditch and fill in the gap between the folds.

He said as my seed potatoes will be chitted, so they'll have stalks, I should make a hole and place them into it. They used not to chit, so they'd lay the seed spuds directly onto the fertiliser before covering them by folding over the flap of sod.

So, with my chitted seed spuds in their holes I'd cover them with soil, then a good layer of seaweed I think. I would earth up twice afterwards probably just using soil.

What do ye think on the spacing and yield question, and also on the general way I've figured of going about it?

redser7

Sounds good con. I dont see why it wouldnt work. It's more or less like growing in raised beds. I think the traditional spacings are for the farmer/commercial grower and take into account access ie. large spaces between rows. For the amateur, square foot gardening and growing intensively with smaller spacing in raised beds works well. I grew spuds in 8' x 4' beds last year, 3 rows with 8 in a row and got great yields. The only thing is that the haulms will meet early so if you want to throw down slug pellets do it early (dont like using them myself). Also it can make sraying for blight a bit tricky as you get a denser canopy.
I havnt done that method myself but i have read of other peiple doing it so dont see why it cant work. Trust in the wisdom of the ancient ones

Conmaicne Mara

I was half thinking of doing a few drills and a few ridges, to see how the yield would be, but that's complicating my life a little.

Reading the seed spud pack the spacings are recommended as follows:

12-18 inch 30-45cm apart in row,
24-30 inch 60-75cm distance between rows.

Seems to be pretty generic, as I've new, early, and second earlies.

Ah decisions decisions

GCU Flexible Demeanour

Conmaicne Mara wrote: »

I would earth up twice afterwards probably just using soil.

I've been reading around on the topic of earthing up, and finding information that's not entirely consistent in different sources. I spuds in a raised bed, with shoots just about popping up around now.

I know the basic idea in earthing up is to increase yield. But I've come across one source that suggests the earthing up is a protection of the young shoots from frost - where I'd have thought you wouldn't plant if there was a risk of frost. Anyway, that source would suggest I should be earthing up now.

Another couple of sources all basically say I should wait until there's about 6 inches of plant, and then earth up - and do the same again when there's another 6 inches of plant.

I'm going to follow the second course of action (i.e. earth up when there's a substantial shoot), as it seems to be the more common advice. Has anyone here any views? In particular, does anyone know if earthing up of the tiny shoots a technique that would allow planting when there's still a strong risk of frost, as there was this year?

Donalde

In accordance with local practice, I plant on beds about 1 yard+ wide, three lines, about 12" in the line. I have experimented with 2 lines instead of 3 but no noticeable improvement in yield. Earthing up is for three reasons; protect from frost - try to keep the shoots covered until about 10th May, suppress weeds, improve yield. There is never sufficient soil for second earthing up - only 12 inches between the beds.
If there are late frosts after shoots finally emerge cover with straw, fleece, etc.
Planting in drills sacrificed space in order to facilitate cultivation by horse machinery - weeding, earthing up and spraying.