Question: My potatoes have a rough, scaly skin. I grew them in large pots, and I didn’t see any insects when they were dumped out. The soil in the lower part of the pot (below the tubers) was wet, and I guess it was like that for most of the season.
Now that the potatoes have had a chance to dry out and cure, the skins have a rough texture that looks a little more like coarse netting. What can I do to make things better next year?
Answer: Rough skin is a common problem with potatoes that are over watered. You’re used to seeing the eyes on your potatoes, but there are also tiny “pores,” called lenticels, on the skin of potatoes.
These lenticels can swell, and the skin on your potatoes will also blister if they are growing in really wet conditions. This gives the potato skins a rough texture. Chronically wet soil can also contribute to tuber rot and reduce the storage life of potatoes.
It can be hard to manage soil moisture in pots, so it’s not unusual for the soil in the bottom of a pot to stay wet. If you want to grow potatoes in your pots next year, increase the size or number of drainage holes in your pots and use a free-draining potting mix.
It can also help to elevate your pots about an inch off the ground so that the drainage holes aren’t blocked.
If you decide to grow your potatoes in regular soil next year, make sure you water deeply, but not frequently. A deep soak once every three to seven days should do the job.
The frequency really depends on the weather, your soil type and whether you’re growing your potatoes in raised beds or a conventional garden space.
This rough texture on the skin is really just cosmetic. It doesn’t affect the eating quality of the potatoes, so you should be able to enjoy them any way you’re used to cooking them.
Question: I got a lot of compost from our city green waste, and I’m just wondering if it would be OK to put on my lawn for a top dress. I read that you need to be careful about what kind of compost you use to do that. What do you think?
Answer: Top dressing an established lawn with the compost is a good way to get some organic matter into the soil. Your city’s green waste compost should be fine, if you’ll take a few precautions first.
How does the compost look? Is it dark in color and crumbly with small pieces, or is it lighter in color with a texture that looks more like bark nuggets? A nice dark color, even texture and clean, earthy smell means your compost is ready to use.
If the compost does have some chips and chunks in it, you can screen it so that you don’t end up with bits and pieces of wood and other plant debris on the lawn.
It’s pretty easy to screen compost; get a large piece of one-by-one inch or one by one-half inch hardware cloth, lay it over a wheelbarrow or large box and shake the compost through the screen if you think it isn’t fine enough.
A lawn should be actively growing when you top dress with compost, and cooler weather is a plus. You’ll get better results if you core aerate your lawn first.
Mowing first will also make it easier to work the compost down into the soil. You can use a lawn rake or stiff broom to knock the compost further down onto the soil and into the aeration holes.
Don’t apply a layer more than one-quarter inch to one-half inch deep over the lawn when you top dress. It’s best to make only one application per year, unless you apply a very thin layer in the spring and again in the early fall.
Make sure the previous application has disappeared before you decide to apply a second layer.
September 20, 2020 at 05:00AM
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Garden Help Desk: Using past potato-growing mishaps to plan for the future - Daily Herald
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