In article ,
Alan Gould wrote:
In article , Robert youcanteducatepork@sp
amex.com writes

Yes they're safe to eat and the Counci tip is the best place for them. You
shouldn't compost them just to be on the safe side

For preference burn them. If they do go to the local amenity site, put
them in with the general waste rather than the garden waste, which is
sometimes recycled into compost.

I used to think that, but then I read up about how blight overwinters.
It does NOT have resistant spores, but overwinters in living plant
material. Therefore composting blighted potato and tomato haulms
will not transmit it. The statement that such material must be
burnt is an old wife's tale.

What you should do (but I usually don't) is to ensure that you burn
any discarded tubers from blighted potatoes, as those are the primary
route by which it overwinters.

However, as with the common cold, the theory that it is spread by
miasma is as good as any, as a practical guide. Because the spores
blow long distances (miles) and it overwinters in missed tubers,
you can assume that everywhere in the UK is exposed to blight, and
the only major factors in whether blight develops are the weather,
the variety and prophylactic treatment (e.g. Bordeaux mixture).


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.