" A surprise to suddenly see my name splattered across the Newsgroup !!
I wasn't aware of the HDRA page when I wrote the FAQ and I must admit to
not having looked at it since learning of it. However why it should say
"Not suitable for earlies" I do not know. The yield from earlies is less
than from maincrop varieties but they are, IMHO, worth growing simply
because they are likely to mature anything from 2 to 5 weeks before my
plot potatoes mature. Depending of course on when you start them. I
agree with the quantities comment. It is an expensive way of producing
them rather than planting them in an allotment /garden. A fair bit of
watering is needed but too much water is a much bigger problem. Last
year I lost 3, of 5, pots due to being away and finding on return that
so much rain had fallen that the potatoes had rotted.
Go on, plant a few and see what you get. I can assure you it is a very
satisfying feeling to harvest and eat clean new potatoes and then seeing
that Jersey Royals are £1:50 per lb., or more, in the local
greengrocers.
Apologies for the late answer but I only caught up with this thread a
few hours ago.
Ron Lowe


Ron - what would you recommend covering the potatoes with as they grow?
These are being grown at the school I work and I was hoping to use something
cheaper than compost. Would shredded paper or shredded plant material be OK
or even a mixture of the two?

Natalie