On Mon, 21 Mar 2011 11:13:44 +0000, Derek
wrote:

On Mon, 21 Mar 2011 10:39:20 -0000, "Therefore"
wrote:


Should it be dome up or dome down and how moist should the compost be

The top side of the tuber can be identified as it is concave, whereas
the bottom is convex. ie: dome down, Even so, it is not always
immediately obvious, so look for the scar left by the previous year's
stem which is on the top side. You may also notice the new minute buds
by the side of the scars, which will give this year's plant growth.

Moist but not damp , bury with a very light surface layer of peat.

I push the tuber gently into a pot of just moist coir till it's level
with the surface - I don't cover it at all. I cover the pot with cling
film or put in a propagator and don't water again until the shoots are
about a quarter of an inch tall.

It helps to put them somewhere warm to give them a kick start - the
airing cupboard is a good place. Check each day and when you see the
shoots appearing, bring the pot(s) out to a window sill (but shade the
plants from strong sun).

This year I managed to make a mistake and put a tuber into the pot
upside down! But if you do that don't worry - you'll realise because
you'll notice lots of what look like pale hairs growing over the tuber
- these are the baby roots. Just lift it gently out of the compost and
turn it over - you'll probably find a nice fleshy shoot which might
look a bit distorted but will recover quickly.