Are you Chitting?

Are you Chitting??

It’s that time of year again and I would guess you are either going to get your seed potatoes or awaiting their arrival. With the milder weather the tubers have arrived in garden centres around 2 weeks earlier than last year (in the southeast at least) Its always nice to see the same faces every year who buy their potatoes and we get to have a chat about how good or bad last years harvest was.

If you are new to growing potatoes there is always one word, a phrase that seems to trip people up. Chitting, its not the most flattering of names but its here to stay I am afraid. The way I describe it to first time potato grows is really you are giving them a bit of a head start. Now if you are anything like me over the years you may have left the odd potato which was brought from a shop in the bottom of the cupboard. Maybe you left it there for a month or two only to find upon uncovering it the potato had decided of it own accord to try and escape from your cupboard and make a break for it. Without even knowing it you where chitting.

I always suggest that people start chitting around the beginning of February although very cold years you may want to hold back a bit. This should be around about 5-7 weeks before you are looking to plant them.

Seed potatoes all have at least one eye it looks a little bit like a very small spot that you may or may not have suffered from in your teenage years. This is where the shoot will sprout from, find a contained such as an egg carton (these are perfect for chitting) and place the potato in with the eye pointing to the sky. Now place the trays in an area that has natural light but is away from any frosts. You should start seeing signs of shoots fairly quickly. Once the shoots have reached around about 2cm or just under an inch they are ready to plant out.

If you have a love for gardening or want to simply learn more i have a regular newsletter that currently offers free seeds. Click to check it out 

Eyes on a seed potato