Well Last year I bought 4 "gourmet" fingerling potatoes to try. This year, I regrew from my own seed stock 2 of them. Ratte and Pink fir apple. If you ask which one I prefer, its probably Ratte. I grow them in 2x2 foot double stacked wood boxes. This allows me to just lay the potatoes down, then add soil as they grow. This year, Ratte gave me some potato seeds, which I have to try next year. Perhaps this give me some gene diversity.
What is amazing about potatoes is just how prolific they are. No wonder they rapidly became the staple crop of most of Europe. From a single 2 x 2 foot potato box, I got nearly a full bucket full of Ratte this year, and a 3/4 for Pink Fir. With 4 boxes planted, that's more than enough potatoes for me most likely all year. Given the squash I being growing.
Speaking of squash, I already thinking of my next years crop. Suggestions anyone. My South African Gem squash was extremely did very well this year, but my others did not do that well. For the most part though, my garden suffered from Duck feeding. The little monsters ate every thing from squash leaves to Pepper leaves. Never mind lettuce etc.
The manual and often repetitive motion of gardening, free's up my mind to wonder and ponder like few other things do. Coupled with sun, fresh air, exercise and the incredible stimulus of texture, colour and scent, there are few places I would rather be. Add to this the ability to create, build and shape with the pleasure of success and triumph balanced with failure. Gardening is a wonderful world of era's past. One totally removed from computers, TV's, corporate politics and plastic.
great post
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