Hi guys! I planted two sprouting potatoes in a reasonably sized pot. They already had quite a few eyes, and I forgot to remove some of them – now way more shoots have popped up than I expected.
To avoid ending up with tiny potatoes at harvest, I was thinking of thinning out some of the shoots (like you do with seedlings). But is it too late to do that now? Does thinning work in the same way with potatoes? Are they too close?
Any tips or advice would be super appreciated!
by BaconSid
2 Comments
Yes you can thin, but it’s essential that you do not pull one out. The roots of the neighboring plants are way too sensitive.
Wait until the stalks around about 6-8” tall- you want a really good idea of where you are overcrowded, and then snip the weakest or most crowded stalk at the soil level. I just had to do it on one of my bags.
I wouldn’t worry about it. It’s not a straightforward calculation from eyes to potatoes and many people don’t bother worrying about it. It’s not a standard practice to “thin” potatoes or remove eyes– not all the eyes will grow anyway and the number of stalks doesn’t mean a particular number of tubers. If the seed potato is really big, usually people just cut it into smaller pieces. Potatoes are low maintenance and easy– let them be!