Potato Mix Up

[Justy]

I had all my seed potatoes sorted into little piles ready for planting...  as I dug the trench my darling little 3 year old son thought he would help me and mixed them all up.  ::)(As this is the first year I bought a collection of varieties so had about 8 different ones.......)

I had absolutely no idea what were earlies or maincrop so have chucked them all into the ground.  They are now growing well but is there any way I can tell which are which and does it matter?  

[Justy]

[Multiveg]

Don't know what to suggest, but I think it was Pippa Greenwood (or other female panellist on Gardener's Question Time) - that said her 4? year old daughter mixed up all the labels to her rows of spuds!

[tim]

I do exactly that without outside help!!

Assuming the same treatment for all, & the same advancement of the seed, one would expect the earlies to show first? Certainly to flower first?
Were there any red ones? The stems will be your guide. And, later, the flower colour.

You could check with your supplier as to different leaf shapes for your varieties? = Tim

[gilgamesh]

From memory, so check -  First Earlies have a growing season of 100 days, 2nd Earlies 120, maincrop 150+, so you should see them flowering in succession - but you can treat any early like a maincrop, allowing it to start to die back before lifting, or lift any maincrop like an early, lifting when it flowers. You will get smaller tubers if you lift at flowering, larger ones if you leave them alone, more or less irrespective of variety.

[tim]

Except that an early won't store?? = Tim

[gilgamesh]

I'm not sure quite how true that is, actually. Most earlies are harvested whilst immature, for the "new" potato trade. I suspect that if left to mature, some will store, some won't.

[Justy]

Thanks guys - there is no sign of flowers yet on any of them.  I think I will just wait til they flower dig em up and hopefully eat them.  We get through tons of spuds so I don't suppose we would be storing many anyway.  

[tim]

Wouldn't dispute that gg - just a caveat. Second earlies would be a bit more sure. - Tim