potatoes

[Billmer]

I have for the first time planted a row of potatoes. varieties are Romano, and Maris Peer. They produced magnificent plants but two have caught what I think is potato blight and the bottom of the stems have rotted. I have now sprayed them with Bio Supercarb systemic fungicide. Question, will the apparently unaffected plants survive? The second question, can I grow potatoes again next year in the same bed? The soil is poor draining and I find tomatoes do not thrive unless the soil is rested from them for about three years. As potatoes are of the same family as tomatoes does that apply to them as well?

Cheers, Bill.

[Summer House]

Hi Bill,

As far as I remember from my farming days Potato Blight is an air borne infection and as such does not lie in the ground to affect things planted next year, but it is not a good idea to keep planting the same crop in the same place year after year or even family related plants.
Potato Blight tends to affect the whole crop and tends to arrive on warm sultry nights, the best treatment is to cut all the tops of to stop the blight spreading to the potatoes under the ground the only problem with this is the potatoes stop getting an bigger. There is no need to dig the potatoes straight away they can stop in the ground for a while if you wish.
When Potato Blight strikes it looks as if the whole crop has had no water for a week or two.

I hope this will be of some help,

Summer House

[Billmer]

Thanks very much, I now think that what happened to the plants I lost is stem or brown rot. It happened soon after the tops fully matured whereas I read that potato blight happens lare in the year.

Cheers, Billmer