Chitting Potatoes Before Planting: Why Chit Potatoes, How To Chit Potatoes & Other Potato Growing Questions For UK Gardeners Are Answered Here..
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Chitting Potatoes is a spring tradition for many gardeners. But is potato chitting necessary, if so why and how should potatoes be chit?
How Does Nature Chit Potatoes?
In nature the potatoes aren’t dug so never come out of the ground. After the plant dies back above ground the tubers sit in the soil until spring and start to grow when it is warm enough. If they grow too early they will get frosted and die. So the ones we have today aren’t very early to chit. What we have are self selected as starting to grow at the right time of year. BUT breeders have mucked around with them a bit and try like to push the margins a bit! So our potatoes have a tendency to start growing just. bit too early.
This is aggravated by temperatures. the soil take time to warm up whilst the tubers we keep in a cold shed still tend to warm up earlier than those in the soil. So they start growing earlier than is perhaps best.
The result are potatoes that are trying to grew earlier than we want. They start to push out shoots as soon as they see signs of warmth and improved light. And if they are kept in the dark they start to grow straggly etiolated shoots that are searching for light.
Chitting is designed to control all of the above.
What is Chitting?
Chitting is the process of preparing potatoes or other tubers for planting. It usually consists of placing the tubers in a cool light airy place where strong sturdy sprouts are encouraged to grow for a few weeks before the tubers are planted.
Gardeners often chit potatoes by placing them in egg boxes with the “rose end” that has the potato eyes facing upwards. The eyes are where the sprouts develop.
Farmers will sometimes chit potatoes in large wooded trays in greenhouses specifically built for chitting. Large growers cannot however chit all the seed potatoes they need to grow as they plant tons off them rather than the few kilo that a gardener is likely to grow.
Why Is Chitting Important?
Control
Chitting allows us to control the rate of sprouting. Left in a dark place the shoots would be long and leggy and would be easily damaged at planting. This isn’t such a problem if we are hand planting a few potatoes. But if a farmer is planting multiple tons of potatoes by machine it is a huge problem.
Sturdy Growth
By chitting we ensure the shoots are short and sturdy. But it they aren’t showing signs of chitting there isn’t a necessity to chit the potatoes. By controlling temperatures farmers are able to slow down the process. Gardeners find that much more difficult and so often chit.
Early Growth
Chitting also has the advantage of allowing us to instigate earlier growth in the tuber. That is ideal if we intend to plant early and have an early crop. But it doesn’t make much sense if we are not interested in early cropping. It just adds an extra process to the job of growing potatoes.
High Yields
Some gardeners claim that chitting is necessary to get high yields. But if you think about the length of the potato season this isn’t logical. If planted without chitting there is still time for all potato types to mature without chitting. That’s why farmers don’t get worried by not chitting.
When To Chit Potatoes
Ideally the chits need to be around an inch long when planted. They should be purple or green in colour. To get to this stage takes 4-6 weeks depending on the temperature, light levels, variety etc.
So start to chit 4-6 weeks before you plan to plant. But bear in mind bad weather. You don’t want chitted potatoes ready for planting and 2-3 weeks of cold wet weather that prevents planting. So be cautious and allow your self some flexibility.
Working wet ground is jus going to ruin your soil structure and lead to poor yields.
Chitting Problems
Chiting Too Early
The biggest problem I see is trying to chit far too early. Gardening isn’t a race. Sometimes enthusiasm needs curbing with a bit of patience. I know its hard but don’t start chitting too early.
Green Potatoes
Gardeners often worry that their potatoes go green when chitting. They recall that green potatoes are poisonous and think that their green tubers can’t be planted. Don’t worry. They are perfectly safe to plant and will produce new tubers.
Thin, Straggly Shoots
If the chits are thin and straggly it’s because they don’t have enough light, The cure is to give them more light throughout the process. Its no good giving light once they become drawn, its to late at this stage.
Potatoes Shrivel
If kept in direct sun light the tubers can overheat and dry out. Tubers need light o chit but not hot direct sunshine that causes them to shrivel.
Potatoes Die
If your tubers go mushy, smelly etc. it’s an indication that they had a disease of some sort. That’s not great but better they rot at this stage rather than when you’ve spent hours planting them!
Do I Have To Chit My Potatoes?
No, there are benefits in some cases but it isn’t obligatory.
Which magazine undertook some chitting trials and reported it made little difference. Theire trials were very limited and need following with caution but are worth looking t.
Potato Chitting Pros & Cons
Pros
Early in the season the soil tends to be cold and wet so chitting might produce a slightly earlier crop. So the real question is whether the extra work is worth it to get a slightly earlier crop?
Some farmers chit their earlies so that they have an early crop and get better prices. Gardeners don’t need to do this (unless selling the crop).
The reasons to chit, as I see it, include
Enjoying the process
Possible earlier crop
Possibly a slightly higher quality crop.
Cons
Chitting can be time consuming and is not strictly necessary except in a limited number of situations.
