Yes, pre-sprouting, “chitting” or green-sprouting, is recommended. It is the process whereby seed potatoes are exposed to light and form hard green sprouts. This process gives the potato a head start when it comes time to put them in the soil. The formation of sprouts that happen during the chitting process will help encourage a strong start to your EarthApples crop. This means you could be eating delicious fresh potatoes about two to three weeks earlier than normal.
Note: You will notice that garden centre bought EarthApples seed potatoes will already be pre-sprouting. The ventilation holes in the packaging allow light to enter the box and start the “chitting” process.
We recommend you approach variety selection based on what you like! We pride ourselves in baby potato varieties such as Jazzy and Cerisa. These are easy to grow in containers and gardens and will produce many smaller delicious potatoes.
We also recommend looking at the soil you plan to plant in. If you have high scab prone soil then choosing a variety such as Pink Gypsy, Melody, or Rosara can be a good option to reduce the effect of the scab on your new potatoes as these varieties have good resistance.
Yes! EarthApples seed potatoes are surprisingly easy to grow. The main thing is that – like any vegetable – the potato plants get what they need to produce a nice crop. You get out of them what you put in! This means starting with good soil or growing medium, planting certified seed potatoes, adding the proper nutrients as needed, giving the plant enough sunlight, and keeping the plants watered. By following these simple guidelines you will greatly increase the success of your crop. For more information on growing instructions and organic growing tips, please visit the How to Grow section
‘Seed’ potato refers to potatoes that are certified and grown with the purpose of being re-planted. Firstly, store bought potatoes are often treated with a sprout-inhibitor that prevents the potatoes from producing sprouts when lying on the store shelf. If you were to plant one of these potatoes chances are you would get a lousy crop or no crop at all. Secondly, seed potatoes are inspected for quality by inspecting authorities and are certified to be disease and virus free (issues that can only affect the performance of the plant and tubers and has no consequences for human health). You should always plant quality certified seed potatoes!
EarthApples can be planted whole or cut, however we usually recommend whole tuber planting for a few reasons. First off, we offer a smaller seed potato size for optimum growing performance. Cutting smaller seed potatoes can reduce their yields. Second, a cut potato can causes problems when planted. It can rot away easier and therefore not produce a plant when planted in wetter or cooler soils.
You may try cutting larger seed potatoes or varieties that are intended to grow larger tubers. Varieties that are suitable for cutting are the Lady Amarilla, Labella and Goldeye.
No. EarthApples are non genetically modified organisms(GMO).
GMO is becoming more of a concern in the potato industry as larger corporations are experimenting with GMO varieties. Rest assured, our varieties are safe, healthy, and Non GMO.
Our goal is to provide fun, interesting, and delicious alternatives to the often bland conventional potato varieties that are regularly available. Many people don’t even realize that there are other varieties available, past the common Yukon Gold, Russet Burbank, Norland, Kennebec, or Shepody varieties. It is an exciting opportunity to provide you with better tasting, and more nutritious potato varieties. Why should things always be the same!? Go ahead, be creative and try something new! Check out our great selection of EarthApples in our Shop
Absolutely! EarthApples are ideally suited for organic growing purposes. Many of the varieties we offer are good against common pests and diseases that would have required treatment with chemicals in the past. However growing organic does require a bit of extra attention. For tips on growing potatoes organically, please visit our Growing Organic section on the How to Grow page.
Common scab is soil-borne and caused by a bacteria-like organism in the dirt that affects the potato tubers and stems. This is more a looks problem than anything else because the potato is still safe to eat. To help reduce or prevent scab, avoid highly organic soil types and fertilizers such as manure that have high organic content. Scab also forms when the soil is too dry especially when the potato starts to develop new tubers in the soil. Keep the potatoes watered regularly during the first few weeks after emergence from the soil.
Varieties that have good resistance against scab are Little Giant and Labella.
