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My relatives say that you need to change potato seeds every couple of years. They didn't specify why.

Why is that? Is it because we normally leave small potatoes for seeds and generate negative selection?

Would potato crop be better if we planted the biggest potatoes every year?

Update:

The question is about planting parent potatoes, and than their children and then grandchildren, and than gran grand children is presumably a bad think to do.

sanjihan
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  • @pnuts This year I used my own seed potatoes from last year's seed potatoes. No disease in virgin soil (hopefully). So far so good but this is totally a test. Not planted in any previously planted solanaceae soil. And could one get better 'clones'? – stormy Jul 03 '17 at 22:24
  • @pnuts The problem for us humanoids is we are unable to detect diseases unless it ruins the crop...and we don't know how to use a great microscope. Even then, as I do not have an electronmicroscope it is taking a big chance. Next year I'll be planting potatoes in potting soil and pots. For sure. Definitely my tomatoes and peppers as always in pots.... – stormy Jul 03 '17 at 22:27

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Doesn't matter about changing the 'variety' of potato. What matters is that you don't plant potatoes nor their cousins in the Solanaceae family in the same soil for at least two years!

I would go to 'Colorado Potato Farm' in Colorado to get new seed potatoes every year and make sure that same soil is not planted with any potato, tomato, pepper or egg plant for at least 2 YEARS.

This company is incredible! Please look them up and tell them one of their beloved customers in Oregon has recommended them to you. The son of the owner is a SOIL expert and they have stuff for the soil that will aid in lowering the pH because potatoes need an acid soil in the range of blueberries! Get a catalog. I highly recommend this company.

Big potatoes have absolutely nothing to do with anything Have you tried the fingerlings? And they also give you guidance on how to make a potato cellar!! To store them.

Potatoes are incredible crops! One of the fastest most prolific and most nutritionally packed crops one could grow. You can grow these potatoes in pots with wire cages to grow vertically as well. BTW, when growing anything in pots you have to use potting soil. Usually already in the correct pH range!

Your relatives at least gave you a heads up about growing crops that are partially...correct. If you have a garden you have to know about crop rotation! You cannot grow tomatoes and potatoes in the same soil for TWO years. Same with the Brassicas: Cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, kale in the same soil for two years! Legumes the same. This is a major deal. We here have all learned the hard way to help you not have to do the same!!

Being able to learn how to grow your own food is such a critical skill. I am very glad you are asking questions and doing the work. So rewarding!!

Sanjihan! You have to go check out J.Mussers 'age of seed potatoes'...very interesting stuff! Hey if this is what you were looking for make sure you give Mr. J those points. This is something I've not worried about. Mainly because I get fresh seed potatoes every year, certified of course and always rotate crops.

stormy
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  • Only now do I see this is Sanijhan!! So this Colorado Potato farm won't be much help will it? Since you are growing tomatoes, peppers? I need to make sure you understand your tomatoes, peppers and potatoes can not be grown in the same soil. You are one of my favs! If you are growing in POTTING soil you can throw that out into your yard or where ever and get new stuff (sterilize your pots) and grow whatever you want whenever you want. Your tomatoes look incredible...how has your harvest been? Sanjihan! Hope we are helping you become the gardener you obviously were meant to be!! – stormy Jul 03 '17 at 20:34
  • There is nothing to indicate that changing the variety of potato will do a bit of good or not. To grow in the same soil however, there are tons of reasons why that is not good. 'Tis why 'crop rotation' is such a big deal. – stormy Jul 03 '17 at 21:43
  • @pnuts The solananceae family in particular is fraught with disease. Like magnets, tomatoes, peppers, potatoes...egg plant will attract disease. Those diseases are in the soil. Any new plant in that genus will get hit hard. Two years is minimum to ummmm...'starve' out the disease. Different varieties possibly made it clear to the oldsters there were varieties with differing resistance to disease. But to plant any plant of the solanaceae family in that soil is asking for big time trouble. This is why I love sterilized potting soil and planting in pots! Enlarges the garden area! – stormy Jul 03 '17 at 21:47
  • Any plant planted in the garden needs to be considered...its family members should never be planted in that same soil for minimum of 2 years and I think that is MINIMUM. Anytime a tree dies for example, any other tree with the same genetics should never replace that tree. – stormy Jul 03 '17 at 21:50
  • @pnuts does this make sense? Disease vectors and organisms are now part of the ecology for a certain family of plants. Like attracting cougars to goats. Get a couple of goats killed and eaten by cougars, one should probably get their management practices changed or move those goats! Is that a bad analogy? – stormy Jul 03 '17 at 21:53
  • @pnuts Certified disease 'free' does not mean they aren't susceptible. They may be disease resistant. They may come with NO disease but that doesn't mean they should be planted in the same soil, no siree! Planting potatoes from the grocery store means there might be disease vectors ON the potatoes, certified disease free just means no disease ON the potatoes. – stormy Jul 03 '17 at 21:56
  • You are correct...disease doesn't 'accumulate'. All it takes is ONE silly spore or bacterium or virus to spoil a crop. When I say accumulate I should just say that those silly spores, bacterium or virus are IN THE SOIL. – stormy Jul 03 '17 at 21:58
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    @stormy I think the OP was referring to the [physiological age](https://i.stack.imgur.com/Z0wU1.png) of the seed potatoes, and how you need new stock of that variety. Not changing varieties. – J. Musser Jul 03 '17 at 21:59
  • @J.Musser I am sure you meant physiological age yes? Mature potatoes make the best...partners for salad?? I'll look at this link...for sure. The main thing is to not grow them in the same soil year after year. Grins... – stormy Jul 03 '17 at 22:02
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    @stormy thanks, fixed... Rotating is a necessity when growing your own seed potatoes, because viral diseases are always slowly building up in the stock, and rotating slows that. In a few years, though, it's still good to start fresh with certified pathogen free commercial seed potatoes, or your crops will diminish yearly. Also it's important to know the [stages of your seed potatoes](http://www.vicspa.org.au/f.ashx/The-young-the-old-and-sproutless_-seed-age.pdf). – J. Musser Jul 03 '17 at 22:07
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    I think that's what the OP was asking about – J. Musser Jul 03 '17 at 22:08
  • Naw, @pnuts...not at all. When cougars know their favorite food is around they will be back! Sheep included. Oh my goodness. I had 3 wonderful goats killed by cougars and was actually on telebishion...!! Carrying a reporter in high heels and a fur coat up to the site...unbelievable. They tranquilized this first young male and I flipped out that he would be killed. It was his second kill. I used to send my young son and his fat little friend up there to build debris huts. Didn't think about the cougars at all. Had it been my son and his friend it would have been MY fault. Not the cat. – stormy Jul 03 '17 at 22:08
  • @J.Musser I think that the OP's friends and family thought that one has a better chance growing potatoes if one changes the variety each year. Which of course would make some sense. The fact is no potato or its cousins should be planted in that same soil for at least 2 years. – stormy Jul 03 '17 at 22:10
  • I always get new, certified potatoes from that grower in Colorado. Have had some wonderful chats with them as well. But I never ever plant solanaceae in the same soil for 2 years. Pots and potting soil greatly enlarge my garden because of this. – stormy Jul 03 '17 at 22:12
  • @Sanjihan will set me straight! This guy is brilliant. – stormy Jul 03 '17 at 22:14
  • @J.Musser Excellent source. Whoa. Perhaps that is what he was needing! This guy does get into the nitty gritty. I need to make sure that he gets this...and if it is you dog gone it get the points!! Thanks!! – stormy Jul 03 '17 at 22:18
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    Thank you both. I've learned lots from the discussion above. I see that the question was ambiguous. Originally I was wondering why do you need to change the seeds (not the variety) if you plant potatoes, get them out of the soil, and plant previously harvested potatoes next year, get them out of the soil, and plant them the following years and so on. generating potato children, grandchildren, grand grand children – sanjihan Jul 04 '17 at 07:58
  • @sanijhan Soooo what is it we need to add? Get potatoes out of the soil and do not plant any potatoes, tomatoes, peppers....gosh, eggplant in the SAME soil for 2 years minimum. Argghhh. Have we come close to answering your question?? Grins. Please help! – stormy Jul 04 '17 at 21:46
  • nono, the question is not about crop rotation. It's about: should you plant potatoes that you dug up the previous year? and how many years in a row can you repeat that, starting from the grand parent potato :) I think that this is already partially answered. So that answer to my question would be. "No, because some diseases accumulate in the seeds over generations so you need to get new potatoes from store." – sanjihan Jul 05 '17 at 07:39