Early Seed Potato 'Rocket'

• To limit the risk of disease, avoid planting into soil that has grown potatoes for two years in succession.

• Unpack your seed potatoes immediately on delivery.
• They will need chitting prior to planting. Stand them rose end up, the end with the most small eyes in the skin, in an egg box or shallow tray in a cool but frost-free, light and well-ventilated room so they can begin chitting. A temperature of 10C is ideal.
• Leave for 3-4 weeks, and short dark shoots, known as chits, will emerge from the rose end. They will be ready to plant when these shoots are about 3cm long. Rub off any weaker shoots, leaving about four per tuber. If you leave all the shoots on, you will get more potatoes but they will be smaller. Take care not to damage the shoots when handling or planting.
• Soil should be fertile and well-draining. For optimum harvests, particularly if the soil is heavy, dig in some well-rotted manure in the autumn/winter before planting. For lighter soils, just add some well-rotted manure or compost to the trench at the time of planting.
• Planting can be done from March onwards, when the risk of frost is reduced. Roots will develop best when soil is 15-20C.
• Dig a trench about 10cm deep and add some of our Organic Potato Fertiliser to the soil. Place the tubers in the trench, rose end up, about 10cm deep, 37cm apart, with 75cm between rows. Alternatively, plant to the same depth and distance apart in a large container or growing bag.
• Cover with soil and water in.
• As soon as growth appears, protect the young shoots from frost by drawing up soil around them or moving pots or bags into a more sheltered position, such as a cool greenhouse. When the stems reach 23cm, draw up more soil around them to prevent the tubers near the surface from turning green.

Aftercare:

• Keep weed-free and well watered through the growing season, particularly in warmer weather. Dry conditions will result in a reduced crop.
• Top-dress with Organic Potato Fertiliser every 4-6 weeks according to packet instructions, working it into the top inch or so of soil around the plants.
• Harvest from 13-17 weeks after planting, when leaves begin to turn yellow and die back.
• Second early potatoes can be left in the ground for a couple of weeks when they are ready. Alternatively, brush the soil from the skins and allow them to dry before storing in paper bags or hessian sacks in a cool, dark place.

Our experienced team at the nursery will always carefully package and send your plants nursery fresh in the perfect condition to thrive once you receive and plant them. Although most plants are extremely tough and will not be affected by all but the most extreme of weather conditions, we always avoid dispatching the most perishable plants if extreme frosts or heat is forecast. We also avoid dispatching orders over Bank Holiday weekends.

Please allow us 3-5 working days to dispatch your order. If you have ordered a 'pre-order' item, these will be sent out as soon as possible after the quoted dispatch date and we generally ship your entire order with any pre-ordered items. Once your order has been dispatched, we will send you an email with details on how you can track it.

We send most of our orders via a fully tracked courier service with Yodel. We will send you a tracking link as soon as your order has been dispatched. To avoid perishable items being stuck at depots and deteriorating, we will not require a signature on delivery, and we ask out couriers to leave your item in a safe place ad your delivery address.

*Please note, once your item has been delivered, we cannot be held responsible for loss or theft from your delivery address. If you have delivery instruction and require our courier to leave your item in a specific place, please let us know - there is an option to leave a message for the courier at the checkout.

For smaller and single-item orders, we may send these via the post with Royal Mail - Tracking will not be available for orders sent via this method.

**Please note, we cannot guarantee delivery on a certain day or time. Delivery to outlying postcode areas may take 1-2 days longer, dependent on your location.

For all orders, a small delivery fee of £4.99 will be charged or spend over £49.99 for FREE Delivery!