Potato tops grow rapidly until they start forming tubers and then they flop over. I am surprised mine haven’t tipped over yet but are you sure you are giving them enough water? Next year I would recommend you fill the bed to the top with additional potting soil or straw as they emerge and grow...
Watering, or knowing when to water, seems to be my weak point. I try to water every morning. By the afternoon, everything looks dry. Then reading up on various veggies, one said water once a week, maybe twice in the heat, but don’t let them dry out. Well, in this heat, they are dried out by the afternoon. Longer morning watering?
And I will work on a drip or irrigation system for next year so I am not watering the leaves as much.
Noting tubebender’s comments to Tatze on potatoes. My Red La Soda potatoes have been blooming heavily for the last couple of weeks, but my Yukon Golds have not bloomed at all. Normal? Or, problem? They are in Smart Pots.
Next question: My tomatoes — 6 in one bed, 7 in another, each plant 12 in. apart — are so thick that they are like a hedge. Do I need to prune them as in Red’s directions? The first set (the 6) are setting fruit, but not that much. The set of 7 are just beginning to bloom, and I see no fruit yet. The plants look healthy, but they are bushy and dense. I’d follow Red’s directions a prune, but I really don’t know where to start.
Third question: How do you know when compost is ready to use?