The flowers that grow on potato plants are small and sometimes form in clusters. These flowers are very similar to the flowers that tomatoes grow from, except that they come in various colors.
Potato flowers can be found in white, pink, or lavender. Color is determined by the variety of potatoes you are growing where certain varieties have specific colors. There is no proven reason that supports removing potato flowers from the plants once they grow. Many gardeners remove them in hopes that energy from the flower is routed towards the growth of the potatoes, but there is no evidence to support this.
One reason you may want to consider removing potato flowers is if you have kids or animals that you worry could get into the plant. To remove flowers, you can simply pinch them off from the base with your fingers. Cutting too much off the overall plant can result in poor yield or smaller potatoes once it comes time to harvest.
In some cases, your potato flowers may never bloom. In unusually warm seasons or in warmer climates, the flowers may only last for a few days, falling off before they even get a chance to bloom and be pollinated.
Since the flowers and fruit have no direct influence on the tubers, it is okay if they fall off right away or never even show up in the first place. Potato flower blooms are generally brought on by cool and wet weather, particularly in early summer. For this reason, certain growing zones are more prone to seeing potato flowers than other warmer growing zones. If you live in zones five through eight, you will likely see potato flowers and the fruit that forms from these flowers.
Regardless of the growing zone or whether or not your plants form flowers, your potato yield should be unaffected. In some cases, you can use the potato flowers to judge when your potatoes are going to be ready for harvest.
As a general rule, potatoes are ready to harvest approximately two to three weeks after the plants flower. Different potato varieties will grow at different speeds, and the flowers are heavily dependent on climate and weather, so consider checking your potatoes by hand before harvesting to ensure they are truly ready.
When should I cut back and harvest the potatoes. Thank you. Thank you for your question to eXtension. Thanks for your response. I am confused by the first part where you say the fruit produced would be poisonous. Are you saying potatoes on the plants that did not bloom cannot be eaten? I apologize for not being clear. I hope this clears up the confusion! Potato plants also require water for blooming, and fail to bloom if they're not getting enough moisture.
Ed Hume Seeds suggests consistent weekly waterings of at least 2 inches of water, particularly during blooming. Share this article. Add a comment. Active Oldest Votes. That is actually a pretty straight-forward proposition, regardless of flowering or not. Improve this answer. Sign up or log in Sign up using Google. Sign up using Facebook. Sign up using Email and Password. Post as a guest Name. Email Required, but never shown. Featured on Meta.
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