You’ve spent the last few months tending to your potato patch – planting the seed potatoes, hilling the dirt, fertilizing, and watering. Your plants have grown tall and leafy, with beautiful white flowers. Now the question is, when do you stop giving them water?
Proper timing on when to halt watering is crucial to get the best potato harvest possible. Too much water at the end can lead to diseased tubers, while stopping too early risks stunted growth. So when is the “goldilocks” time to turn off the spigot? This comprehensive guide will walk you through the growth stages, signs of maturity, and how to expertly time the end of watering. Get ready for bountiful spuds!
Overview of Potato Growth Stages
Potatoes go through very distinct growing phases, each with different water needs. Understanding the stages will help you determine when to stop watering.
Sprouting and Emergence
After planting the seed tubers a few inches underground, they send out sprouts. These sprouts grow longer until they emerge from the soil as young plants. During sprouting and emergence, consistent moisture is critical. Water the soil 1-2 inches per week to keep it evenly moist.
Vegetative Growth
Once the plants are actively growing above ground, you’ll see rapid leaf growth and branching stems. The plants require about 1-2 inches of water per week during this vegetative stage, which can last 1-3 months depending on variety. Water deeply to saturate the root zone.
Flowering
As the plants reach full size, they produce clusters of delicate white, pink, purple or blue flowers. This signals the start of active tuber bulking underground. The potato plant needs lots of water during flowering and tuber production, up to 2 inches per week. Make sure soil moisture is consistent.
Maturity and Dieback
After the flowers fade, the plants start to yellow and wilt. The leaves dry up and stems weaken. This dieback indicates that the underground tubers are mature. As maturity approaches, it’s time to start limiting water.
Signs Your Potatoes Are Nearing Maturity
How can you tell when your potato plants are reaching the end stage? Here are the key signs maturity is near and it’s time to start easing off irrigation:
- Foliage yellowing/browning – The leaves will start changing from green to yellow, brown, or black. They may get spots or scorched edges. As more foliage dies back, the plants look worn and frayed.
- Stems weakening – The main stems and smaller branching stems start drooping over, getting limp, and falling to the ground. They can’t keep the plant upright anymore.
- Papery potato skins – Check underside tubers by gently digging around the plant. Mature potatoes will have rough, thick skins that feel papery. Immature ones have skins that rub off easily.
- Approaching estimated maturity date – Refer back to your seed potato variety details. Compare the “days to maturity” with the number of days since your planting date. This can help approximate the harvest window.
Why It’s Important to Limit Watering at Maturity
You may be wondering why it’s so crucial to stop watering your potato plants as they near the end of their life cycle. Here are the key reasons:
- Allows the soil and tubers to dry out before you dig them up for harvest. Wet muddy soil makes harvest much harder.
- Prevents rot and disease issues from developing on the mature tubers in storage. Too much moisture invites fungal or bacterial infections.
- Aids the harvest process by keeping soil from sticking heavily to the potato skins. Dryer soil is easier to shake off.
- Toughens up the potato skins so they are less prone to abrasions and damage during harvest and storage.
- Signals to the plant that it has reached the end of its natural life cycle. Lack of water tells the tubers to finish sizing up.
Determine the Optimal Time to Stop Watering
Timing is everything when it comes to halting water for your crop. Stop too soon and you risk small stunted tubers. Wait too long after dieback starts and you invite rot. So when is the “goldilocks” sweet spot?
- 2-3 weeks before your anticipated harvest date – Based on your variety’s maturity rate, calculate back from your target harvest date. Stop watering 2-3 weeks before that.
- When flowers start fading – Cease watering once the potato blooms begin withering and dropping off the plants.
- After 75% of foliage turns brown – Most experts recommend halting water after 75% or more of leaves have browned, wilted, and died back.
- Once stems fall over – Another visual cue is when the main stems collapse flat on the ground since they can’t support the plant weight anymore.
- After tubers finish sizing – Check for rough, thick potato skins. Halt watering after test tubers show the skins have toughened up.
- Before first hard frost if foliage is still green – If cold weather threatens before the plants mature, discontinue watering right before the frost to avoid damage.
- Depends on conditions and variety – There’s no set formula that works for every garden! You have to consider soil type, weather patterns, and potato variety when deciding on timing.
Exceptions and Special Cases
While the above guidelines work for most typical potato grows, there are some exceptions:
- New potatoes – These are harvested sooner while the plants are still growing. You can dig new potatoes after the blooms appear but keep watering the remaining plants.
- Indeterminate varieties – Potatoes like Yukon Gold may continue flowering and bulking tubers even after early dieback. Play it by ear for indeterminate types.
- Threat of frost – If cold temps threaten to strike before the plants are fully mature, priority is avoiding frost damage. Harvest and don’t worry about dry down time before digging.
How to Manage Watering at End of Season
Rather than just shutting off water abruptly, use a phased approach:
- Gradually reduce watering – As dieback begins, start cutting back on irrigation frequency and amount. Go from 2 inches a week down to 1 inch.
- Water deeply but infrequently – Cut back to watering only 1-2 times a week but make them long soaks to contact more roots.
- Allow partial dry out – Goal is to keep soil moist but not saturated. Let it get dryer between waterings.
- Stop watering 2-3 weeks pre-harvest – Halt all water at the appropriate time per the signs outlined earlier.
- Adjust for ultra-sandy/rocky soils – They dry out fastest. May need more frequent water, even at end stage.
What to Expect After Halting Water
When you stop watering, expect these reactions from your potato patch:
- Rapid yellowing and browning of remaining foliage.
- Stems, leaves, and vines completely collapsing and withering away.
- Underground tubers finishing their growth and skins getting rough and papery.
- Soil loosening up and becoming crumbly, making harvest easier.
- Fewer issues with tubers rotting or developing fungal/bacterial diseases.
Properly managing the end of season water cutoff will reward you with robust, healthy spuds that store well!
Conclusion
Timing when to halt water for your potato crop is an art and science. Pay close attention to the plant’s maturity stage, soil condition, and weather patterns to decide on the optimal moment.
With the right watering regimen, you’ll be rewarded with a bountiful potato harvest. Ease off irrigation as the plants enter dieback and the tubers finish bulking up. Be patient resisting the urge to dig too early.
Adjust your timing for variables like potato variety, soil drainage, and changing weather. Aim for a nice gradual dry down before digging those tubers.
Now go enjoy the fruits of your labor – literally the starchy underground fruits! Homegrown potatoes can’t be beat.