Grow your Own… Seed Potatoes! See below for an extensive list of the seed potato varieties we had available during the last seed potato season, for an idea of the range we have annually:
FIRST EARLIES
A high yielding early variety of white potato, oval in shape with cream flesh to match the skin. A great variety for baking and boiling but also useful mashed, roasted or chipped. Good resistance to common and powdery scab
A popular one for garden growing, Arran Pilot produces high yields of excellent tasting, white skinned, disease resistant tubers with wonderful white flesh – one of the best boilers available! Grown by Graham in his tunnel for the very first earlies
An oval, cream coloured, waxy potato, ideal for baking like its red relative, or for roasting.
Good early yields of oval, white skinned potatoes with shallow eyes. Great, versatile variety suited to chipping, boiling or steaming – doesn’t disintegrate during cooking.
Producing high yields of floury tubers, this is one of the best tasting first earlies, great for boiling, in salads and for mashing.
A firm, white fleshed tasty potato, with good common scab resistance and a floury texture making it a great for boiling or baking, or in salads.
A very early variety that produces good yields. It has good resistance to common scab, and is great for boiling, baking, roasting, and making chips with. Very popular with Trevena Cross customers it is always one of the first to sell out
A very early, heavy cropping variety with good drought and common scab resistance. White tubers with a traditional ‘potato taste’. Good for salads as a boiling potato. Holds its shape well.
A soft waxy texture makes this white skinned and white fleshed variety a great one for salads
Great all-round, disease resistant potato – a high yielding variety suited to organic growing. Ideal for salad, boiling, baking, roasting and chips!
One of few red skinned first earlies, it has a fine flavour and is great for baking, and as chips once a mature potato
Large crops of uniformed round tubers, white fleshed and white skinned, ideal for salad and boiling
Long and oval, lemon coloured flesh with a high dry matter suitable for boiling, roasting and chips
Yielding a very early crop (within 60 days), this variety has a creamy, waxy flesh and a delicate, sweetish taste
Long, white with white flesh, renowned for boiling qualities straight after harvest. Good resistance to scab and excellent drought resistance.
Best eaten early and fresh, it produces high yields of waxy tubers, oval in shape with white skins and flesh. Great resistance to foliage blight, common and powdery scab
A versatile, tasty variety with creamy flesh, which makes a great masher and baker once the skins have set.
SECOND EARLIES
Oval floury tubers, with white skin and uses in baking, boiling or roasting
now one of the most popular salad potatoes with its fantastic taste and high yields of waxy tubers. A winner for garden centre owner, Graham
A superb second early or maincrop potato that can be started earlier indoors in a greenhouse. A selection of this distinctive variety is grown on Jersey and marketed as the well-known and extremely popular ‘Jersey Royal’
a great looking and tasting potato with excellent pest and disease resistance, suitable for baking, boiling, mashing and roasting.
Short, oval shaped potato with smooth texture. Versatile, they’re great as mash, wedges and boiled. A smooth buttery taste with no additions required!
Great tasting waxy new potato, heavy yielding and stores well. Ideal new potato for boiling with salads
One of the best tasting. Frequently used in the chip shop trade, they also make fluffy mash and are good boilers too
A modern, high yielding variety with white skins and flesh, and with multiple uses in the kitchen
High yielding, large yellow tubers, with great disease resistance. Good all round use.
For up to the minute availability / a stock check of a particular variety, please call us on 01736 763880.
FIRST EARLIES
ACCORD – A high yielding early variety of white potato, oval in shape with cream flesh to match the skin. A great variety for baking and boiling but also useful mashed, roasted or chipped. Good resistance to common and powdery scab
ARRAN PILOT – RECOMMENDED – A popular one for garden growing, Arran Pilot produces high yields of excellent tasting, white skinned, disease resistant tubers with wonderful white flesh – one of the best boilers available! Grown by Graham in his tunnel for the very first earlies
DUKE OF YORK – An oval, cream coloured, waxy potato, ideal for baking like its red relative, or for roasting
DUNLUCE – Good early yields of oval, white skinned potatoes with shallow eyes. Great, versatile variety suited to chipping, boiling or steaming – doesn’t disintegrate during cooking
EPICURE – Producing high yields of floury tubers, this is one of the best tasting first earlies, great for boiling, in salads and for mashing
FOREMOST – A firm, white fleshed tasty potato, with good common scab resistance and a floury texture making it a great for boiling or baking, or in salads
HOME GUARD – AN OLD FAVOURITE – A very early variety that produces good yields. It has good resistance to common scab, and is great for boiling, baking, roasting, and making chips with. Very popular with Trevena Cross customers it is always one of the first to sell out
MARIS BARD – A very early, heavy cropping variety with good drought and common scab resistance. White tubers with a traditional ‘potato taste’. Good for salads as a boiling potato. Holds its shape well
PENTLAND JAVELIN – A soft waxy texture makes this white skinned and white fleshed variety a great one for salads
PREMIERE – Great all-round, disease resistant potato – a high yielding variety suited to organic growing. Ideal for salad, boiling, baking, roasting and chips!
RED DUKE OF YORK – One of few red skinned first earlies, it has a fine flavour and is great for baking, and as chips once a mature potato
ROCKET – Large crops of uniformed round tubers, white fleshed and white skinned, ideal for salad and boiling
SHARPES EXPRESS – Long and oval, lemon coloured flesh with a high dry matter suitable for boiling, roasting and chips
SWIFT – Yielding a very early crop (within 60 days), this variety has a creamy, waxy flesh and a delicate, sweetish taste
ULSTER PRINCE – Long, white with white flesh, renowned for boiling qualities straight after harvest. Good resistance to scab and excellent drought resistance.
ULSTER SCEPTRE – Best eaten early and fresh, it produces high yields of waxy tubers, oval in shape with white skins and flesh. Great resistance to foliage blight, common and powdery scab
WINSTON – A versatile, tasty variety with creamy flesh, which makes a great masher and baker once the skins have set.
MAINCROP
For excellent general purpose use in the kitchen this variety is likely to increase in popularity in the future and become a grow your own staple. Great for boiling, baking and mashing.
with whole skins and pink eyes this is still one of the most popular varieties, ideal for baking, boiling, roasting or making chips. It has been a popular variety in Graham’s own garden, for many years.
The floury flesh makes it one of the best varieties for baking, frying and roasting. A good cropper with good slug resistance and a rich flavour that improves the longer they’re stored
Very well-known and with good reason – an excellent tasting variety with multiple culinary uses, making it an excellent all-rounder
Oval tubers with white flesh, and the reliable choice of chip shops, to produce a good chip! Also great for baking, boiling, roasting ad mashing too.
With cream skin, pale yellow flesh, and a lovely taste, this is a popular one for organic growing.
Produces high yields of round, white skinned, white fleshed tubers, great for all round use
Large oval shaped tubers with white skins and creamy coloured, floury flesh. Good resistance to disease and slugs. Great for chipping, roasting or baking
The most blight resistant potato variety and therefore a real winner for garden centre owner Graham. Producing large yields, of tasty, dry floury tubers – great for multiple uses in the kitchen
Another very blight resistant variety with red skins and yellow flesh. I deal for organic growing
Shows great levels of blight resistance and will produce large crops of bold white tubers, with cream flesh. Good flavour
SECOND EARLIES
BRITISH QUEEN – Oval floury tubers, with white skin and uses in baking, boiling or roasting
CHARLOTTE – RECOMMENDED – now one of the most popular salad potatoes with its fantastic taste and high yields of waxy tubers. A winner for garden centre owner, Graham
INTERNATIONAL KIDNEY – RECOMMENDED – A superb second early or maincrop potato that can be started earlier indoors in a greenhouse. A selection of this distinctive variety is grown on Jersey and marketed as the well-known and extremely popular ‘Jersey Royal’
KESTREL – BLIGHT TOLERANT – a great looking and tasting potato with excellent pest and disease resistance, suitable for baking, boiling, mashing and roasting.
MARFONA – Short, oval shaped potato with smooth texture. Versatile, they’re great as mash, wedges and boiled. A smooth buttery taste with no additions required!
NICOLA – Great tasting waxy new potato, heavy yielding and stores well. Ideal new potato for boiling with salads
SAGITTA: One of the best tasting. Frequently used in the chip shop trade, they also make fluffy mash and are good boilers too
SAXON: A modern, high yielding variety with white skins and flesh, and with multiple uses in the kitchen
WILJA: High yielding, large yellow tubers, with great disease resistance. Good all round use.
MAINCROP
BLUE BELLE – For excellent general purpose use in the kitchen this variety is likely to increase in popularity in the future and become a grow your own staple. Great for boiling, baking and mashing.
CARA – RECOMMNEDED – BLIGHT TOLERANT – with whole skins and pink eyes this is still one of the most popular varieties, ideal for baking, boiling, roasting or making chips. It has been a popular variety in Graham’s own garden, for many years.
GOLDEN WONDER – The floury flesh makes it one of the best varieties for baking, frying and roasting. A good cropper with good slug resistance and a rich flavour that improves the longer they’re stored
KING EDWARD – Very well-known and with good reason – an excellent tasting variety with multiple culinary uses, making it an excellent all-rounder
MARIS PIPER – Oval tubers with white flesh, and the reliable choice of chip shops, to produce a good chip! Also great for baking, boiling, roasting ad mashing too.
ORLA – BLIGHT TOLERANT – With cream skin, pale yellow flesh, and a lovely taste, this is a popular one for organic growing.
PENTLAND CROWN – Produces high yields of round, white skinned, white fleshed tubers, great for all round use
PENTLAND DELL – Large oval shaped tubers with white skins and creamy coloured, floury flesh. Good resistance to disease and slugs. Great for chipping, roasting or baking
SARPO MIRA – RECOMMENDED – BLIGHT RESISTANT – The most blight resistant potato variety and therefore a real winner for garden centre owner Graham. Producing large yields, of tasty, dry floury tubers – great for multiple uses in the kitchen
SETANTA – Another very blight resistant variety with red skins and yellow flesh. I deal for organic growing
VALOR – Shows great levels of blight resistance and will produce large crops of bold white tubers, with cream flesh. Good flavour
For up to the minute availability / a stock check of a particular variety, please call us on 01736 763880.
Guide to growing...
‘Seed potatoes’ are split into three groups:
‘First Earlies’ – planted around late March
‘Second Earlies’ – planted early-mid April
‘Maincrops’ – planted mid-late April
Down here in Cornwall, where it’s milder, you can sometimes bring planting forward a little (in colder parts of the country it is advisable to wait until risk of late frosts has passed).
Before planting your seed potatoes you should ‘chit’ them by standing them up in trays in a light, frost free place and letting them sprout. When shoots are about 3cm long, you’re ready to plant. Dig a narrow trench about 12cm deep in well prepared, fertile soil, and space the tubers about 30cm/1ft apart (add a bit extra for maincrops). Trenches should be about 60cm/2ft apart (add about 15cm for maincrops).
When 10-20cm tall the leafy shoots can be mounded around with soil in a process known as ‘earthing up’. Draw the soil in a ridge along the row of potato plants. As the stems continue to grow repeat the process, so that the ridge also grows. This will stop any light reaching the tubers (which can turn them green and make them poisonous) and will improve underground yields. It can also prevent any early frost damage on young shoots if temperatures are still low.
Growing in a sack: plant the tuber into 10cm of compost at the base, and add compost to it as the shoots emerge, around 5cm at a time. Continue to do so until the bag/sack is nearly full of compost.