Potatoes in sheep's wool

Sorry for the not so decorative image, but this is the potato variety Alouette.

It is grown for the first time this year as a replacement for Raja, as it should be quite mold-resistant and is expected to be harvested in late August.

They were laid on April 18 and have been watered continuously here in the drought - and now the plants look like in the picture, while my Ditta and Allianz are still nicely green.

I can not imagine that there has been potato mold in them, and it may be impossible because they have been put in sheep's wool (!?).

However, the tubers below have a nice normal size, so my currently unqualified guess is that the plants are quite simply finished due to a forced development the last 2 unusually hot and dry months.

Written by Peter Norris on July 4, 2018