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Monday 12 October 2026
Keter Manor Outdoor Apex Double Door Garden Storage Shed (6 x 8ft)
A durable and stylish beige and brown garden storage shed perfect for storing garden tools, equipment, bikes, and outdoor essentials. Weather-resistant, low maintenance, and ideal for any garden or allotment setup.
🍂 Essential Garden & Allotment Products for October
October is the perfect time to prepare your garden
for winter, improve your soil and get ahead with
autumn planting. Here are some useful gardening
essentials for this month.
🌱 Compost & Soil Improvers
Give your garden beds a boost before winter with compost and organic matter.
Shop Compost & Soil Improvers
🌿 Autumn Plant Feed & Fertiliser
Prepare your soil for autumn planting with suitable fertilisers and soil nutrients.
Browse Garden Fertilisers
🥬 Seed Trays & Propagation Kits
Keep growing through autumn by starting suitable hardy crops under cover.
Shop Seed Trays
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Understanding Blight-Resistant Potatoes
Understanding Blight-Resistant Potatoes
Potato blight is the nightmare of growers everywhere—one rainy week and your beautiful crop could collapse. Thankfully, modern science and careful breeding have given us blight-resistant potatoes! Here’s what you need to know to grow strong, resilient spuds.
What is Potato Blight?
- Late blight (Phytophthora infestans) is a fungal-like organism that thrives in wet, warm weather.
- Symptoms: Dark, greasy-looking spots on leaves, stems, and tubers; rapid plant collapse; brown, rotten patches on potatoes.
- Effects: Can destroy entire crops in days—especially maincrops grown for storage.
How Are Potatoes Made Blight-Resistant?
- Selective Breeding:
Breeders cross wild potatoes (naturally blight-resistant) with tasty varieties, selecting offspring that resist infection. - Genetic Diversity:
Modern blight-resistant potatoes have more complex genetics, making them tough for blight to “outsmart.”
Top Blight-Resistant Potato Varieties
- ’Sarpo Mira’: The gold standard—robust, maincrop, very resistant to both leaf and tuber blight, huge yields even in tough years.
- ’Sarpo Axona’: Similar to Mira, with good storage.
- ’Cara’: Maincrop, good resistance, excellent storage, mild flavor.
- ’Valor’ and ‘Orla’: Both early/maincrop types with above-average resistance.
- ’Setanta’ and ‘Carolus’: Newer maincrop all-rounders, good for baking and roasting.
What Does “Blight Resistance” Mean?
- Not “Blight Proof”:
Resistance means plants won’t succumb as easily or quickly—but extreme conditions can still cause infection. - Best Practice:
Even with resistant potatoes, rotate your crops, dig up and destroy any diseased material, and don’t compost infected plants.
Why Choose Blight-Resistant Potatoes?
- Less Spraying:
Ideal for organic or low-chemical gardeners. - Suits Wet Climates:
Great for unreliable, rainy summers or blight-prone regions. - Safer Storage:
Resistant varieties result in clean tubers that last longer over winter.
Tips for Extra Protection
- Grow a mix of varieties: Some blight may adapt over time; mixing types reduces risk.
- Maintain good airflow: Space plants out, earth up well, and water at soil level.
- Remove gunky leaves: As soon as you spot blight, cut away and remove/burn affected growth.
Next Steps
Armed with blight-resistant spuds, you’re set for a healthy crop! Next, discover When & Where to Plant Potatoes for the best results in your garden.
Say “do next” to keep growing your potato knowledge! ?