Vegetables In Compost Bin - Edible??

 

Hi all,


The other day when I went to my compost bin to throw away some banana
peels and egg shells, I noticed a bunch of green plants ( about 8 or 9
), growing out of the top of my compost bin, so I dug one up to see what
it was, and there were baby potatoes attached to the bottom of the
plants!!


A few months ago, I threw a whole bag of potatoes which were starting to
rot, away in the compost bin, and now I have potato plants growing in
there.


So I guess my question is, if I keep letting them grow, will they be
SAFE to eat!? If so, I don't know anything about potato plants. How do
you know when the are ready to be picked? And how do you pick them? Do
you just rip the whole plant out?


I asked a guy in the Garden Center at "Home Depot", if the I can eat the
potatoes growing out of the compost bin, and his response to me was "I
wouldn't eat ANYTHING growing from a compost bin".

 

I guess it would depend upon whatever else you've been tossing into the
compost bin. If only vegetable matter, grass clippings, leaves, etc. I
wouldn't think that there'd be anything to worry about.

On 5/23/2010 1:08 PM, MICHELLE H. wrote:

 

My compost bin is mostly just made up of leafs, some shredded paper, and
table scraps, like spoiled salad, scrap/spoiled fruits and vegetables,
tea bags, and egg shells.

 

I was thinking of digging them out, and putting them in the ground in
some nutrient rich soil, where I had another pile of leaves from last
falls leaf raking, sitting on the ground composting.


The reason why I was thinking of doing this, is because #1, there are
like 8 or 9 plants growing out of the top of my compost bin and they are
taking up alot of space, and because #2 while 4 or 5 of the potato
plants are small ( only a couple inches tall ), there are 3 or 4 potato
plants that are like 2 feet tall!!!!!!

 

On Mon, 24 May 2010 08:13:39 -0400, FALCONGIRL@webtv.net (MICHELLE H.)
wrote:


I'd replant them in regular soil. Nothing can grow in my compost bin
because the top prevents enough light from getting in, but I guess the
top of yours is open.