The eyes donÂt need to be covered. Like Russ said, they donÂt need to be fully planted; as they are just being "started" preparatory to going outside. This is my 3rd or 4th year doing them this way, which I learned about on this forum. On mine the clump "shoulders" are actually exposed as well, really only the bottom half is in dirt. You save potting soil, pot space and some effort. My plastic pots are lined with newspaper which acts like a peat pot: at planting time you pop the tuber and its paper liner out of the plastic pot and plant the whole thing very easily. (do a search here for "paper pot" for the whole system, or look at Jroot's post for pictures.) http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/dahlia/msg041343391520.html I am going to go with the baggie method for the rest (thanks, poochella!) as I need to conserve further space. For underneath I have deep foil trays I bought at the dollar store. It will be a good comparison of the two methods, as making the paper pots (when you do a lot: I have ~ 30-35) does take some time.

In my experience tubers need: 1. Water 2. Light inside. When they go outside, the need soil. In other words, you could start them in wet newspapers and they'd likely eye up and sprout. Soil only comes into it when they sprout roots, and when you're starting tubers you're not really going after roots, you want sprouts. The more roots they grow indoors, the more work it is to transplant safely. I'd use the loosest soil you can find, and keep the tubers shallow in the mix. I started mine in a 50-50 mix of Miracle Grow Seed Starter and peat. Worked fine, but I doubt the soil had anything to do with anything. Cheers, Russ

I dont know your climate, other than zone 8b. But basil loves warm weather. This means, in most places where you anticipate a frost, some time in November or earlier, and right now it is getting cooler, Then your basils won't have a chance to grow much, and get bushy. So then, it is ok just to leave them where they are and let them grow as clumps. BUT if you are somewhere in Florida or California that there won't be a frost and it wont get much colder, then you can separate and re pot them.

Sounds like you have pot tubers from Holland, sold by general catalog plant companies and big box stores ... A confusing mess with what looks like a stalk with lots of tubers (often broken) hanging off it? Sound familiar? The great thing about these things is that there are normally many potential eyes ready to sprout up if the main sprouts are broken off. The not-so-great thing about holland' pot tubers is that they are very difficult for the new grower to divide or take cuttings from, as the clump is often a mess. It might be advisable to rein back on your learning curve, and save cuttings for next year's project. But if your spirit moves you to be adventuresome, go for it! Just be prepared for failures while learning... All part of the learning curve. "Get a slice of the tuber." Not sure why you'd want to do that. If you cut a sprout out of the tuber, you have effectively ended the sprouting capability in that area. If you cut under a leaf set and above the tuber by an eighth of an inch, three or four new sprouts will develop around the sprout stub within the week. You can pot up the 2-5 inch cutting, water well and cover tightly with a Baggie... The sprout should root well in a couple weeks and begin top growth.