Potatoes: A Complete Planting Guide

The How Do Gardener ^ | Rick Bickling

[orsonwb]

Potatoes: A Complete Planting Guide including tips on Seed Preparation, Soil Preparation, Planting, Fertilizing, Watering, Weed Control, Insects, Diseases, Harvesting, and Storing.

[minnesota_bound]

If you plant your thumb you can grow another you.... :)

[trisham]

More here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lAdolIdFaos

[punknpuss]

save for later

[Robert357]

bump for reference

[Georgia Girl 2]

Try 5 gallon buckets and use baby reds or the small yukons. I just get them at the store,wait til the buds form then cut them in sections and lay them on about 6 inches of soil and cover with 2-3 inches of soil. As they grow I just keep adding soil til the bucket is full. Works every time.

[oldvirginian]

I’ve used the tire method before. It works great.
I showed it to a friend who lives in the city, Richmond Va, and he gave it a try. The apartment building he lived in had small back yards awash in flowers planted by the residents.
Even though he wrapped the tires in plastic to hide the tires management made him take it down.
So he made a nice looking wooden box with one side hinged. No problem, he just added dirt and fertilizers as needed.
He spread a tarp on the ground, opened the hinged side and harvested his potatoes. The soil went into a barrel for use the next year.

[Kirkwood]

I do that too. The key is to have a totally black bag. Hold the bag up to the sun and if you see sunlight through it, it isn’t going to work well. All you will get is roots and no potatoes, or they will be very small.

[HartleyMBaldwin]

I have not done well with potatoes in Arizona. Turned 5 lb of seed potatoes into a handful of brown marbles the first time I tried, and subsequent attempts weren’t much better.

Now we just buy them at the store.

[4Liberty]

What kind of soil do you use? My yard is next to a lake and the soil is sandy clay. Guess I’d have to buy bags of fertile potting soil for the 5-gallon buckets?.....

[piasa]

Dad would have us cut potatoes the night before planting so that each piece had three “eyes” and the cut sides had time to dry. He just tilled the plot, turning weeds under as “green manure” and we laid the potato pieces in rows with the eyes on top, and then covered them with a few inches of straw, not dirt.
We then ignored the plot all summer as they grew and when the plants died back it was time to take a fork and dig the potatoes up. There were ground hog holes around the patch but if they ate any potatoes there was no way to tell... they did eat the weeds. Our yields were much more than we could store and give away, so we left a lot in the ground untouched for the wild animals in winter. All winter long the deer would visit the potato patch and fertilize the ground for the following year’s crop.

[PIF]

Cut up eyed potatoes, place on untilled ground, cover with swatch of hay, water once in a while, harvest when grown.

[jjotto]

I knew a guy who raised potatoes in an old manure spreader. Tossed in the cuts, covered with straw, watered in dry spells.

[GranTorino]

That story would make a good chapter in a children’s book.

[Georgia Girl 2]

I use bags of potting soil.

[djf]

I had heard that apples give off a gas that stops potatoes from sprouting, so a few years ago I tried it.
It worked! March came around and all my smaller taters had no sprouts - put them in the ground and Voila! More taters!

[4Liberty]

Thanks!!

[where's_the_Outrage?]

“Do you know how big these buckets should be?”

I used the standard 5 gallon bucket, worked very well. Was eating so of those potatoes today.

[trisham]

Thanks! There is nothing better than freshly dug potatoes! :)

[Liz]

Dallas hotel's top chef shares one of his masterpieces. Packed with amazing flavor; perfect finger food.

Southwest Potato Fritters / Avocado Crema

DO-AHEAD Blender smooth 8 large peeled potatoes boiled fork-tender, cup h/cream, ¼ cup butter.
Mix in tb ea ground cumin, gar/onion powder, 2 oz minced chipotles in adobo; chill for use later.

FRITTERS Combine/blend well 4 lb cooled potatoes, 6 oz cooked crumbled bacon, 4 oz shredded sharp Cheddar,
2 oz minced cilantro, 2 eggs. Scoop out--shape inch balls. Roll in 4 c Panko. Dry on counter 10 min.

FINAL Batch-Fry golden 2-3 min in 4 c 350 deg canola oil; drain. SERVE drizzled w/ Avocado Crema.

CREMA Proc/smooth 2 Large Hass, ½ c sour cream, juiced lime, tea agave nectar; add tb water to thin out. S/p.

[greeneyes]

Thanks for ping. I’m going to try to remember to post to garden thread Sat.