How to start growing potatoes
This is potatoes for beginners, a quick search online will bring up a wide range of opinions for potato growing.
I will just encourage you to start with a full proof method, you can then develop your own theories.
You can grow potatoes, there is a wide range of types and colours, we will choose the easy method.
Growing them in a pot or bag is so easy and you can have them early if you have a greenhouse or grow house
Choose the varieties.
There is a wide range of varieties all you need to know is they all grow the same way.
The main differences are the cropping times. Early ones crop quickly, have a lighter crop (fewer potatoes) and don’t store very well. Maincrop ones grow bigger take longer to grow but have a heavier crop and store well
For beginners, I would choose an early or first early one.
Buying potatoes
The baby seed potato is called a tuber, it’s a mini plant with shoots ready to grow and a built-in food reserve, they look just the same as normal potatoes. Seed potatoes are specially grown to produce small tubers, they are checked regularly for disease.
Starting your potato
Keeping your tubers in a cool well-lit area will encourage the shoots to develop, this is called chitting. you don’t have to do this, but it supercharges your tuber and it will grow faster after planting.
Planting your potatoes.
For patio pots choose a pot at least 27cm wide that holds 10 litres of compost or more. Any compost will do, add a small amount of slow-release fertiliser to take care of the feeding.
Special potato bags are available.
Almost any container will do, make sure the sides are dark enough you don’t want sunlight turning the potatoes green.
Fill the bottom third of your pot with compost, place the tubers on top and lightly cover with compost. Don’t fill up your pot with compost yet, we are going to let the shoots hit the sunlight as soon as they grow.
When the leaves reach the top of the pot, you can fill the pot up with compost. Seems a bit odd, well the new potatoes grow above the seed tubers you planted, we need to leave enough room for them to grow.
If you cover the tubers immediately the shoots will have to force themselves up to the top of the pot before they can catch any sun this will slow them down and weaken the tuber.
Looking after your potatoes.
Choose a sunny sheltered spot, they need the sun and will grow faster when kept warm.
They will grow better in a greenhouse or grow house, before moving them outside late May.
If the weather is cold or frosty bring them into the house at night, or cover them in fleece.
Frost can ruin your potato pots, take care or you can start them later to avoid the frost.
the stems may need some support as they grow, a ring of string is often all you need.
When you see some flowers appearing on top of the stems the tubers will have started forming. You can pull the pot off to have a look.
To harvest your precious new potatoes tip the pot out and shake the stems to reveal the tubers, or you can pull the pot off carefully, pick a few potatoes then drop the plant back into the pot to grow on for longer.
Watering and feeding
Keep them watered, this might be every day in the summer. If in doubt, water them you can’t do any harm.
Feeding your potatoes
Feed them at every watering when the leaves are 20cm high, they are hungry. We add some slow-release fertiliser to the compost at planting this makes sure there is always some feed available.
Any feed is better than none but a specialist tomato feed contains more potassium and will improve the taste.
problems.
Slugs can be a nuisance, they can attack the new shoots, this is less of a problem in patio pots but sometimes they can sneak down the inside of the pots to attack the tubers.
When do I start
This depends on the final position of your potatoes
If you have a cold (unheated) greenhouse or grow house.
Start the tubers off in the house in February or March
Plant early March to April, have a bit of fleece handy for cold nights or bring them into the house for the night.
Harvesting should start towards the end of June.
If you only have a patio.
You need to wait for the warm weather (If you are happy to share your house with the young potato plants you can start earlier)
Start the tubers off in the house in March or April
Plant early April to May, have a bit of fleece handy for cold nights or bring them into the house for the night.
Harvesting should start in early July.
Why would you bother growing your own potatoes, they are so cheap in the supermarket.
Your homegrown potatoes will be super fresh and the skins will just fall off.
Go on give them a try.
Checklist
- Bag of seed potatoes you need three per patio pot.
- 30cm pots or bigger make sure they hold 10 or more litres of compost. Make sure the sides are dark enough, you don’t want sunlight turning the potatoes green
- Compost, try to get one with some John Innes or soil included it will add some weight and help with watering.
- Slow-release fertiliser not essential but it will make feeding the plant easier
- you might need some string.
- Buy some fertiliser when you see it on offer and a watering can to apply the feed.
