I know nothing about growing potatoes, please assist

[bizzarbazzar]

I am a potato newbie, please help

The one thing my DH has never allowed me to try to grow has been potatoes. I have bought bags of potatoes, used what I needed and "forgot" about them. So for several years, I was not even allowed to buy them. For our anniversary DH got some seed potatoes for me, showing me that all is forgiven. Here is the problem, what do I do with them?

I understand I plant then and I read about cutting them, so each piece has 1-2 eyes, and letting the cut heal etc. Not one site tells me which direction to plant the eyes in. This may sound like a stupid question, but I thought point them us as they become the plant. One of the sites I read just stomp them in the ground. Any advice would be helpful

Also could I put them on the same fertilizer routine as the tomatoes, peppers, etc or do they need special treatment?

Thank you

[lavandula girl]

Plant them rather shallowly at first, rose side up (cut side down) in rich soil amended with well rotted manure (no fresh). Don't add lime, or you may get a scab problem. You can side dress with a high potash fertilizer. As the sprouts come through the soil, continue to hill dirt over them, or else pile up straw to cover the plants. The higher you pile it, the more potatoes you'll have. Since we've been having this yucky weather, make sure not to let the frost damage your shoots, or they'll take much longer to grow.

[bizzarbazzar]

lavandula girl, Thank you. I will do that. I hope it works out for me My tomatoes always do wonderfully but, when things are new to me....its another story

[Gimme3]

Bizz... Lavendula told u Rite...))) Put all the good Stuff...below...where u intend to place a potato seed...because...thats where...it will feed itself. A potato sorta likes neutral to slightly acidic dirt below it, and it dont mind one bit...good acidic leaf material, rotting organic matter, above it's placement. It will give...all u can throw at it...back...in the way of tilth and loose OM. Martin...taught me...the Wonderful lesson...of Where...to put...it's Food at...))) Tilth, above the seed, food below it...an sit back an watch somethin Pretty give back to ya...))) Best Wishes...)))

A few more ideas, as i's thinkin...Study...prior to cutting...a seed potato. Dont start the Job, in a hurry. Look at each piece, that you intend to cut. Ponder...how to be...the least intrusive, with a cut. And get u a scale out an learn what a 2 ounce piece is. Eyes go up, cuts go down, but try an ponder how to get a 2 ounce piece w/one cut, an have at least 2 eyes on top.


Hopin you get some Spuds that taste like Mother Earth...)))

[feldon30]

http://www.thegardenhelper.com/potato.html

I definitely threw stuff at the bottom of the hole, a couple of shovelfuls of composted manure and a handful of Osmocote 14-14-14 for 4 seed potatoes.

My potato plants have gotten pretty big and already put out blossoms. I can probably harvest at the end of April. This picture is from a couple of weeks ago. The plants are even bigger now.

[bizzarbazzar]

Thank you everyone I am looking forward to growing potatoes and I will ammend the hole as well and follow advise, and if I have any issues I will come looking for additional advise . DH will be helping me on Thursday get the ground set up for them. I am so happy, I have always wanted to grow potatoes. With success, next year I will order the varieties of my chosing as well.

[michael johnson]

Over here in the UK, they just chuck them into a furrow in the ground (whole-not cut ) usualy with plenty of green on the skin and well chitted with sprouts, bags of manure and bags of leaf mould heaped on top of them at the base of the furrows, heap the soil up round them as they grow for frost protection- and wait until they have finished flowering before trying to harvest any.

The biggest potatoes I ever saw was derived from the farmers lazyness- he planted very early potatoes called Arrun Pilot, but instead of harvesting them as new potatoes in the early summer as they are supposed to be he left them in the ground until september.

Huge massive potatoes- some of them weighing 3 or 4 pounds each, one of which I picked up was nearly a foot long-and very tasty when made into very long chips.

The only downside to potato growing-is keep them as far away from your tomatoes as possible-the further the better, as they are prone to giving the tomatoes all sorts of diseases, especialy blight etc,

[peppereater]

You can dig a few new potatoes soon after they flower, just don't disturb the roots TOO much. They can be planted earlier than many people think. Some zone 7 folks here plant in January, although some old-timers say St. Patty's day.
I'll add to what Michael said, don't plant tomatoes where potatoes have been grown in the past 3 years (so I've read.)

[caascher2]

Ok..My potatoes are just starting to get blooms on them. When do I harvest them? Do I wait until after the flowers die?
Growing potatoes is totally new to me.
Thanks for any guidance.
Carol

[tessa]

carol...gently reach your hands into the soil and feel around for potatoes...or sweep back some soil, like you're on an archeological dig...and uncover what's happening there.
each potato is attached to the main plant on a umbilical chord-like vine. if you do not break the vine...you can simply cover the potato over and let it continue to grow if it's too small.
sizeable potatoes...you can gently pick without harming the plant. potatoes will continue to grow both in size and number until eventually...the plant begins to yellow, and fall over, dying. at this point...you can just get right in there harvest whatever you find.

[the999bbq]

well my granpa learned me to cut the potatoe when it was quite big to safe on seed potatoes ('heal' cuts with ashes). I used to 'chuck' them in the planting holes too and they always gave me potatoes, lately I (gently) put them in the planting holes shoots/roses facing up (leaving max 3 strong ones, removing all the rest) - pre-chitting is only relevant on early potatoes (says monty don and I don't argue with him ).
Spacing them is almost as important as all of the above, as important as 'feeding' them. When you space them not wide enough you will get massive foliage but less potatoes (not a problem with the early potatoes since they are best when they are little). Some earth up immediately after planting, I wait until the foliage comes up, that way you can get rid of the unwanted herbs more easy.
You only know for sure when they are ready when you go in, barehand, dig up some of the fruit and if you are content with what you find continue, else patience... flowering is a good milestone before that don't bother to dig...

[feldon30]

Originally Posted by caascher2

Ok..My potatoes are just starting to get blooms on them. When do I harvest them? Do I wait until after the flowers die?
Growing potatoes is totally new to me.
Thanks for any guidance.
Carol

Flowers means you are 2-4 weeks away from the main harvest. You can dig around for a few small potatoes if you want, or you can wait.

The plants may or may not die back. Mine didn't.

You can leave them in the ground for quite a while as long as the plants look healthy and there aren't torrential rainstorms which may cause the potatoes to rot. In Houston, we have to pick them by the end of May because I have heard that the heat can affect the flavor, plus we usually have drenching rainstorms in June.