Time to plant Potato's

[klhrevolution]

Not sure about all areas of KY but round here it's bout time to plant potato's. So, I've not enough room for tater's so I figured (last yr.) I'd look into making room. I got the idea from here: How to Grow Potatoes in a Bucket

Things You'll Need:
Trash can (20 gallon or more is best)
Drill
Drill bit to drill 7/8 inch holes
potting medium
potatoes

Step 1
Start by drilling holes in your bucket. Drill the holes about two inches from the bottom of the container on the side of the container at least six inches apart. You'll want to be sure the holes are spaced properly so that the container for growing potatoes does not crack or collapse.

Step 2
Cut the potatoes if they are big. Make sure each piece has at least 3 eyes on it. If your potatoes are less than 2 inches long, do not cut them. If the potatoes are large, cut them in halves or quarters and set them in a well-ventilated area while filling the bucket with potting medium.

Step 3
Potting medium is necessary to grow potatoes in a bucket. You can use garden soil, potting soil, pure compost, or a combination of peat moss, wood chips, compost, and perlite. You'll want to be sure your potting medium, whatever you choose, will allow for enough aeration so that the soil does not become compacted. Put about 4 to 6 inches of potting medium into your bucket.

Step 4
Move the trash can to its permanent location. Try to allow for at least 6 hours of sunlight per day. The water draining from the drainage holes near the bottom of the potato bucket will be dirty, so be sure to place something under the potato bucket to contain the mess, if necessary. You can carefully place the trash can on top of its lid, or you can use a large plastic tote lid. If you have a large enough plant saucer, put that under the potato bucket.

Step 5
Ensure that your potting medium is sufficiently moist, not too wet, before planting the potatoes. The potting soil should be damp like a sponge but not sopping wet.

Step 6
Place the potatoes into the bucket. For a 20 gallon trash can, 2 to 3 potatoes or potato pieces will suffice. Put the potatoes eye-side up in the container and cover lightly with potting medium, no deeper than two inches.

Step 7
Keep your potting medium moist, but do not over water, during the growing season. When your potato plants gets about 4 to 6 inches tall, put more potting medium over it- totally bury it. Continue burying your potato plants until your container is full. When your potato plants turn brown, you may harvest the potatoes. For information on harvesting potatoes in a bucket, see resources, below.

[knine]

I tryed this last year, for my potato's I did Ok, I got about a 100 lbs (dam, potato bugs).. Great for small areas

[Pale Rider]

To both of you gentleman, thank you for posting the container potato farming, I will be doing mine this weekend klhrevolution and try to build the one Knine posted and compare how each work out. Awesome guys thank you.

[gonzo111]

we used to do the samething by stacking old car tires up.need taters we'd knock the top tire off and get them.

[knine]

Very similar system, gonzo111. I have a friend in Florida that does it that way. How well did it produce? Did you use straw? I'm still learning, what's best for potatoes.

[gonzo111]

we always used a mixture of top soil, potting mix and mulch. we mixxed it one to one. we would set out the first tire and start the potatos. when they would get up to about a foot we set a new tire on and started to fill it with the mix. i've seen them get 4 or 5 tires high before!!! we used this mix because it was loose and allowed the plants to produce potatos easier under the ground. if the soil is packed tight they won't do as well.

my grandfather showed me how to do it. the bad thing is if tater bugs get on them very bad you could not have a very good crop. so far i have used nothing for insects the past 3 years in my garden!! i haven't had bad problems with coons either. my nieghbor sure does!! we live trapped about 12 coons last year and we found some strange small shoe tracks in his garden. my other nieghbor did as well. we think someone around here doing farm work were sneaking in and stealing out of the gardens.

[klhrevolution]

This will be my first time so keep the comments coming in though I doubt mexican laborer's illegal or legal fit into this conversation..

I got some tires and figure that it may better to use than a bucket. And while you stack a new tire on along with more dirt/potting soil maybe also sprinkle some diatomaceous earth with that new layer. Should help to ward off and destroy pests.

My question is: You allow the potato to sprout up, cover it with more soil (how much), and you place another tire on ? Maybe I'll do some more searching just to be sure I do it correctly the first time.

[gonzo111]

when you set the new tire on i just put a small amount on top of the growth. if it sticks 4 or 5 inches over the top of the tire you can fill it on up. the branches will start to root very fast. we normally used 13 inch car tires. the good thing is water will collect inside of the tires so the plant may have water all the time.

[insidethebunker]

I just ordered potato ?eyes? and should have them later this week. I'm going to give it a try.

[gonzo111]

you ordered them? thats new to me. i have a bag of taters we are eating on right now. i'll use those myself. if the have what looks like roots on them i'll take and cut them inot hunks and put them in the ground. I HAVE NEVER ORDERED POTATO EYES BEFORE!!!! i also have always had great potatos doing it this way.


if you cut them up i normally just cut them in half and plant them that way. you can 1/4 them if you wish. i have done that before as well. no joking. i just don't understand anybody buying eyes. if you don't believe me try this. take tooth picks and put them part way in a potato around the middle. then set it in a jar full of water and see what happens !!!

[veggieboy]

i can see ordering potatoes, if you want a specific type of potato. This year, i actually ordered some potatoes myself.... i ordered an heirloom variety called "All Blue."

all_blue.jpg (39.08 KiB) Viewed 45 times

When cooked, they stay blue.... So, i'll be eating blue mashed potatoes later this year

i'll post a review when i get them...

[knine]

I order online because it's very hard to find heirloom seeds in the stores. I have seeds for these veggies in the photos below. 1st picture left-right, yellow Squash, beets, two different kinds of carrots, Japaneses cucumber, Jalapeno, (top) yellow cucumber and Onions (no seeds) 2nd picture, yard long bean and lettuce( 5 different kinds) . Not in picture, Amish paste tomato, Giant Syrian tomato, bell pepper, pop corn, goose berries, ground cherry etc.. I'm willing to trade seeds, if they are heirlooms. No GMO! I have other seeds, but I have to go pick up my new granddaughter, YE HAW!

Harvest 09

[twodogs]

This is great information guys. Up until now always thought that potato farming was way to labor intensive. For someone my age it still is but if it becomes a must do then I'll grin and get on with the task at hand. Even if you didn't need allot of potatoes, I guess one would need to plant several plants each year just to make sure that you had starters for the next year. How do you keep a potato over the winter. Old guy new tasks. Gotta strike while the iron is hot and collect the information from the guys who know. Thanks again.

[klhrevolution]

I know a fella who has cherry tomato's that grow back every year on his property no planting needed. And another that has potato's that grow back every year. It sure would be nice to learn about such seeds as these ones.

Anyone know how this happens or has this happen and whether or not they have to be heirloom seeds ?

[Hillbilly]

We try to always leave a few potatoes with good eyes on them in the ground when we're digging up our potatoes at harvest time. Seems they always come back up the next year on their own. And in the past when we didn't leave the potatoes in the ground, we use to keep them in baskets in the root cellar. If you don't have a root cellar, you can dig a hole about the size of a small child's wading pool, about 15 to 20 inches deep, place a good layer of straw in the bottom of the hole, put the potatoes on the straw, cover with more straw and then cover up with dirt. Then during the off season when you want potatoes to eat, just dig into the hole and take what you want and cover the rest back up. They'll keep like that all year. Or at least they always have for us.