3 Keys to Growing Your Own Potatoes

 The 3 keys to growing your own potatoes: Seed, Soil, Sun.

While it’s tradition to plant potatoes on St. Patrick’s Day, your potatoes will do best when the soil temperature is in the mid 40°'s and the soil is dry enough to be worked.

You can test the soil temperature with a digital or an analog thermometer. You want to measure the soil temperatures about 4" to 5" deep. 

A simple test to see if your soil is workable is to squeeze a handful. If it stays together like modeling clay it’s too wet. If it crumbles like a cupcake, it’s ready to dig in and plant.

This is a good time to amend your soil with organic material, such as Sheep, Peat and Compost. Ideally, you’ll be able to plant by the end of March.

Begin by buying certified keys to seed potatoes. Potatoes purchased at the grocery store are often treated to keep them from sprouting. You can choose from Early season Red Norland, Yukon Gold or Red Pontiac. Early season potatoes generally mature within 75 to 90 days. Mid-season varieties include Russet Burbank, Kennebec White and Viking Red. Mid-season takes 95 to 110 days to mature.

Small seed potatoes can be planted whole.  Larger seed potatoes can be cut in half. Cut the potato so that each piece has at least 2 eyes. Dusting sulfur can be applied to the cut side to reduce disease and insect problems. Set the cut pieces aside overnight, to allow it to cure. Potatoes need at least 6 hours of sunlight daily, in order to produce the best crop. Once you've selected the site and added amendments to improve your soil, it's time to plant.Traditionally, potatoes are grown in rows.

Dig straight trenches about 2 feet apart, add Steamed Bone Meal or Super Phosphate to the bottom of the trench and cover slightly. This will allow the potato roots to grow into the fertilizer. Plant your potatoes about 12 inches apart in the trench and cover with 4" to 5" of soil.

As your potato plant grows use a hoe or shovel to scoop the dirt from between the rows and mound it against the plant, always keeping at least half the stem buried. This is done to protect the potato from the sun. The best way to water your potatoes is to irrigate every 3 or 4 days, enough to keep the soil around your plants moist. If you’re not sure, probe around the plants and see how moist it is just below the surface. If it feels dry, water. You may feed your plants through the growing season by laying additional fertilizer along the side of the side of the row (called side dressing) and water in.

You can begin to harvest your potatoes about two weeks after it finishes flowering. At this time, you’ll find “new” potatoes or baby potatoes, small but very good to eat. If you want late potatoes, wait 2 or 3 weeks after the foliage dies back, then dig carefully around each plant to harvest your potatoes. Store your potatoes in a dark, cool location. Potatoes should keep well for 3 to 6 months.