Grow Your Own Magazine

I'm thinking of growing some potatoes in containers. Can someone please tell me what kind I should be looking at planting at this time of year and will they grow alright in containers?

I was at a nursery yesterday, and they had these potato growing bags. Are they any good?

I bought some Potato barrells and have 1 for first earlies and 1 for maincrop.
They seem to be growing well, the first earlies I planted out about 3 weeks ago and have grown to the top of the barrell already, the maicrop i put out about 1 week ago and the leaves are now starting to form on the shoots so ill be adding more soil to these very soon.
I have no experience with the potato bags but I assume they work like the barrells do just roll down the sides to start with and as they grow roll the sides up bit by bit add you add more soil.
I think you still have time to plant out your spuds but go for potatoes you like, first earlies give you new potatoes and grow fairly quickly where as Main Crop need a longer growing period but produce bigger potatoes.
Some of the garden centers i go to still have the bags of potatoes which are well on there way to be ready for planting.

Good luck.

Bassman

I've got the potato bags and the pots seem to be growing quite happily, especially the Charlottes. I have heard that rubble bags from the local DIY store serve the same purpose as do empty bags of compost, top soil, etc.

This year we're growing some of our spuds in black recycling boxes (3 spuds per box) and Morrisons flower buckets (1 spud per bucket) - the ones with leaves showing were planted earliest (late March), the others only a few days ago.

- oops the closest box has dwarf french beans in!

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Manda.

"Wouldn't it be nice
For maybe an hour
To not have a care."

We have a bag of Nicola new potatoes in the kitchen which haven't been used and are starting to sprout. Can I plant them then? i.e not too late?

hope its not too late..got some maincrop to plant this weekend in rubbles sacks

The farmers up here are just putting the spuds in this week and will continue into next week. If it's good enough for the Great British Farmer, it's good enough for the rest of us

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If it ain't broke, don't fix it and if you ain't going to eat it, don't kill it

That's reassuring Norm as I've still got some Desiree and PFA to plant yet!

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My Majesty made for him a garden anew in order
to present to him vegetables and all beautiful flowers.- Offerings of Thutmose III to Amon-Ra (1500 BCE)

SBP - your crops are looking good.

RodofGod - you can plant your potatoe now. Whatever your garden has. Charlotte do well in containers. Here's some of mine from last year grown in a bucket.

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From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs.

you can grow spuds all year round but when it gets colder they need to be in the green house i got mine in a big tub 28inch square by 3ft deep with a couple of drainage holes i put about 7 inch compost in bottom planted the spuds and put about 3inch earth on top as the plants come up and get bigger you put more compost in (earthing up) i got about 5 potatoe plants in the tub and there doing well planted 3-4 weeks ago. variety dont really matter much, cant tell what mine are was given them at a friends allotment for my dinner then went away for the weekend and the unused spuds had sprouted so i planted them. been offered some pink fur variety so my do another tub. i water them regulary every couple of days and once a week give a feed of liquid growmore. you have nothing to lose by trying and every chance of sucess and lovely spuds. all the best

How much water are we supposed to give to potatoes in tubs? I read somewhere that when you plant a seed potato, you must keep the soil damp - as too much water can rot the tubers - and then when the plants are well established, water and feed regularly. At what point is/are the tuber(s) safe to water generously?

Regards
Crosbie

It is difficult to over-water potatoes in containers, especially deep ones (over 30cm depth). Water generously once the container is full - if you have been earthing up - until harvesting.

Thanks Cutecumber.

i currently use about one third if a watering can every 2-3 days but the more i earth up the more water i will use, if you put drainage holes in any excess will just run out. ive not had them rot on me before.

My Dad bought a "Humax Organic Potato Growing Bag" yesterday. So I'll give it a go later. Should I just push the potatoes to the bottom of the bag? It doesn't say anything about removing any compost or earthing up, just to place 2-3 potatoes near the bottom of the bag.

At school and at home i am growing potatoes in old tyres - 3 of them on top of each other stuffed the tyres inners with straw. My mum and mum in law are also doing the same now. I have had to put sompost on top of the sprouting three times now.

Sue
xx