2013 Potato Express!!

[the1honeycomb]

Planted these in Feb, Yukon gold, a blue (first time trying) and a red. The bags I used were empty chicken feed bags, and soil from my compost.
I did buy the blue seed potatoes, and the reds. I used organic for my Yukon golds. The beginning of Feb I placed about 8 inches of soil and 3 potato sets in each bag
covered the sets with dirt watered generously. I placed the bags in my basement water them once a week and put them outside whenever the weather was above 50.
I did let the sets dry after cutting. I plan to move them into the garden sanctuary in a few days to keep the chickens from eating the greens!
April 10

http://www.theeasygarden.com/forum/uploads/thumbs/8763_dsc01124.jpg

 

[baymule]

Feed sacks! Have you done this before? I have lots of feed sacks!! hahaha I ordered purple and pink potatoes this year, can't wait!!

 

[the1honeycomb]

Feed sacks! Have you done this before? I have lots of feed sacks!! hahaha I ordered purple and pink potatoes this year, can't wait!!

I did it last year and was very pleased it's eeassy and saves room in my beds!:watering

 

[baymule]

My first planting drowned and turned to mush. And it was the Purple Majesty and Mountain Rose that I ordered too! I planted a few in tubs and they came up, so I'll get a few anyway. While I was waiting to see if any would come up, I went to the feed store and bought more and planted them in leaf piles from last fall. They are growing great in the leaf piles! haha! I replanted the beds that drowned the first planting and it worked the sencond time. But they weren't pink ones and purple ones. I will file it away in my tiny little mind about the feed sacks. Please keep this updated and post pictures!!!

 

[the1honeycomb]

My first planting drowned and turned to mush. And it was the Purple Majesty and Mountain Rose that I ordered too! I planted a few in tubs and they came up, so I'll get a few anyway. While I was waiting to see if any would come up, I went to the feed store and bought more and planted them in leaf piles from last fall. They are growing great in the leaf piles! haha! I replanted the beds that drowned the first planting and it worked the sencond time. But they weren't pink ones and purple ones. I will file it away in my tiny little mind about the feed sacks. Please keep this updated and post pictures!!!

Sorry to hear that! but the leaf piles sound promising!! I have several bags of potatoes planted now and I plant new ones about once a month I will keep doing this until September so I have potatoes all year!
I will post photos if I can figure out how to do it!!

 

[baymule]

You plant taters all summer?? It gets too cotton-pickin' hot here for that! I am impressed!

 

[the1honeycomb]

You plant taters all summer?? It gets too cotton-pickin' hot here for that! I am impressed!

Potatoes are shade tolerant so they seem quite happy
I'm having a hard time with sweet potatoes though can't seem to get them started!

 

[Smart Red]

The way I heard using burlap sacks worked was like this.

Put a large coffee can in the middle of the sack and fill it with pea gravel. Then fill the sack with soil until level with the can. Lift the can up and fill it again. Add soil. Repeat until the bag is filled with soil and has a "column" of pea gravel in the center. The gravel is for watering.

To plant, cut slices in the sides and insert spuds, veggie plants, strawberries, whatever you want to grow in the sack. It is possible to plant potatoes up the sides and other veggies on the top with good success.

 

[baymule]

You plant taters all summer?? It gets too cotton-pickin' hot here for that! I am impressed!

Potatoes are shade tolerant so they seem quite happy
I'm having a hard time with sweet potatoes though can't seem to get them started!

I planted sweet potatoes last year from a couple of store bought sweets that sprouted.

http://www.theeasygarden.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=33974

They were easy and thrived in the heat. I am sprouting several on the breakfast table under 4' shop flourescent lights. I have vines going everywhere.

What problems have you had with sweet potatoes?

 

[digitS']

. . . To plant, cut slices in the sides and insert spuds, veggie plants, strawberries, whatever you want to grow in the sack. It is possible to plant potatoes up the sides and other veggies on the top with good success.

Ha! That sounds like fun!

It seems to me that you should be able to grow potatoes in something like a large strawberry pot. Individual seed pieces are planted in the sides of the pot. Often, as I understand it, a pvc pipe with holes in it is used for watering, in the center of a strawberry pot. It might take a very large pot for potatoes but plants other than potatoes could be alternated in the pockets.

Steve