Gardening – by Bonnie L. Grant
Growing potatoes in containers can make gardening accessible for the small space gardener. When you grow potatoes in a container, harvesting is easier because all the tubers are in one place. Potatoes can be grown in a potato tower, garbage can, Tupperware bin or even a gunnysack or burlap bag. The process is simple and something the entire family can enjoy from planting to harvesting.
Potato Container Garden
The best potatoes to use for container gardening are those that mature early. Choose certified seed potatoes, which are disease free. The potatoes should mature in 70 to 90 days. You can also choose a variety from the supermarket that you enjoy. Be aware that some potatoes take 120 days until harvest, so you need a long growing season for these types of potatoes.
There is a wide range of potato container garden methods and mediums. Most potatoes are grown in garden soil but any well drained medium is appropriate. Even perlite can be used to grow potatoes in a pot. If you are using a rubber or plastic bin, make sure you drill several drainage holes. Heavy burlap bags make ideal containers because they breathe and drain. Whatever type of container you choose, make sure there is room to build up the soil as the spuds grow. This encourages the formation of even more tubers in layers.
Where to Grow Potatoes in a Container
Full sun conditions with six to eight hours of light and ambient temperatures of around 60 F. (16 C.) will provide the best conditions for growing potatoes in containers. You may choose to grow potatoes on the deck in order to have quick access to the smallest new potatoes. Grow new potatoes in a pot outside the kitchen or in large 5-gallon buckets on the patio.
Read the rest here: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/vegetables/potato/container-potatoes.htm
This is how I will be doing it this Spring. I won’t take the chance on in ground. We WILL have flooding here. If any Trenchers have grown potatoes this way I would appreciate any tips. This will be the first time I grow them in containers. I do know I will have to plant more as the yield is less than planting in ground. I am going to be limited in variety due to shortened season.
PRIOR TO GMO’S WE USED STORE POTATOES FOR SEED WHEN I WAS A CHILD.
STORE POTATO EYES WILL NOT GROW NOW. I’VE TRED IT SEVERAL YEARS BACK. WHEN I WAS YOUNG WE GREW THEM ON OLD TIRES, USING A SHALLOW LAYER OF BLACK PLASTIC TO PREVENT WEEDS FROM TAKING IT OVER….. GOOD LUCK!!
i’ll start out with good quality seed potatoes……many gmo potatoes in stores
not sure I want to use the black plastic…..chemicals
Grow Bags For Potatoes: Tips For Growing Potatoes In Bags
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/vegetables/potato/growing-potatoes-in-bags.htm
Here is a way to do it, Mary and you can use compost bags as well.
Have fun, I mean make it fun!!!