This blog is providing an update on the prior one titled “Grow Bags for Potatoes”.  I usually store the seed potatoes that I purchase in a brown bags so they don’t touch each other and put them on a shelf in my garage.  I check on them every week to see if the eyes are forming any sprouts.  Once the sprouts are about 1/2″ tall, I cut the seed potatoes in 2″ or 2 oz pieces.  I then place the pieces in a tray in the garage for a few days to heal the cuts.
If you are growing the potatoes in a raised bed under a tunnel, you can start planting the potato seeds in March. Â Since I am growing them in grow bags, I decided to wait until April. Â One time I had to secure plastic around the grow bags so the frost did not kill them.
Now it is time to put the potato pieces in the grow bag.  I form a cuff on the bag and roll the fabric down so the bag is about 10″ tall.  I put 3″ of garden soil in and place the potato pieces so the sprouts are facing up toward the sky.  Then I add another 3″ of soil to cover the potato pieces.  As for spacing, most potato pieces are placed about 12″ apart if you want larger potatoes.  If you want more smaller potatoes, then plant them 4″ to 6″ apart.
Remember that hilling is important for 2 reasons:  1)  Potatoes do not grow lower than the original potato piece that you planted.  If you want more potatoes then you have to add more soil. 2)  The potato should not be exposed to light or they will turn green and become inedible.
Hilling just means that as the plant grows above ground, you add dirt so only 3″ of the leaves are showing.  Once the plant above ground gets to 6 inches tall, I add 3″ of soil to bury half of the above ground plant.  As needed, I uncuff some of the fabric so I have more room for soil.  Keep repeating the process until the plant flowers or you run out of room in the grow bag.  Potatoes basically grow vertically but underground!
I drape summer-weight fabric over the potatoes so I don’t get any Colorado potato beetles.
For the types of potatoes that I am growing, see the earlier blogs titled “Unusual Colors for Potatoes” and “More on Potatoes”. Â We will talk about harvesting later on.
