Whenever someone asks me what my favorite vegetable to plant with the kids is, my answer is always: Seed Potatoes. There’s something so cool about watching potatoes morph from dinner side dish to plants on your kitchen counter. Plus, it’s really easy to do.. like, as easy as completely forgetting you bought potatoes and discovering them behind the bread box covered in sprouts. Also, they’re easy for anyone to grow. You don’t need a lot of land or a big garden – potatoes are happy growing in a container on your back patio. Finally, what’s more fun to kids than digging through the dirt to uncover their harvest!
Step One: Choose Your Potatoes
If you’re looking for a hardy, fun veggie to grow with kids, look no further! First, you’ll need potatoes for growing. Try to avoid grocery store potatoes that have been treated for a longer shelf life. When buying potatoes to grow it’s best to stick to farmer’s markets or to purchase seed potatoes intended for growing. If you don’t have a farm stand nearby, simply purchase your seed potatoes online. Seeds of Change has a wonderful selection of potatoes that can be shipped right to your door!
We typically grow potatoes we get from our farm CSA program. I place future seed potatoes in an open egg carton and put them in a cool area with lots of bright light. Over time you will notice the eyes in each potato sprouting buds. These buds will grow into thick, green sprouts over the next two to four weeks. If your sprouts seem pale or fragile move the potatoes someplace where they will get more light! Once you no longer have the danger of a nigh time frost, you can begin planting. You can check average frost dates for your area here.
{We normally store potatoes in the dark to keep them from sprouting, so that they will be edible for longer periods of time. With seed potatoes you still want to avoid heat, but make sure they are getting plenty of sunlight to encourage healthy, strong plants!}
Step Two: Where Will You Grow?
When my sprouts are about an inch long I like to begin planting. Decide where you are going to grow your potatoes. I’ve found that potatoes grow equally as well in the ground and in containers, so the method is really a personal choice. We tend to grow ours in containers because it’s a little easier for the kids.
To grow potatoes in the ground make a six inch deep trench. Lay potatoes along the bottom of the trench and cover with soil. As the sprouts grow taller you will begin to hill soil up around them. For every 6-7 inches of growth add 3 inches of soil. This keeps the tubers covered and prevents them from turning green. You can stop adding soil once the plants begin to flower. Continue to water until the plants turn yellow and wilt – this is the time for you to harvest!
To grow potatoes in a container you will need to select a tall container like a clean garbage pail or barrel. Some people even use large laundry baskets, or you can purchase heavy duty bags on Amazon meant for growing root vegetables in (we use these bags ourselves because they are easy to move around and can be folded flat for storage in the winter!). Make sure you have drainage holes in your container! If you are using a pail or barrel simply drill a few holes into the bottom so that water has an area to drain. Place six inches of soil in the bottom of your container and place the potatoes on top. Cover with more soil. As the potatoes grow continue to add soil to the container – about 3 inches of soil for every 6-7 inches of plant. Stop adding soil when the plants begin to flower. Keep well watered until the plant turns yellow and wilts.
{To Cut or Not To Cut: When planting potatoes you can plant them whole, or cut them into pieces. Planting a potato whole with a few sprouts on it will yield a larger number of potatoes, but they will be on the smaller side. If you cut your potato into pieces, each piece containing one or two sprouts, you will get fewer potatoes per plant but they will be larger in size. If you do choose to cut your seed potatoes, do so a day or two before planting. Lay them back in the egg carton sprout side up and allow the cut side to cure. This will protect it from disease and rot once it is in the soil.}
Step Three: Harvest
Once your plants turn yellow and wilt it is time to harvest your potatoes! This should take 2-4 months depending on variety. If you’ve planted in the ground you’ll dig up the potatoes. If you’ve planted in a container you can simply dump the container out and collect your potatoes. Either way, be gentle so as not damage the skin. If you do they’ll still be edible, but won’t keep for long, so just eat those first!
{New potatoes are small, thin skinned, immature potatoes. You can dig some of these up when your plants reach about a foot in height – but be careful. Taking too many will damage the plants, and new potatoes can not be stored for a long time. They are delicious however, especially pan fried! We sometimes plant an entire container or row specifically for harvesting early-on so that we can enjoy these tiny treasures! Use your fingers to gently search around the base of the plant when harvesting new potatoes.}
Now that you have a delicious potato crop, you need a stockpile of garden potato-worthy recipes. Try some of my favorites!
Loaded Potato Skins from Daises & Pie – This recipe alone is a reason to plant both potatoes and chives!
These Broccoli Bacon Cheddar Potatoes are practically a meal in themselves!
Or make your own potato chips at home!
You can also grow other crops that compliment potatoes, likes onions or chives, to make sure you always have the ingredients for your favorite dishes on hand! Are you planning on planting seed potatoes this year?
Leave a Reply