10 thoughts on “Idea how to grow potatoes, good idea, a lot of calories and nutrients in spuds.”
I’ve done that before and it actually worked pretty good. In fact, I’m thinking about doing it again this year but I’d like to make it a bit larger.
I tried this a couple of years ago.I used potting soil. I got a bunch of small potatoes. Kinda wonder if I would have used a 50/50 mix of potting soil and sand; that way the taters would have had more chance to expand.
Has anyone done this themselves. I’ve read a number of conflicting claims on the web – all the way from GREAT to ‘the plant only creates enough potatoes that can be supported by the leaves’ sunshine feed’.
Both true.
I’ve given this a try in NH over 3 years. Results mixed. Potting soil isn’t the way, regular soil mixed 50=50 with compost was my best result.
Between potatoes, cabbage and dry beans (not green beans, ok?) a pretty solid aweshit SHTF garden is made.
Adding the three sisters dent corn-winter squash and more pole beans is also a great idea IF you can keep the deer-racoons from eating the corn.
Maybe hunting over bait, but I didn’t say that. Pest Control.
I find simple plant the potato chunk and hill it weekly so about 20% of the leaves are showing works the best in my area. SIDE DRESS your potatoes every two weeks with a bit of compost tea or simply bury those leaves with compost and you’ll get plenty of potatoes. The plant grows more leaves, the buried leaves become more potatoes, and all is well.
Beans, winter squash, dry corn, and potatoes all are easy to get seed for next year. Cabbage is a Biannual seed producer so you must overwinter the roots and some leaves after you carefully harvest the head for a seed stalk next year. I overwinter at least a dozen of my best-looking cabbages as I lose a few anyway and genetics don’t suffer.
You can do the same thing in a hole. Mine’s about 15×10 feet. Put the taters in a trough and rake it back in as you need.
try adding your old coffee grounds to the soil mix. earth worms go nuts for the old grounds and they loosen the soil really well. that also works for other plants as well.
made a deal with the local 7/11 and pick up their old grounds every day.
that first year I had tomato plants over 6 feet tall and tons of fruit too.
same thing for the pepper plants. I have a wood stove and save the potash for mixing in the compost. when things turn to shit, we will need to know how to grow our own food with stuff that we will not be able to buy.
horse manure is another good thing to add. or use it in a rain barrel to water the plants with. not on them as it will burn the plants. just a couple of inches around the stem. I spent a few summers trying this and other way of growing food.
not as easy as one would think raised beds worked better for me too.
the best cherry tomato I ever had where ones I grew in the back yard
When are ag-scientists going to do something usefvl, like developing a fat-free bacon flavoured spud?
I’ve done that before and it actually worked pretty good. In fact, I’m thinking about doing it again this year but I’d like to make it a bit larger.
I tried this a couple of years ago.I used potting soil. I got a bunch of small potatoes. Kinda wonder if I would have used a 50/50 mix of potting soil and sand; that way the taters would have had more chance to expand.
Has anyone done this themselves. I’ve read a number of conflicting claims on the web – all the way from GREAT to ‘the plant only creates enough potatoes that can be supported by the leaves’ sunshine feed’.
Both true.
I’ve given this a try in NH over 3 years. Results mixed. Potting soil isn’t the way, regular soil mixed 50=50 with compost was my best result.
Between potatoes, cabbage and dry beans (not green beans, ok?) a pretty solid aweshit SHTF garden is made.
Adding the three sisters dent corn-winter squash and more pole beans is also a great idea IF you can keep the deer-racoons from eating the corn.
Maybe hunting over bait, but I didn’t say that. Pest Control.
I find simple plant the potato chunk and hill it weekly so about 20% of the leaves are showing works the best in my area. SIDE DRESS your potatoes every two weeks with a bit of compost tea or simply bury those leaves with compost and you’ll get plenty of potatoes. The plant grows more leaves, the buried leaves become more potatoes, and all is well.
Beans, winter squash, dry corn, and potatoes all are easy to get seed for next year. Cabbage is a Biannual seed producer so you must overwinter the roots and some leaves after you carefully harvest the head for a seed stalk next year. I overwinter at least a dozen of my best-looking cabbages as I lose a few anyway and genetics don’t suffer.
You can do the same thing in a hole. Mine’s about 15×10 feet. Put the taters in a trough and rake it back in as you need.
try adding your old coffee grounds to the soil mix. earth worms go nuts for the old grounds and they loosen the soil really well. that also works for other plants as well.
made a deal with the local 7/11 and pick up their old grounds every day.
that first year I had tomato plants over 6 feet tall and tons of fruit too.
same thing for the pepper plants. I have a wood stove and save the potash for mixing in the compost. when things turn to shit, we will need to know how to grow our own food with stuff that we will not be able to buy.
horse manure is another good thing to add. or use it in a rain barrel to water the plants with. not on them as it will burn the plants. just a couple of inches around the stem. I spent a few summers trying this and other way of growing food.
not as easy as one would think raised beds worked better for me too.
the best cherry tomato I ever had where ones I grew in the back yard
When are ag-scientists going to do something usefvl, like developing a fat-free bacon flavoured spud?
So you want your spud oinking at ya?
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