If you have grown potatoes before you will know the feeling of disappointment when you harvest your potatoes and what you have in front of you is a poor specimen of potato.
Why not switch to planting one tuber per 8 litre potato growing bag, and not only will you be stunned by the yields, you won’t believe how easy it is to achieve them.
The method, hit upon during technical trials at our HQ, opens up potato growing to everyone – even those without a garden. The small but durable bags will sit happily by the front door or on a deep window ledge. More than 80 tubers were harvested from just one of these bags, nearly treble the number harvested from each tuber in the larger sacks. The results came from our new Potato Jazzy – an exclusive new generation first early, bred for maximum yield and flavour.
How to grow potatoes in bags
- Simply fill the sturdy potato bags by one third with good quality multipurpose compost, and place your ‘chitted’ seed potato on top of the compost. Add another layer of compost to fill the rest of the bag.
- Now all you need to do is water it, place the potato bag in a bright, frost free position and wait for it to grow.
- Feed potato plants every other week with potato fertiliser and water the bags when the compost begins to dry out.
How to harvest potatoes
- Harvest times will vary depending on the growing season and the size of tuber you want.
- Start to harvest first earlies as ‘new potatoes’ when the plants begin to flower, approximately 10 weeks from planting. It’s worth having a gentle dig below the surface to check the potato sizes – if they’re too small simply leave them for another week or so, otherwise lift them and enjoy!
- Maincrop varieties are usually left for at least two weeks after the leaves and haulms (stems) have withered, to allow the skins to set. Cut down the stems with secateurs to just above soil level as the leaves wither and yellow, or if they show signs of blight.
- Second cropping tubers are often called Christmas potatoes. These winter potatoes can be harvested as required from November, or left in the soil until Christmas. Cut down the foliage as the leaves wither and yellow, and protect them from frost by covering the potato growing bags with a thick layer of straw or moving them into the shed or greenhouse.
For more information view our full how to grow potatoes guide.
Last Updated on June 20, 2024 by Thompson & Morgan Horticultural Team
Terri works in the e-commerce marketing department assisting the busy web team. Terri manages our blog and social media pages here at Thompson & Morgan and is dedicated to providing useful advice to our gardeners. Terri is new to gardening and keen to develop her horticultural knowledge.
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