What is this little plant coming up in my garden? Potatoes! About a month ago, I discovered some red potatoes in my kitchen were about to go bad. Could I use these to start some potato plants? I wondered. Almost every gardening source said no. Store bought potatoes are supposedly sprayed with something to suppress growth, I read. But I thought, What the heck?
First, I cut the potatoes into chunks with two eyes each. I let those chunks dry on the kitchen counter for two days, then I dug a hole in a sunny spot of the garden. I placed the chunks in the hole, eyes facing up, and covered them with about two inches of soil.
Then, just when I'd given up hope of my experiment working, foliage began growing from the chunks.
Now I'll keep covering the base of the plants with soil (this prevents the potatoes from being green and therefore toxic). In the photo shown here, I need to add soil up to the level of the bottom leaves. When the foliage dies back, the potatoes are ready to harvest.I'm pleased not only because I've never grown potatoes before, but because nursery-purchased potato starts most gardening sources recommend are expensive. I figure I may have spent $1, tops, on these potatoes. If I'd purchased starts from a nursery, I'd have spent at least $7.
Nice information
ReplyDeleteI have a garden in my home where I grow various vegetables but never grow potatoes because I think it is hard to grow.
After reading this article I definitely try to grow potatoes in my garden