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How to chit and plant seed potatoes

Written by Tildenet Marketing

When can I buy seed potatoes?

If you have a small or urban garden get yourself some seed potatoes. Potatoes are the perfect veg to grow in a small space. Seed potatoes are on sale from December and throughout the spring.

Can potatoes be grown in planters?

Yes, it is super easy to grow potatoes in containers, more so that growing directly in the ground as you don’t need to dig or prepare and soil.

Haxnicks do their very own Potato Planter is a planting bag made from tough, green woven polyethylene. It comes complete with drainage holes and with handles on both sides for easy movement. The planters stand 45cm high and hold approximately 40 litres of compost. They have been designed for use on patios and balconies, or in small gardens where there is no space for growing vegetables. The re-usable planters come in packs of three. On the reverse of the pack, there are detailed instructions on how to grow and harvest your potatoes.

Each Patio Planter is suitable for planting 3 seed tubers or 4 tubers if very small 'baby potatoes' are required. By planting each potato planter at 4 week intervals you will be able to harvest over a longer period.

How do you grow seed potatoes?

1) First you need to 'chit' your seed potatoes by placing them in a cool but frost-free place. In egg boxes or shallow trays in full light works well. They will then form sturdy shoots (chits) about 2.5cm (1 inch) long. This takes approximately 5 weeks.

2) When they are ready to plant, you will need approximately 40 litres of good general purpose compost for each planter. Pour approximately 10cm (4 inches) into the bottom of the planter.

3) Plant your seed potatoes, with the shoots or eyes facing upwards, and cover with 5cm (2 inches) of compost. Keep the compost slightly damp, but do not over-water.

4) When the shoots have grown 7cm (3 inches) high, add another layer of compost to leave the shoot tips just showing, keeping the compost damp each time. Repeat this process until the compost and shoots are 3 cm (1 inch) from the top.

5) When the Potato Planter is full and the leaves of the plants are showing, feed weekly with a high potash/ low nitrogen soluble plant food. If there is danger of frost, cover with fleece and remove when the frost has passed.

How do you know when seed potatoes are ready to harvest?

When the plant produces small white or pink flowers your potatoes are ready to harvest.

Simply dig down into the planter to see if your potatoes are ready, and look out for the planter bulging, another sign of good potato growth. Remove a few potatoes at a time, or tip the planter out to reveal a bumper harvest. If you want larger tubers then continue feeding and watering for another few weeks.

When the potatoes are ready to harvest, you can always store them in a Haxnicks Jute Vegetable Sack!

 If you are interested in finding out more about growing potatoes, read our other blogs:

Potato growing for beginners - the easiest way to grow potatoes blog

Grow at Home: A step by step guide to growing potatoes in containers

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