Growing potatoes in straw?

[Smart Red]

It should also be mentioned that not all potato varieties do well grown in straw. Not sure exactly why, but Yukon Gold is one that won't set spuds in straw.

 

[Wishin']

Well, that was the first variety I tried. Thank you

 

[digitS']

Thanks DigitS. I will have to find some time to read those threads. Maybe if I'm lucky she'll post on here and save me the time. It seems to be missing a lot lately
Btw where do I introduce myself. It would be nice to have somewhere to say hi and ask a few Q about how ya'll do your gardening so that I can glean a bit and maybe end up with a decent garden plan.

Yes, 'Honeycomb kept us up with the progress of those potatoes in bags thru 3 seasons. She mentioned them on a couple of other threads, also.

It really is a clever idea - starting them indoors (where there must have been quite a bit of light), having her husband carry them out when the weather warmed, harvesting them early, and then growing a 2nd crop of potatoes each year.

Folks usually introduce themselves on About Me & My Garden .

Steve

 

[digitS']

Thanks DigitS. I will have to find some time to read those threads. Maybe if I'm lucky she'll post on here and save me the time. It seems to be missing a lot lately
Btw where do I introduce myself. It would be nice to have somewhere to say hi and ask a few Q about how ya'll do your gardening so that I can glean a bit and maybe end up with a decent garden plan.

Yes, 'Honeycomb kept us up with the progress of those potatoes in bags thru 3 seasons. She mentioned them on a couple of other threads, also.

It really is a clever idea - starting them indoors (where there must have been quite a bit of light), having her husband carry them out when the weather warmed, harvesting them early, and then growing a 2nd crop of potatoes each year.

Folks usually introduce themselves on About Me & My Garden .

Steve

 

[Wishin']

O.K Thanks.

 

[catjac1975]

I am planning on trying to grow potatoes in straw for the third year in a row. Has any one done this successfully, and if so can you help me? The first year I tried it in a bag container, planted per numerous magazines, word of mouth and book instructions. Bury eye under ground just until covered add some straw and let the stalk grow. As the stock grows add more straw until desired height. I chose about a foot for some 6" for others and 3 feet for one, per instructions of a neighbor. I ended up with a few very very small potatoes. The second year I planted the same way, but directly in the ground. All the stalks rotted at the bottom before the growing season was over and I ended up with 5 small potatoes Which the turkeys promptly dug up at the end of the season and took one large chunk out of each potato any suggestions?

SoIi want to ask "Why" straw instead of soil?

 

[Wishin']

Allegedly, if you build the straw up around the potatoes they will grow all up the covered area of the stalk yielding more potatoes then just what you would get from the portion of the stalk that is normally underground. We had a neighbor who said they used the straw method and had the stalks covered 4 feet high with potatoes all the way up, until they met the sun exposed portion(an additional foot or so).

 

[catjac1975]

This seems like an incredible amount of work for an easy to grow crop. We did a trench, drop the potato in, cover it lightly with soil and wait for them to sprout. We cover them as they grow with more soil. You could always add the straw on top of that.

 

[Jared77]

Where did you get your seed potatoes from? That might have something to do with your poor germination.

 

[Wishin']

Catjack It is actually not much, you just place a tomato cage or something around the sprouting potatoes and add hay as it grows till desired height.

Jared they were from the local feed store.

 

[catjac1975]

But is that for 1 plant? I grow 2, 60 foot rows and have potatoes for 2 families for the year. Much easier.