I've grown some potatoes, which I got through a newspaper offer, in containers. I've just dug up one pot and, although they seem to have grown fine, I don't have very many. How many should I be getting and what have I done wrong? Have I dug them up too soon maybe? I also had this problem in the summer.
Charlie (16.11.07)
Mary: So much depends on what size pot you used and whether the potatoes were fed and watered adequately during the summer. I usually reckon that if i put in a 2oz seed potato, I can get 26oz of spuds out at the end of the season. If you have used a manicrop variety, then you should wait until the haul (top foliage) has died down before digging them up. You may not have waited long enough.
Elisabeth: They would not have grown any more this year, so better luck next time. You'll do best with a first early potato variety to plant in March, keeping the containers under cover in the early weeks.
Advice from Haxnicks, who make Potato Patio Planters, is to pour about 10cm (4in) of potting compost into the bottom of the sack. Plant three to five seed potatoes with shoots or eyes upwards, to half the depth of the compost. Keep the compost slightly damp, but do not over water, and feed weekly with a high-potash, low-nitrogen soluble plant food. Cover with fleece if frost is forecast. When the shoots have grown to 7cm (3in) long, add another layer of compost to leave just the tips showing, keeping the compost damp each time. Repeat this process until the compost and shoots are 3cm (1in) from the top. Signs that they are ready to dig are the same as with for potatoes growing in the ground.
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