How to grow potatoes at home

It is not true that to be able to grow potatoes you can only do it if you have an orchard or a garden or if you have a large patio for this purpose. The truth is, all you need is imagination and hard work.

Today we are going to show you how easy it is to grow potatoes. The trick is to use special containers designed for this purpose.

On the one hand, we have special potato bags for outdoor cultivation. Proper use of fertilizer and water will give you tasty, healthy potatoes.

On the other hand, one can use containers such as drums, pots or even barrels.

How to grow potatoes in bags.

If you follow the instructions, you will soon be enjoying homemade potatoes:

How to plant potatoes in pots, in a barrel or drum.

Growing potatoes in barrels or any equivalent container can be very challenging, growing your own food in a controlled environment and reducing exposure to chemicals, pests or fungus, achieving peak yield is something you have to experience for yourself.

If you have trouble finding a barrel, you can also choose to grow the potatoes in barrels or buckets, you will get the same result.

Here are the recommendations in 4 simple steps to have a potato harvest without having a garden:

Select and prepare a container.

You will need to choose a container such as a barrel or a 190 liter trash can.

As an alternative, you can buy used barrels or potato planters that are sold on the market, although my recommendation is that you find and reuse a container to avoid it ending up in the trash.

Almost any 1 meter tall container will work, but be sure to select a container that already has holes drilled or can be easily drilled.

You should leave the container clean with no residue of any kind.

Good drainage is essential for growing healthy potatoes, so drill a series of large drainage holes in the bottom of whatever barrel, pot or container you are using.

Choose a variety of potatoes.

Seed potatoes are usually found at nurseries in season, but you will only have to buy them once.

If you wish, you can sprout your potatoes yourself before planting them by putting them in an egg carton, sprouted side up, and placing them in a cool, dark room. direct sunlight.

Fill the bottom of the container with about 6 inches of topsoil and compost. Plant mulch can be made from reused coconut husks, making the mixture not too compact, it will help retain moisture for the roots.

Next, add a few seed potatoes to the soil layer, making sure to leave plenty of space between each one. Loosely fill the potatoes with an additional 15 centimeters of soil and compost mix with water to moisten the soil. Keep the soil moist at all times, but be careful not to overwater.

Add more soil.

Add another layer of soil-compost mix to cover about half of the stems. Repeat this process, leaving the shoots to grow, you need to cover the shoots and moisten the soil.

Potato harvest.

After 10 weeks, the potatoes should be ready for harvest. Dig carefully with your hands to check if they are ready. Once you’ve confirmed they’re ready, throw the barrel onto a tarp and collect your reward.

Other tips for growing potatoes in barrels.

• After the first harvest, save a few potatoes to use as seed potatoes the following year.
• Instead of using soil, try growing potatoes on sawdust.
• Experiment with different containers, varieties of seed potatoes, and waterings.

A method you can also use to grow potatoes in bags.

Additional. How to grow potatoes in a pot.

How to make a box for growing potatoes at home.

For the cultivation of potatoes, we start by preparing a wooden box where we can grow them.

Materials.

For this project, you will need the following materials:

1. Six planks of untreated wood, with the following measurements 2″ x 6″ x 8′.
2. Two 2″ x 2″ x 2″ x 6′ wooden dowels. You can also use a 12′ long bolt.
3. Approximately 65 flat head screws 2 1/2″ long.
4. Drill and bits.

Instructions.

For its assembly, you must follow the following steps:

1. Cut the two 2″ x 2″ x 6′ bolts into four 33″ pieces.
2. Cut the six 2″ x 2″ x 8′ boards into 12 lengths of 21″ and 12 lengths of 24″.
3. Drill two holes at each end of the 24 inch pieces, about 3/4″ from the edge. This will allow the screws to go in the center of the cut side of the 21 inch pieces.
4. Screw together two of the 24″ pieces and two of the 21″ pieces to form a frame.
5. You will need to repeat step 4 five more times, giving you a total of 6 images. Stack them on top of each other to create your box.
6. Place one of the 2″ x 2″ x 33″ pieces on the inside corner of one of the frames. This frame will be the base of the box.
7. Drill two holes on the outside of this frame, so they line up with the stud you placed in the corner of the frame. In this case, the screws will anchor the upright to the corner of the frame at two points.
8. Repeat the last step for the remaining three inside corners of the frame.
9. Slide one of the other frames onto the base frame, with the four “legs” inside. These two floors will be used for planting.

We already have the box ready, now we have to plant and cultivate the potatoes.

With regard to sowing, follow the following recommendations:

1. Select a sunny location for the box.
2. Prepare the soil at the bottom of the box. Add potting soil and compost, in a mixture of 40% compost, 40% chopped leaves or grass and 20% soil. Fill the last two layers with the mixture.
3. Plant the potatoes about 3″-4″ deep and cover with soil. Add a thin layer of leaves as mulch.
4. When the potato plants are about 30 cm high, add another frame and fill it with soil, just a third of the way around the plant.
5. Add the remaining frames.

To harvest potatoes, remove the boards from the bottom frame to access the ground. When you have removed all the potatoes from this level, fill it again with soil and place the boards. To harvest more potatoes, repeat the same steps with the boards on the second grid. And so on until you reach the top frame.

Enjoy your homemade potatoes!