The Success of the Potato Harvest: Lessons Learned and Plans for Next Year

The potato harvest of 2023 is concluded. I did not even try to grow potatoes this year. Instead, I found a bag of potatoes that had sprouted, and rather than tossing them into the compost pile, I decided I might just be better off planting them.

I did not keep an exact record of the potato planting, but I think I planted them in late April, and they grew rather slowly due to the fact that we had a very dry May this year. Sufian really wanted to dig them up, so we decided to dig them up, or rather make them upside down, before waiting for the plant to die off.

One of the benefits of using a grow bag is that it is very easy to harvest potatoes. I can simply empty the contents of the bag into a wheelbarrow, and then we can search for the potatoes. I was surprised to find the following two observations.

• Even though it rained quite a lot in the past few weeks, the soil in the grow bag was rather dry. Unlike a plastic planter, the grow bag definitely has very good drainage.

• I added lots of floor materials from the chicken coop, but they were mostly gone and it looked like just great soil. I later learned that adding very immature organic material can lead to potato scabs, but probably a moderate amount of chicken coop floor material may not be a problem. Besides, I mixed it with fallen leaves as well.

• Given the success of the potato harvest, I have decided to plant more potatoes next year. I added a remainder in late March so that I can secure potatoes and sprout them.

• I think I could have waited a few more weeks, as while some potatoes were big and mature, some were still small.

• I did not forget to do “hilling,” which is adding more soil on top of the potatoes so that newly grown potatoes are covered and do not turn green.

• Next year, I should try several different kinds of potatoes, as I am uncertain which varieties will do the best in our microclimate and grow bag.

Potatoes are definitely very easy to grow, and I can see why they became such an important staple in Ireland, with its equally cold weather like Chicago.