Your Go Lightly Gardener here!! I have received a few questions on growingpotatoes, so thought I would give a quick overview of the steps involved. Firstly, if you are new to potato growing, there is the mystery surrounding the difference between First Earlies, Second Earlies, and Main Crop. So, I will explain that: -
When you purchase your potatoes from the Garden Centre you will see that they are divided up into these three sections, so I will briefly explain each choice as follows: -
First Earlies - Start planting in March - Ideal for containers or grow bags - Best for small/new potatoes - Ready to harvest approximately 10 weeks from Planting (that is May/June/July)
Second Earlies - Start planting March/April - Ideal for containers etc - Best for small/new potatoes - Ready to harvest approximately 13 weeks from Planting (July/August)
Main Crop - Start Planting in April - Tend to produce larger potatoes - Ready to harvest approximately 20 weeks from planting (July to October) - Can be left in the ground until Autumn!
Hopefully the above information will solve the conundrum … keep it handy!
Once you have decided upon your potato of choice (mine are ‘Charlotte’ and ‘King Edward’, which are best for salads, boiling, baking, mashing, chipping or roasting), you may wonder how many potatoes you should buy, as they are sometimes sold loosely rather than in pre-prepared packs. I picked out about 12 with good sprouts or chits, as each potato can yield up to 20 potatoes in a good harvest.
Then we come on to the point where you have to ‘chit’ your potatoes, which involves leaving them in a dry, light place, I have completed the chitting process by placing each potato in an egg carton, chits upwards.
Then when the little sprouts or chits have grown to between 0.5” to 1” in length and are a purplish colour (you can snap off the chits that are at the bottom of each potato first), they are ready to plant in the soil or in a potato grow bag or trough or a large container.
Position each potato in the soil with the chit or sprout side uppermost and set about 7” apart. Cover with more compost and water in, and thereafter water frequently. Keep covering the stems with more compost as you go along.
Your potatoes are ready to pick once they have produced a yellowish coloured flower. This will be later in the Summer and will take between 10 to 16 weeks from the initial planting.
Then hey presto …. You should have an abundance of potatoes to enjoy and finding them continually in the soil is a great thrill and akin to always winning at the lucky dip or hunt the Easter Eggs!
Have a wheelbarrow or large container handy to gather them up in … cook and enjoy !!!
Spring 2025 - Growing Potatoes
Hi there
Your Go Lightly Gardener here!! I have received a few questions on growingpotatoes, so thought I would give a quick overview of the steps involved. Firstly, if you are new to potato growing, there is the mystery surrounding the difference
between First Earlies, Second Earlies, and Main Crop. So, I will explain that: -
When you purchase your potatoes from the Garden Centre you will see that they are divided up into these three sections, so I will briefly explain each choice as follows: -
First Earlies
- Start planting in March
- Ideal for containers or grow bags
- Best for small/new potatoes
- Ready to harvest approximately 10 weeks from Planting (that is May/June/July)
Second Earlies
- Start planting March/April
- Ideal for containers etc
- Best for small/new potatoes
- Ready to harvest approximately 13 weeks from Planting (July/August)
Main Crop
- Start Planting in April
- Tend to produce larger potatoes
- Ready to harvest approximately 20 weeks from planting (July to October)
- Can be left in the ground until Autumn!
Hopefully the above information will solve the conundrum … keep it handy!
Once you have decided upon your potato of choice (mine are ‘Charlotte’ and ‘King Edward’, which are best for salads, boiling, baking, mashing, chipping or roasting), you may wonder how many potatoes you should buy, as they are sometimes sold loosely rather than in pre-prepared packs. I picked out about 12 with good sprouts or chits, as each potato can yield up to 20 potatoes in a good harvest.
Then we come on to the point where you have to ‘chit’ your potatoes, which involves leaving them in a dry, light place, I have completed the chitting process by placing each potato in an egg carton, chits upwards.
Then when the little sprouts or chits have grown to between 0.5” to 1” in length and are a purplish colour (you can snap off the chits that are at the bottom of each potato first), they are ready to plant in the soil or in a potato grow bag or trough or a large container.
Position each potato in the soil with the chit or sprout side uppermost and set about 7” apart. Cover with more compost and water in, and thereafter water frequently. Keep covering the stems with more compost as you go along.
Your potatoes are ready to pick once they have produced a yellowish coloured flower. This will be later in the Summer and will take between 10 to 16 weeks from the initial planting.
Then hey presto …. You should have an abundance of potatoes to enjoy and finding them continually in the soil is a great thrill and akin to always winning at the lucky dip or hunt the Easter Eggs!
Have a wheelbarrow or large container handy to gather them up in … cook and enjoy !!!