As a self-declared advocate of garden potatoes any time, any place, allow me to explain how to grow a potato. Or twenty! Any small to medium-size potato (smaller than your fist) that is showing ivory, pale green or reddish sprouts growing out of the potato can be grown into a garden potato.
Parent potatoes provide plenty of nutrients, so potato sprouts that begin as small nubs can become monstrous in size. Broken off at the potato and planted in a pot of fresh potting soil (potato end down), sprouts more than an inch long will quickly grow roots, then leaves. This is a great way to grow a potato very early in the season, when it’s too cold to plant potatoes outdoors.
To grow a potato that has turned green from exposure to light and is developing green sprouts at one end, cut off that end, preserving a chunk of potato the size of a walnut. Plant small sprouting potatoes whole. In a sunny spot, dig up some soil to loosen it and break up the chunks, and throw in a handful of an organic fertilizer. Plant the potato so it’s covered with one inch of soil. Within a couple of weeks you will have a potato plant. Surround it with a cushy mulch of grass clippings, adding more and more mulch as the season progresses.
When the plant starts flopping over and looking pale, pull it up and gather your potatoes. Depending on the variety grown, soil fertility, and other environmental factors, you should find between 5 and 10 potatoes of various sizes.
That's the simplest version of how to grow a potato, but it's not the only way. If you want more in-depth coverage of garden potatoes, please explore the links below.
