potato

[smigelski]

How many tubers should I get per plant? How far apart should I plant them?

[beaconlight]

Do you mean white or sweet?
Here is interesting on whites.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potato#Cultivation

We used to plant whites in 30 foot rows 3 foot wide with potatoes about 18 inches apart.
Last few years no whites all Sweet potatoes. About 12 inches apart in 2 rows on the same mounds as we would have used for whites. This is part of a small home garden of 30 feet by 50 feet.

[Rudi]

Matt:

All depends on your soil, the precip conditions, the type of potato's etc. There are a lot of variables.

1. Number of potato's per plant? We usually see about a dozen, varying sizes.. depends on fertilizer, water, areation and a host of other factors.

2. We always plant about a foot apart. Use the 6" rule. 6'' plant a fish, next 6" plant a spud, and keep on going. If you are close to the shore you can do that.. saves on fertilizer. Otherwise 12" to 18" is about right.

Yield The last time I really thought about it, we had about 1/2 acre or so of spuds planted. Harvested 1.5 Imperial tons of taters. Fed a lot of families with that one winter. Normally I never worry about it. God gives unto us what we need. I figure I get what I get.. and I am happy with it. This year I am going to plant about another 1/2 acre, should be sufficient.

[Boss Hog]

How many tubers should I get per plant? How far apart should I plant them?

Irish potatoes we plant about 12 inches apart
David

[Bill Hudson]

For potato information, try this: http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/1000/1619.html

Bill

[SONNY]

We try to average 1 seed piece (2 eyes per piece where possible), and 1 piece 8 inch average spacing. ---If planting whole smalls, ---then 1 per foot.
In the past, we got 10 pounds per foot of usable spuds. It would depend on soil conditions/water and fertilizer.
As for sweets we plant the white variety, (save our own tatoes and grow our own plants from for the next year! thanks; sonny

[Uncle Mike]

A 30 foot row of potato's planted a foot apart with GENERALLY get you about a bushel (which is about 60 pounds) of potatoes. That is about 1/2 the consumption for an adult in the good ole USA, but I would guess 1 of those bushels is the junk food we consume (chips, and er, ah chips!) They can be one of the most rewarding plants to grow in a garden because they produce so much with so little effort. My son in law visited (City boy from LA) and wanted to see the garden. He was shocked to see what potato plants looked like (I still don't know what he exptected!) As luck would have it I plunged my hand in the ground so I could grab an example spud and I came up with the bigest potato I have ever growed in all my natural!

[Pete1941]

Hey Uncle Mike, I'll wager that he thought you would pull out a plastic perforated bag with a twist tie and the potatos neatly inside. That is what some of my grandkids think!!! What is the world coming to???????? Pete

[Uncle Mike]

We had a little garden in maine, about 35 x 75, and the kids loved showing the produce off, and getting the "Thats Not an onion! (or carrot)" as they pulled the veggie from the soil.

[TractorChick]

I planted my potatoes in buckets and then some between my rows of tomatoes.

[beaconlight]

One year we planted Irish spuds under leaves with chicken wire to hold the leaves down. That did well and it was easy to find a good sized one to cook as the rest grew.

[TractorChick]

That's an interesting way to do it

When do you know when to pick potatoes?

[beaconlight]

With the leaves we just reached under gently and when your hand hit a good sized one that was it. Otherwise it was a look at the foliage that lead us to dig. More art than science. Guess we were just lucky. Though when it comes to gardening with Bev it seems more like witchcraft. She could plant a cloths pin and get a tree.

[Mr E]

Though when it comes to gardening with Bev it seems more like witchcraft. She could plant a cloths pin and get a tree.

Well, now, ain't that just about the ultimate compliment !!!

[beaconlight]

well if you had maters at Stone throw they were hers.