I grew potatoes all winter long in my basement under grow lights. I didn’t have a very big yield about 2 lbs I had the best luck with red potatoes. I have about 9-10 plants growing in pots or bags I’m waiting another week here in northeast Massachusetts before I put them outside.
Moving them in and out is more than worth the effort. I always grow mine early and they sit in the tunnel until they can go out properly into their final spots. Great video Scott.
Thanks Scott! I just harvested my first few bags of potatoes. They still have about 2 weeks left, but, the squirrels thought it was time to start snacking. AND, this is my second year starting them indoors, here in Florida, and transplanting! I used a 5 inch pot and put them out after the leaves were around 6 or 8 inches. They didn't mind at all!
Yes! Was just thinking about this earlier. I have potatoes-a-chitting that just won't wait another month. I learned about early potting of potatoes from Tony on Simplified Gardening.
I started mine in grow bags already and have them in the greenhouse. I cover them up with extra plastic at night. I started them this time last year as well and they did well. I am in southern NH
Thank You for this video. My potatoes should arrive next tuesday. Because I failed horribly the first time I tried to grow potatoes I thought I would try again. This time in fabric bags, so this is something fore me to consider trying.
I can relate to the "too hot, too fast" experience. I have already had an 85F day, yet my potatoes are covered right now with floating row cover because there's a slight chance of frost tonight and tomorrow night. I planted in ground on Feb 28, a full six weeks before my average last frost date, and the plants are about 3" high.
Great info here. I've got my store potatoes in the greenhouse. My first batch of German Butterballs will chit in front of a window until it's 50F outside. This year I'll be using worm castings in half the bags, and Lily Miller granular fertilizer in the other half. Until last year, I didn't even know about chitting, and always wondered why I didn't get more potatoes!
I do this! One of my yukons that I just transplanted out already had a 3-in potato! I kept them inside a little longer than anticipated because of a surprise freeze.
Seriously. I harvested some Yukon gold potatoes today. Planted Jan 2nd. Not much from 6 plants. 3lbs. Letting the russets planted the same day go until the tops yellow. 2 more succession batches to go. I'm zone 9. Luckily it remained above 30f .
I've had potatoes in grow bags for about 3 weeks already. Not sure when I'll ever be able to move them outside, I still have over 2 feet of snow covering my garden.
Another great episode mr Scott! I’m going to give this a go seeing how it’s still winter today in the foothills of Alberta….next week it’ll be 20c. Winter straight to summer I guess!🤷🏻♂️
You have stated that you usually use straw for mulch in your garden. Have you ever used coconut coir for mulch and what are your thoughts on it as a mulch? I'm in Colorado also and trying to assess which organic mulch to use. i appreciate your gardening videos!
Most of the coir is processed into small particles. Initially it is hydrophobic and water runs through it easily, but then it soaks up a lot. In our dry air I would be concerned that the coir would begin to dry and then soak up much of the water used to water plants. The surface could become nice and moist with little of the water reaching the plant roots. I like straw because it absorbs some water to help the surface but most of the water flows through to the soil below. Mixing straw with leaves and dried grass clippings helps keep it in place on windy days.
Have you ever hear that you should remove all but two eyes in order to get bigger potatoes? I saw that on another channel. I plant early potatoes in grow bags (Red Norland). I grow all the rest in a Ruth Stout bed.
Great video and a great idea for those of us with a short growing season. I like the grow bags for potatoes. Question: I saw that onion and dill were good companion plants for potatoes. Would it be of value to the plants to grow a few bunching onions in the grow bag with the potatoes or would it be too crowded?
Scott I wonder how well they would do if you set them in your greenhouse for now, keeping an eye on temp in there. At night cover them a little extra and during day open your vents. Just wondering if that would work for you and be easier. Good luck
Thanks for the timely vid, Scott! I'm in zone 7A and soon to try my hand at some potatoes. I think it was Tony O'Neill who partially buries his containers in soil so the roots can exit the holes. Do you use that technique as well? Any thoughts about it? Thanks
I have done that with some smaller plants but not potatoes. Tony uses nice sturdy plastic containers that do well when buried. I don't have big containers like and it doesn't work the same with grow bags.
@@GardenerScott Thanks for the quick reply. Do you have a cheap source for Magic Molly? The online sources I'm finding are prohibitive in general, especially when you factor in the shipping.
Well geez now I think I should do this too. How long do I have to chit the potatoes? It's only been a week since they arrived, and I was planning on chitting for at least another 3 weeks?
could this be one major drawback of raised bed gardening, that the soil is raised up exposed to the cooler temps? deeper into the earth is a constant......50-55 degrees f ?
I've been monitoring the soil temps in spring for a few years and there is little variability. While deep in the earth is constant, at the 6"-8" point where plant roots would grow the temperature in raised beds is close to the same as the ground.
@@GardenerScott good to know. since the video was about potatoes i was thinking it might be deeper than the usual 6-8 inches. in any event , thank you for taking the time to test this out and share your results with us. happy gardening!
I grew potatoes all winter long in my basement under grow lights. I didn’t have a very big yield about 2 lbs I had the best luck with red potatoes. I have about 9-10 plants growing in pots or bags I’m waiting another week here in northeast Massachusetts before I put them outside.
Moving them in and out is more than worth the effort. I always grow mine early and they sit in the tunnel until they can go out properly into their final spots. Great video Scott.
Thanks, Tony. Yes, for those of us with challenging weather it makes a difference.
Thanks Scott! I just harvested my first few bags of potatoes. They still have about 2 weeks left, but, the squirrels thought it was time to start snacking. AND, this is my second year starting them indoors, here in Florida, and transplanting! I used a 5 inch pot and put them out after the leaves were around 6 or 8 inches. They didn't mind at all!
Yes! Was just thinking about this earlier. I have potatoes-a-chitting that just won't wait another month. I learned about early potting of potatoes from Tony on Simplified Gardening.
I started mine in grow bags already and have them in the greenhouse. I cover them up with extra plastic at night. I started them this time last year as well and they did well. I am in southern NH
Thank You for this video. My potatoes should arrive next tuesday. Because I failed horribly the first time I tried to grow potatoes I thought I would try again. This time in fabric bags, so this is something fore me to consider trying.
This works PERFECTLY! I did this with some while I was getting the plot ready, and they shot up in no time. I’ll be doing this from now on!
Thanks Scott. I failed with potatoes twice but I’m trying again 😊
I can relate to the "too hot, too fast" experience. I have already had an 85F day, yet my potatoes are covered right now with floating row cover because there's a slight chance of frost tonight and tomorrow night. I planted in ground on Feb 28, a full six weeks before my average last frost date, and the plants are about 3" high.
Sounds pretty cool to grow in the big bags.
Great info here. I've got my store potatoes in the greenhouse. My first batch of German Butterballs will chit in front of a window until it's 50F outside. This year I'll be using worm castings in half the bags, and Lily Miller granular fertilizer in the other half. Until last year, I didn't even know about chitting, and always wondered why I didn't get more potatoes!
I do this! One of my yukons that I just transplanted out already had a 3-in potato! I kept them inside a little longer than anticipated because of a surprise freeze.
I've had great results transplanting from a pot, I use 6 inch pots. I just don't have the room for grow bags in my grow area.
Seriously. I harvested some Yukon gold potatoes today. Planted Jan 2nd. Not much from 6 plants. 3lbs. Letting the russets planted the same day go until the tops yellow. 2 more succession batches to go.
I'm zone 9. Luckily it remained above 30f .
I've had potatoes in grow bags for about 3 weeks already. Not sure when I'll ever be able to move them outside, I still have over 2 feet of snow covering my garden.
Another great episode mr Scott! I’m going to give this a go seeing how it’s still winter today in the foothills of Alberta….next week it’ll be 20c. Winter straight to summer I guess!🤷🏻♂️
Good idea !!
Does it help to plant ½ of the plants deeper to allow more potatoes to grow/develop in a grow bag?
It can. I do that with varieties that grow bigger tubers.
Use the dolly to move it around.
That's a good tip because they can get heavy.
You have stated that you usually use straw for mulch in your garden. Have you ever used coconut coir for mulch and what are your thoughts on it as a mulch? I'm in Colorado also and trying to assess which organic mulch to use. i appreciate your gardening videos!
Most of the coir is processed into small particles. Initially it is hydrophobic and water runs through it easily, but then it soaks up a lot. In our dry air I would be concerned that the coir would begin to dry and then soak up much of the water used to water plants. The surface could become nice and moist with little of the water reaching the plant roots. I like straw because it absorbs some water to help the surface but most of the water flows through to the soil below. Mixing straw with leaves and dried grass clippings helps keep it in place on windy days.
What is the temperature in your growing room? I like to try it. Thank you.
At this time of year the temperature is about 65F.
Have you ever hear that you should remove all but two eyes in order to get bigger potatoes? I saw that on another channel. I plant early potatoes in grow bags (Red Norland). I grow all the rest in a Ruth Stout bed.
Yes, I've heard that. I mention it in one of my other potato videos.
Great video and a great idea for those of us with a short growing season. I like the grow bags for potatoes. Question: I saw that onion and dill were good companion plants for potatoes. Would it be of value to the plants to grow a few bunching onions in the grow bag with the potatoes or would it be too crowded?
There should be room. Onions will have shallow roots and shouldn't interfere much.
Scott I wonder how well they would do if you set them in your greenhouse for now, keeping an eye on temp in there. At night cover them a little extra and during day open your vents. Just wondering if that would work for you and be easier. Good luck
Carol, my nights are still very cold, even in my greenhouse. I am thinking of doing as you suggest when the nights start staying above freezing.
@@GardenerScott I am zone 6A, hopefully I am not being too hasty and have been just running on good luck lol
Thanks for the timely vid, Scott! I'm in zone 7A and soon to try my hand at some potatoes. I think it was Tony O'Neill who partially buries his containers in soil so the roots can exit the holes. Do you use that technique as well? Any thoughts about it? Thanks
I have done that with some smaller plants but not potatoes. Tony uses nice sturdy plastic containers that do well when buried. I don't have big containers like and it doesn't work the same with grow bags.
@@GardenerScott Thanks for the quick reply. Do you have a cheap source for Magic Molly? The online sources I'm finding are prohibitive in general, especially when you factor in the shipping.
I don't. I bought it online and paid the higher price, anticipating that I could save some and plant each year in the future for free.
Well geez now I think I should do this too. How long do I have to chit the potatoes? It's only been a week since they arrived, and I was planning on chitting for at least another 3 weeks?
It depends on the heat and light, but two weeks is average for me.
grow bags are portable....so are buckets or cardboard boxes
could this be one major drawback of raised bed gardening, that the soil is raised up exposed to the cooler temps? deeper into the earth is a constant......50-55 degrees f ?
I've been monitoring the soil temps in spring for a few years and there is little variability. While deep in the earth is constant, at the 6"-8" point where plant roots would grow the temperature in raised beds is close to the same as the ground.
@@GardenerScott good to know. since the video was about potatoes i was thinking it might be deeper than the usual 6-8 inches. in any event , thank you for taking the time to test this out and share your results with us. happy gardening!
Thanks so much for the video Scott. What part of the state are you in?
I'm in Colorado Springs.
@@GardenerScott thanks!! We're up in Greeley, so it's nice to have a little perspective on your location. 😉