Barrel of Spuds -- A Mrs. Potato Head Special

Those who know me well, also know that my lifelong favorite food on God’s good earth is mashed potatoes. In fact, I am positive these tantalizing tubers of the gods will be served in heaven.

I’m a Russet girl, myself; however, Dennis is more of a Yukon Gold kind of guy—so I’m starting my first year of planting potatoes with both.

Believe it or not, I’ve never tried to grow potatoes. They used to be so inexpensive, that it really wasn’t worth the labor involved in planting them. Not so anymore! Experienced gardeners have told me that potatoes are among the easiest veggies to grow, and to add to the attraction, the plant is decorative with lovely purple flowers.

As always, when I plant something new, I like to ask experienced gardeners for tips, so I lucked out big time at Southern Farmers last week when I struck up a conversation with an interesting man picking through the potato sets. It turns out that he taught at LSU’s agricultural department until Katrina forced him to move to Northwest Arkansas.


“You look like you know what you’re doing,” I observed.
“Course I do." Without looking up, he continued to dig purposefully through the barrel of spuds.
Intruding his quest, I asked “I’ve never planted potatoes before--can you give me some tips?”
“Yup. I can. Tell ya what, if you can name 5 of the 7 continents, I’ll give you some tips for free.”
I rattled off five, (Whew!) and he rewarded me with the coveted information.

I learned that the first sign that it's time to plant is when you first start seeing dandelion weeds gracing your lawn. In Northwest Arkansas, that's around St. Patrick's Day. For other areas, it could be sooner or later than March 17th.

Since chatting with the “Professor” , I did some homework on the “barrel” method of growing potatoes. I am so intrigued with this technique, that I have decided to give it a whirl. It sounds ridiculously easy! Once you read this, if you’re a potato lover or want to start the easiest garden ever, you might want to give this spud producing method a try.

BARREL POTATOES

Here’s what you’ll need:

A sunny spot
Water
Organic fertilizer
1 -30 gallon plastic barrel (more if you want to grow more potatoes)
1 large bag peat moss (or aged sawdust, mulch, and/or rotting leaves)
1 bag potting soil or quality top soil
5 potato sets (two eyes per cut; 5 cuts per barrel)

Here’s what you do:

FIRST: Buy one large 30 gallon trash can per 5-6 potato "sets". I plan to use two barrels; one for Russet potatoes and one for Yukon Golds.

SECOND: Drill holes in the bottom of the barrel to ensure adequate drainage. Place the barrel on flat rocks or bricks to keep it from touching the ground. To prevent the holes from plugging with soil, fill the very bottom of the barrel with a layer of small, flat rocks.

THIRD: Fill the barrel about 1/3 full with a mixture of peat moss and potting soil. In place of peat moss, you can use rotted leaves, aged saw dust and/or other loose, acidic mulch. In place of the potting soil, you can use a good top soil. Place the barrel in a sunny location keeping in mind that you will be watering the plants 3-5 times a week depending on the weather, heat, etc.

FOURTH: By now, you should have purchase potato sets (potatoes with "eyes") from a certified nursery. These starter potatoes are disease resistant. Don't use the potatoes from the grocery store, as even if they do sprout, they're treated with a substance that slows the potatoes' ability to sprout. Your organically grown potatoes won't have any chemicals on them except wholesome goodness from the soil. Slice the seed potatoes so that each chunk contains at least one, but better yet two "eyes"; allow the pieces to set for a day or two until the cut side has had a chance to dry.

Place no more than 5 or 6 "double eyed" pieces into the barrel with the cut side down (eyes looking up toward the heavens) and just a few inches under the surface of the soil. Water. In few days, you will see them start to sprout above the surface of the soil.

FIFTH: Continue to water the until you see it drain from the holes in the bottom. You may also use time-release fertilizer granules; I prefer organic gardening, so my fertilizer will consist of cotton seed meal, kelp and/or liquid fish.

SIXTH: Once the sprout is about 6-8” tall, add more peat/soil mixture to within 2” of the top of the plant. It's okay if the plant gets covered; it'll sprout right back through the soil. Cover, water and fertilize each time the plant is 6-8” tall, add more peat/soil mixture to within 2” of the top of the plant. Water and fertilize again and keep doing this until the plant flowers. Once it flowers, stop feeding. Once the flowers die off and the plant begins to yellow—stop watering.

WHEN TO REAP: Potato plants will be about three feet tall from the soil; small purple blossoms will form on the plants, letting you know your potatoes are almost ready.

If you dig up the potatoes when the flowers are in bloom, they will be ready to eat, but very small (new potatoes). “Underground” is where the magic happens

When the plant turns yellow and starts to dry up, the potatoes will have reached their full size. Allow the potatoes to cure in the ground for a few weeks before pulling them up. When it’s time, pull up the plants, as the plants form a network of stems that bear these scrumptious, edible tubers!simply dump the barrel to retrieve your reward!

Picture it now—fresh grown potatoes hot and steaming from the oven; or better yet, boiled mashed into fluffy white heaven—they’re so creamy they don’t need butter or sour cream!

HOW TO STORE: Store your potatoes in a cool, dark place. Be sure to cut off any green sections or sprouts before eating, as these can be toxic to children.

So, there you have it--a long explanation of something you may never do nor ever read, but such is the life of blogger.