Potatoes. Nothing is humbler than a potato. But, potatoes have saved many a person from starvation. When potatoes fail, many a society has dipped into hard times, see The Irish Potato Famine.
Potatoes are a great SHTF crop. Generally healthy, easy to grow, they can survive locusts and temperature swings and even drought if you’ve got the right variety. It’s not too late in most places to plant a little potato crop. I got mine in last week, and wanted to share some tips, for those embarking on potatoes for the first time.
The thing to remember when you’re planting is that the seed potato will grow new potatoes above itself. That is to say, you need to get the seed potato deep, so that there’s room to grow above it. I accomplish this by hoeing a trench to put my potatoes in. About 8-12 inches deep. 
I put the sprouting seed potatoes in the trench, one every 8-12 inches. Put the sprouting eyes pointing up. Then I use SOME of the dirt from the trench to cover the potatoes. I also put some straw on top of the dirt that’s covering the spuds. The straw helps keep moisture levels even, and help keeps the light away from the developing potatoes. If sunlight gets to your growing potatoes, they will turn green, which means they are now slightly poisonous, and containing a bitter alkaloid. You can still eat them, if slightly poisoned is better than slightly dead. The plants need at least 6 hours of sun a day to grow a good crop. So, it’s a bit of a balancing act. Also, avoid growing potatoes in ground that was used for legumes the previous year as these fix nitrogen into the soil which will cause the potatoes to grow extensive haulm (the upper part of the plant) at the expense of the tubers.
When the potato plants are about 12 inches tall, you will need to hoe the remaining soil from the trench over the base of the plants. This is called hilling up. You want to bury a few joints of the haulm in dirt, to encourage a heavy tuber set. This also helps to cover the growing potatoes, (remember, they are forming ABOVE the seed potato, and UNDER ground.) I usually just pile the dirt on top of the straw, and add a fresh layer of straw to the top when I’ve got the dirt mounded up. That nice layer of straw in the middle will help drainage in the soil, as potatoes will rot if they have wet feet.
Potatoes will reach maturity in 3 to 4 months, depending on conditions and variety (so knowing when to harvest potatoes is important.) Later crops tend to store better in cold storage. You’ll typically get between 8 and 14 pounds of potatoes per pound you plant; it’ll take about 8 to 10 lbs of seed potatoes per every 100 feet of potatoes you plant.
Any potato growers out there? I’m growing Kennebec and Yukon Gold, what do you have in the ground>
– Calamity Jane
Planting Your Survival Potato Crop
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I was just wondering if you have to use actual potatoes or is there actually a seed that you plant into the ground? I’m not a Gardner but ive always wanted to try. Also I live in newengland what type should I try any suggestions???
Seed potatoes are generally the same as potatoes, but they have been inspected for disease and have usually been held over the winter in a climate controlled environment to keep them from spouting until Spring planting time.
Cut your seed potatoes and let the cut dry before planting. Plant deep with the sprout pointing upward
You don’t have to have a plot of land for potatoes..a nice big garbage can will do just fine. Or bamboo screens tied into an upright cylinder. Potatoes are easier to unearth with out piercing them with a shovel or pitchfork
https://www.sunset.com/garden/fruits-veggies/how-to-grow-potatoes-in-towers-00418000068323/page12.html
https://www.curbly.com/users/DIY-Maven/posts/6266-how-to-grow-potatoes-in-a-trash-can
thanks for the info- it seems, for easy math- using 10 pounds of seed potatotes, that a 10 x 10 area will provide about 100 pounds of spuds
is this years crop, next year seed potatoe? if so, then you would need to plant an extra 10% for the seeding
I grow potatoes every year since 2007. This year I am growing kennebec and Yukon gold. Both grow well in the soil here in Fairfax county Virginia. I planted in late march, we had a mild winter and early spring. I planted four 35 gallon plastic trash cans with Yukon gold and put some Yukon gold and kennebec in the soil in rows as well. The trash cans got potting soil. Those plants have really taken off, about 50% bigger than the ones in the ground. I have already Gilles up once, will probably hill up again in a week or two. Yes, the potatoes from this years crop can be the seed potatoes for next year. Just keep them in a cool, dry dark place over the winter for next year. Then cut the potatoes into four pieces and plant in the ground with the eyes pointing up. Potatoes are the easiest and most rewarding thing I have grown. Need very little work. I also grow carrots and green beans. Green beans do very well here as well and need no care until it is time to harvest.
I have already “hilled” up once. Sorry form the typo…auto correct must have gotten me.
pup- thanks! i have friends who raise spuds and when i ask any yeild questions or other q’s– they cannot answer
It’s actually a potato from the previous season that has started to sprout. The sprouts are called eyes. The potato may have many eyes, and you’d cut the potato in sections with each section having an eye. Then you plant that potato section in the ground.
I believe Calamity Jane is in New England, so you could probably plant the same varieties as she did.
Nah, I’m in far NW Iowa, which is zone 4, much like upper Maine, except more wind and less ocean. 😀
Well as for yield, it really depends on several factors from what I have experienced. For a given number os seeds, the variables such as soil quality, hilling, water and temperature may affect how quickly they grow and how many tubers (new potatoes) you can get in your harvest. Last year I grew four rows of about 15-20 seeds each (each seed may have only been about 1/4 of a potato). I didn’t do any hilling, only enough to keep the potatoes covered and sheltered from the sun (a must). I did not watering either. I didn’t intend to be so neglectful, but I had a broken foot. I didn’t weed either. I left them alone until the plants had fully flowered and then withered and died. My nephew helped me harvest. We harvested about 100 small potatoes, but some were baseball size or bigger, maybe 10%. I’d say it was almost enough to fill a 5 gallon bucket, and weighed about 25 lbs. Most were in good shape, but about 10% had to be discarded because of rot or bugs, etc. Some (10%) I kept for seed potatoes because they didn’t look good enough to eat, but not bad enough to compost (which is what happens to discards). So I guess that leaves about 80% of the harvest for edible potatoes. Given the price of store bought potatoes, vs. the cost of growing yourself, plus time and energy, it’s a poor investment financially. Now if you can provide your own seeds, (which cost me $.50 each at the nursery) you can save some money. The thing is, getting them out of the ground is a pain. Especially if the soil has dried up a little and gotten hard. And especially if you have let the plants die off and don’t remember exactly where each plant was. Then you have to painstakingly excavate your garden to find them, while not slashing them up with a shovel or hoe. THAT is why I am trying to 35 gallon trash cans this year. When I’m done growing them I can just dump the soil out of the pail and onto a tarp where I can easily pick out my taters. Plus, the pail keeps weeds and pest out, keeps water in a little better, allows for better potting soil to be used, allows for extreme hilling, etc. I have four pails this year, and they are really paying off so far. I may add more next year if this works out. Having grown both pail and ground taters this year, I will have a direct comparison on yield and pain in the ass factor….
I forgot, I am also growing Pontiac red skin potatoes. All varieties have been successful so far.
I´ll have to give it a shot in six months time (being on the other side of the equator). It´s definitely a good idea to figure these things out before hand. I thought my tomato crop was pretty good, but I´ve just opened the last jar of tomato relish… and winter for us hasn´t even started.
Keep up the good work.
Don’t forget, you can increase the number of seedlings by cutting your seedlings in half, as long as you have eyes on both halves.
You can do this as well with potatoes from the store that have begun to grow eyes.
I have noticed that when/if you miss a couple of seedlings at harvest time, they almost always sprout the next year.
When I rotate my potatoes in the plot, I always end up with 4 or 5 potato plants growing in the middle of another crop.
Also, try not to keep tomatoes and potatoes close in the garden.
The blight that attacks tomatoes will get your potatoes too.
I went through that 2 years ago.
My grandparents grow a variety of potato called “Klondike rose”, they are pretty awesome to eat right out of the ground…. Light buttery flavor, with a medium starch texture, and they stand up well to every cooking method I have subjected them to, from roasting to pan-frying. They are a red-skin potato with a delicate yellow flesh. Some of the varieties which you may be able to find in your local grocery store can be difficult to cultivate (especially purple or red-fleshed varieties, and they require very specific conditions to grow properly), so I would advise doing your homework before relying on a particular variety in a survival garden. Another important bit of information about potatoes, is that many of the varieties which you would find on the shelves of your local grocery store were actually grow the season before. If you store them properly in a dak, cool dry environment, with good airflow, they can be held for up to a year or two and provide several vitamins, minerals and of course complex sugars. Calamity is absolutely right, several cultures were nearly decimated because of severe potato crop falures. But if you do your homework, and have a decent “green thumb”, they can be a great addition to your garden.
Hey all,
First time commenter and wanted to say I love this site and the information presented.
We have been planting potatoes in barrels for years and they tend to come out really well. Some people in my area actually just stack tires and fill them with dirt and seed potatoes.
This technique can allow you to plant potatoes in less space.
Here is a site that talks about potato barrels:
https://theranchersdaughter.com/the-potato-barrel/
We’re trying a new technique this year – growing potatoes in straw. So far it seems to be working but we’ll really know this summer.
https://preppingtosurvive.com/2012/04/03/growing-potatoes-in-straw-a-labor-savingbetter-harvest-technique/
Joe
I’ve heard about this method, which is why I use a lot of straw in my hilling up techniques. I would think if you’re using 100% straw, you’ll need to keep a close eye on the moisture levels, as it’s going to dry quickly. But, I’ve not grown them like that, it’s just a hunch. Let us know how it goes!
Not sure if this is open or closed, but when I was young my dad showed me the easiest way to grow potatoes. When making rows which were usually about 16″ wide, we would take two rows and blend them together. This would give us a row about 32″ wide. Placing seed potatoes every 12″ or so and one in the center of 4, we would proceed down the row. We would keep the out side potato about 12″ from the side. We would then water till the ground was soaked. We then covered the potatoes with 6″ of straw and watered again. This was left until shoots started up. We then watered again and added a little straw if it started to mat down. This was repeated through out the growing season. We waited for the first frost to knock the plants down. This was the best part, we simply rolled the straw up and the potatoes simply came up with it. We picked the potatoes off the ground and off the straw. I thought there had to be potatoes in the ground so I dug until I found 2 potatoes in a 20′ row. Been doing it that way ever since.