How to harvest potatoes and long term storage tips
Tips, Tricks
Tips for harvesting potatoes and storing them for long shelf life
Comments
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For the 2016 season, I WON'T BE buying any Certified Seed Potatoes again this year. I will be using my leftover potatoes from fall harvest 2015. My first year using Certified Seed Potatoes was the 2013 planting season, and I have been planting each year from the previous year harvest. I hope that makes sense :).
But, I do recommend using Certified Seed Potatoes if this is your first year planting. They are very inexpensive to buy. -
2015 Harvest - OMG. This year we had 4 varieties; yukon gold, french red fingerlings, magic mrynas and all blues. The magic mryna and blues came from certified seed potatoes, but the yukons and fingerlings were from previous years' harvest. We planted all 4 varieties in 1-4X8X1' raised bed box. The total harvest was 88 lbs. as follows: Yukons 28 lbs, Reds 43lbs, Mryna 7lbs, Blue 10lbs. In addition to this we harvested 51lbs from row plantings in gravel (Yukon/Red) and 15lbs (Yukon/Red) from soil pile., I had so many leftover potatoes from the 2014 harvest so I literally threw those in my soil pile and in a few row plantings in gravel. The spring and summer was dry and the row planting and soil pile planting got neglected b/c there is no close water source. It just goes to show how hardy potatoes are even when you neglect them. Note: The Yukons and Reds are fantastic producers, but I would still plant the Mrynas and Blues because they are very good tasting.
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PLANTING
Use Certified Seed Potatoes
(We used 2nd year potatoes for this harvest, so we did not use "fresh" certified potatoes for the 2nd year.)
I used 1-4'X8'x1' raised bed and planted 15 seed potatoes. If using a clumpy soil, amend it with some compost to lighten it up. (We stuck a second batch in sand and gravel and were able to grow potatoes - they were a bit smaller.) Just do your best with what you have.
Set a hose on a timer and water evenly everyday. You really need to have a regular watering schedule so that you have a nice harvest. Foliage will get very large and sloppy and will fall outside of your raised beds. This is normal.
When foliage starts to die back, go out and cut the foliage down and throw into your compost. Then start harvesting keeping in mind to handle them carefully and skins are very tender at this stage.
HARVEST, CURING AND LONG TERM STORAGE TIPS:
1. Harvest gently. Don't try to completely clean them of all dirt at this point.
2. Move to some kind of rack in single layers where air can circulate for about 10 days to 2 weeks. Try to keep them in a place where it's dark and a bit cool. I cure mine around 55 degrees.
3. Once cured, you can put them in boxes in a cool, and completely dark place, or you can leave them on racks. I keep mine on racks in the garage on the coldest and darkest side of the garage. I try to keep the garage around 45. This is ideal.
My potatoes keep well until around mid-March and then I start to see sprouting begin. That's ok. I will use the leftover potatoes for planting my 2015 gardens. And, I will let you know how those do as 2nd year seed potatoes.
Just do your best. We all don't have that absolute perfect environment for storage. Regardless of what you do, you will have alot of potatoes. -
Very nice potato harvest. I subbed you channel and will be following your garden this season as I tend to my gardens and my greenhouse!
God Bless
Chuck
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