growing potatoes in wire cages with straw

Growing Potatoes In Hay or Straw Bales Many home gardeners pass up growing potatoes because they think they do not have enough room to grow these vigorous plants. Overall the potato pen worked well. *. You can also use premade tomato cages instead of making your own. The straw does keep the potatoes from sunburning. wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. Digging for potatoes, however, is less popular, especially among those of us with bad backs. Originally, I had planned on removing the stakes, pulling down the sidewalls of chicken wire and straw and harvesting all the potatoes at once, but I soon realized there were too many potatoes. wikiHow is a very helpful site that I love to use. The same way you would grow them in a pot or potato bag. Solanine is a toxic chemical that potatoes produce when they're exposed to the sun. I have another method that I want to try next year, so perhaps a side-by-side harvest comparison for a bunch of potato growing methods is in order . I can make them any diameter and height. Take a tour of my frugal home, and find new tips to put to work in your frugal home. Beans, catnip, coriander, horseradish or nasturtium (they’ll repel Colorado potato beetle), Cucumbers, raspberries, squash, sunflowers or tomatoes (they’ll increase the chance of potato blight). I actually end up with more potatoes by growing them this way. You can reuse the mesh to make another cage. I’ll post our harvest count and weight when the time comes. Plant approx. So, if you plant five pounds, you might get 40-50 pounds of potatoes. Watering was a constant as the straw does nothing but drain water. Hi, there. I have used empty feed bags for this too. wikiHow is where trusted research and expert knowledge come together. When I do that, I don’t add additional newspaper to the sides. Continue hilling the potatoes whenever the plants grow an additional 6 inches (15 cm). Then, add a couple inches of soil, leaves or straw. Thanks!! More Tips For Growing Potatoes In Straw Contrary to popular belief, potatoes don’t have to take up a lot of space in the garden. The beauty of growing potatoes under a straw mat is that the guesswork is taken out of the growing, and harvesting becomes considerably easier. This will help to keep the soil in. If you have a root cellar or unheated basement, storing potatoes is easy because earthen walls stabilize temperatures in exactly the range potatoes prefer. You will need: • One piece of steel wire fencing or chicken wire, 4 1/2 feet long and 3 1/2 feet high. Potatoes are a versatile, tasty, and easy-to-grow tuber. How can I utilize last years straw and growing potatoes. Purple potatoes are more nutritious due to their deep purple color. Look around your garage, and see what you have that will work. You can also just leave your potatoes until the plant stalk had withered to harvest. When you’ve harvested the potatoes, brush off the wire mesh and store it somewhere dry. It is especially good for any situation where you are unable to dig the ground up to plant potatoes, like this garden, featured in the slideshow. Slug pellets or Sluggo can also be used to kill slugs. Start with a bag of seed potatoes (don’t use potatoes from the grocery store; they’ve probably been sprayed with growth inhibitors). We love growing them too! Judy. Here’s how to grow potatoes in a cage. ", http://www.myfrugalhome.com/how-to-grow-potatoes-in-a-cage/, http://living.thebump.com/grow-potatoes-tomato-cages-7468.html, https://www.fieldandfeast.com/grow-something/growing-potatoes-in-cages/, http://artofnaturalliving.com/2011/05/01/the-lazy-persons-potato-garden/, http://blog.seedsavers.org/blog/tips-for-growing-potatoes, http://commonsensehome.com/growing-potatoes-easy-way/, https://www.thompson-morgan.com/how-to-grow-potatoes-in-the-ground, https://www.growveg.com/guides/how-to-avoid-potato-blight/, https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/vegetables/potato/treating-scab-in-potatoes.htm, http://www.gardenmyths.com/how-to-get-rid-slugs-with-beer/, consider supporting our work with a contribution to wikiHow. Place your potatoes in the bottom of the cage. Purple potatoes have a nummy buttery flavor. Cover the potatoes with soil. Along with removing weeds and other competition from the area, embedding the cage in the ground will also help to secure it and prevent it from blowing over in the wind. This article has been viewed 127,586 times. Lauren Kurtz is a Naturalist and Horticultural Specialist. At season-end it was filled with an abundant crop of potatoes. Starting with a piece of wire mesh this size will produce a circular cage with a 2-foot (61-cm) diameter. This article was co-authored by Lauren Kurtz. The chicken fence potato tower is a easy and productive means of growing potatoes, especially when using straw. Planting potatoes in potato towers with straw and soil is an excellent alternative growing option to avoid having to dig up your potatoes (and risk injuring the potatoes in the process).. I plan to weigh my harvest. Once the leaves (known as haulms) have yellowed and started to die back, you can remove the tire and compost using a large tarp to catch the compost and potatoes. The cage (no container) will be on top of a layer of weed guard fabric to keep the tree roots out. Approved. Watch for the potato plants to break through the surface and extend about six inches. We know ads can be annoying, but they’re what allow us to make all of wikiHow available for free. Straw was cleaner and produced potatoes with less scarring and blemishes while the potatoes planted in an earth trench seemed to … I have a small yard, so I’m always looking for ways to squeeze in as many plants as possible. This potato bed is built over top of construction fill, consisting of bricks, stones and old broken concrete. References For mature potatoes, wait an additional two to three weeks after the foliage dies before harvesting. % of people told us that this article helped them. Apr 18, 2013 - Posts about potatoes in wire cages written by calilee More information Potato Tower: Just as the potato towers are layered with compost and straw hay, these towers are layered with grass clippings, fallen leaves, kitchen waste, and garden weeds Want to try it out for yourself? Might be an interesting side-by-side experiment for next year. Growing potatoes in cages is easy and space efficient. Your email address will not be published. Potatoes are a simple, fun crop to grow and can help you eat local year-round thanks to their impressive shelf life. Last Updated: October 23, 2019 The few that appear are easily removable. How To Harvest Potatoes Grown In Tires. We do not use this data for any other purpose. Finish by giving them a good watering. I use end-of-season straw as mulch in other parts of my yard/gardens and it works great. Then, cover them with soil. Four potato pieces per cage is about right. Since the bales stay tied, it's not particularly messy until harvest time. Form cages for your potatoes out of wire mesh or stiff plastic netting. • Zip ties (optional) • Three rebar stakes, about 4 feet long • Two bales of straw (Straw only; not hay) Required fields are marked *, I agree. Mary March 5, 2015 . By growing vertically in cages, you can get … Another benefit of growing potatoes in a cage is that they're easier to water and easier to harvest. Position your cage(s) where you want them. Growing Potatoes in Potato Towers . The allure of getting pounds of potatoes in a small space leads people to try this technique. While mulching potatoes with straw is a popular growing method in all USDA Zones, you can take that a step further and grow potatoes in straw bales. Surprisingly, potato tower #3 had over 12 pounds of potatoes in it. Because many eating potatoes from the grocery store have been treated, you won’t be able to grow a new plant from them. This lets the potatoes grow approximately 5 inches tall. Keep doing it until there are … If you really can’t stand to see another ad again, then please consider supporting our work with a contribution to wikiHow. This article has been viewed 127,586 times. Takes up very little space; Can grow them anywhere there’s a sunny spot (including a balcony) The design can be as simple as driving four snow-fence posts at corners in a square, then tightly binding the fencing around the poles. Planting potatoes in straw is a great way to grow potatoes because the straw helps keep the soil about 10 degrees warmer than it would be if it were exposed. Hi Diane, You usually get 10 times what you plant, so that would be 40 potatoes per cage. Final Harvest – about 12 pounds of spuds. You can also use straw to line the cage if you prefer. She earned a BA in Environmental and Sustainability Studies from Western Michigan University in 2014. Learn to use Zoom in this beginner-friendly course. I also know how, "It helped me as I was unsure when to bank up & how often.". What I want to do is grow the potatoes in straw. We use cookies to make wikiHow great. By Erin Huffstetler | 05/03/2018 | 9 Comments. How to Plant Garlic How to Plant Asparagus Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 127,586 times. [FONT=Arial]The cages are quite sturdy and are 4" x 6" mesh. There are 20 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. Add additional tires on top of the original one as needed. Planting Potatoes in Wire Cages. You can just easily pick potatoes thereafter even with your bare hands. But I will definitely try the cage method next year. Boy was I wrong. When potatoes are planted in straw, there are very few weeds. Harvest your potatoes two to three weeks after they’ve flowered, if you want new potatoes; or two to three weeks after the tops have died back, if you want fully mature potatoes. That’s actually what I grow my peppers in, too. * Then add the seed potatoes. Glad to have found your blog I used to read you on about.com then life got too busy and I couldn’t remember your last name, but happy to read you again! How To Grow Potatoes In Straw In Containers: Idea 1 The Growing Season. Regular potato planting requires a lot of space as the bushes can get quite large. To harvest, simply lift the cage off, and the potatoes will fall out. Two questions: Do you keep adding newspaper to the sides as you fill each layer? Let me show you the way to plant and care potatoes in straw and containers. If you grow them vertically in wire cages they take up very little space, but deliver outstanding yields. If you plan to store your potatoes long-term (and you live somewhere with a long growing season), consider waiting until mid-June to plant your potatoes. A little known fact about potatoes is that if you mound additional soil around the plants as they grow, they will continue to add spuds upwards in the new dirt. By using our site, you agree to our. We collect your name, email and IP address, when you post a comment for the purpose of responding to comments and preventing spam. New potatoes shouldn’t be cured, as they should be eaten within a few days of the harvest. This is the first time I’ve ever seen this method! Please help us continue to provide you with our trusted how-to guides and videos for free by whitelisting wikiHow on your ad blocker. Stake them down, if you live in a windy area. Do you use metal trash cans or plastic ones? They need about an inch of water each week. How many potatoes do you get from planting four to a cage? The good news is, if you have room for a hay bale, you can grow potatoes in your own backyard with little effort. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/9\/97\/Grow-Potatoes-in-a-Wire-Cage-Step-1-Version-4.jpg\/v4-460px-Grow-Potatoes-in-a-Wire-Cage-Step-1-Version-4.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/9\/97\/Grow-Potatoes-in-a-Wire-Cage-Step-1-Version-4.jpg\/aid17684-v4-728px-Grow-Potatoes-in-a-Wire-Cage-Step-1-Version-4.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":"728","bigHeight":"546","licensing":"