Cardboard boxes: Why didn't I think of that?
I've been worrying lately about what I'm going to do with my potatoes. I want to grow a lot more than I grew last year, and I have seed potatoes ready to plant. Actually, I have more seed potatoes than room to plant them.
I've been worrying about another problem. You're supposed to keep piling soil onto potatoes as they grow, but where do you get the soil? I keep telling you, the soil that came with the house isn't suitable for growing anything but saltgrass, rabbitbrush, and greasewood. I think you're supposed to dig trenches to plant the potatoes in and pile up the soil next to the trench to fill back in throughout the season, but I don't really have room to do that in the raised bed. I don't want to shovel the dirt—excuse me, soil—onto the ground near the raised bed because you lose a lot that way and I don't have any to spare. A piece of plywood? Maybe, but how do you keep it on the plywood?
I stumbled across a mention of growing potatoes in cardboard boxes on Sunset's Urban Garden Project blog, and I knew instantly what to do. I'm going to try growing my extra potatoes in cardboard boxes, and I'm going to save my soil in them, too.
Here are some links to descriptions of how other gardeners have done it:
"The Benefits of Growing Potatoes in Containers"
"Growing Potatoes in Degradable Cardboard Boxes"
"Potatoes . . . and Puris"
"Growing Vegetables in Cardboard Boxes. As Organic As You Can Get"
Wish me luck!
I've been worrying about another problem. You're supposed to keep piling soil onto potatoes as they grow, but where do you get the soil? I keep telling you, the soil that came with the house isn't suitable for growing anything but saltgrass, rabbitbrush, and greasewood. I think you're supposed to dig trenches to plant the potatoes in and pile up the soil next to the trench to fill back in throughout the season, but I don't really have room to do that in the raised bed. I don't want to shovel the dirt—excuse me, soil—onto the ground near the raised bed because you lose a lot that way and I don't have any to spare. A piece of plywood? Maybe, but how do you keep it on the plywood?
I stumbled across a mention of growing potatoes in cardboard boxes on Sunset's Urban Garden Project blog, and I knew instantly what to do. I'm going to try growing my extra potatoes in cardboard boxes, and I'm going to save my soil in them, too.
Here are some links to descriptions of how other gardeners have done it:
"The Benefits of Growing Potatoes in Containers"
"Growing Potatoes in Degradable Cardboard Boxes"
"Potatoes . . . and Puris"
"Growing Vegetables in Cardboard Boxes. As Organic As You Can Get"
Wish me luck!
Posted by Laurel at 4/29/2009 9:54 PM 
Categories: Cheapskate Gardening, Growing Food
Tags: growing potatoes cardboard boxes
Categories: Cheapskate Gardening, Growing Food
Tags: growing potatoes cardboard boxes
Laure, in my gardening class we were told to use old tires. Plant the potato, then as it grows put a tire over it and add dirt (and compost). Then when it gets to the top of the first tire add another tire. I was told that in Nevada you can get up to three tires tall. Then to harvest remove the tires and the potatoes fall out. One lady said her husband cut the rims of the tires so there wasn't all that rim to hold the dirt and make it heavy.
Good luck
Shirene
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I like that idea, but can you believe we don't have any old tires around here? Of course, we used to, but wouldn't you know we'd come up with a good use for them after we got rid of them?
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I was told you can find them for free on Craig's List. Bill said I should ask to keep the old tires when I get new tires.
Good Luck!
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Last year I used potato bags purchased from Gardener's Supply. They worked great but I can eat more than what I grew from two small bags! This year I am going to try a huge pot that a tree came in and see how that goes. I'll let you know. I think the cardboard box is a *great* idea. Can't wait to hear how it goes...might try it myself.
Have you found a local supplier for seed potatoes?
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Since I wrote that post, I read somewhere that potatoes don't like hot roots, so cardboard could be a problem. I had another idea, though: my husband keeps losing the lids to his Coleman coolers so I asked him to drill holes in a couple of them. Each should be big enough for one potato plant, and the cooler should keep the roots . . . cool. We'll have to compare notes when we harvest!
To answer your question, I have found seed potatoes locally at Dry Creek Garden and Walmart. I've never found them at Home Depot or Lowe's, and haven't looked anywhere else. I think you have to check early and often to find them.
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