Potato barrel - worth buying ?
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Happymouse
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Is it worth buying a potato barrel ? I grew potatoes in rubble sacks one year and the yield was very disappointing. I have the potatoes ready to plant and intended to put them in the ground but they take up a lot of space
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Compo
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Don't know about the barrel specifically but i tried last year to build up my spuds in a raised bed whereby i incresed its height and earthed up every six inches of growth to twenty four inches, it was no better than the yield from the spuds I had put in the ground. If you really have no ground I guess it would be ok but if not try a trench filed with rotting straw, manure newspaper and soil, earthing up vigorously and keeping well watered, choose a variety like charlotte or good ole king eddies and you want go far wrong.
If I am not on the plot, I am not happy.........
Hi Compo and Happymouse,
Am trying a 4'x4'x1' box for 10 Maris Bard Earlies and have finally planted them in a heavily manured area. They all had a great number of chitted shoots all a nice dark green colour. I have covered then with only about three inches of soil and have put a piece of 4" expanded Polystyrene insulation over the top. The reason for that is that at 500' we get some frosts that others don't seem to get.The EP is raised off the soil by two pieces of timber laid on the soil missing where the spuds are. When they are through the EP will be removed and the whole box covered with HD Fleece. This is an experiment for me as I normally do not grow Potatoes at all.
Am trying a 4'x4'x1' box for 10 Maris Bard Earlies and have finally planted them in a heavily manured area. They all had a great number of chitted shoots all a nice dark green colour. I have covered then with only about three inches of soil and have put a piece of 4" expanded Polystyrene insulation over the top. The reason for that is that at 500' we get some frosts that others don't seem to get.The EP is raised off the soil by two pieces of timber laid on the soil missing where the spuds are. When they are through the EP will be removed and the whole box covered with HD Fleece. This is an experiment for me as I normally do not grow Potatoes at all.
JB.
Hello Happymouse - we looked at the potato barrels last year and decided they were a lot of money for what they were. Instead, we bought a load of 15" pots into which we planted 3 tubers and we harvested an average of 1.5kg per pot. Plenty of room for that number, so this year we have put 5 tubers in each (daring I know). I am sure more tubers fit into one of those barrels but not sure if you have to empty the whole barrel or take just what you need(?).
Going off your original question a bit, I posted a growbag method for growing potatoes in the greenhouse and we have done so this year too - viewtopic.php?t=301 if that helps with alternatives.
Going off your original question a bit, I posted a growbag method for growing potatoes in the greenhouse and we have done so this year too - viewtopic.php?t=301 if that helps with alternatives.
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One end is moo, the other, milk.
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Happymouse
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I will try the 15"pots Chez. I am lacking space because i want to put up a greenhouse on my veg patch to protect veg from our Spaniel. The barrels are so expensive even on Ebay
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Deb P
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I'm trying potatoes in large plastic containers (approx. 28"across, 36" deep) purchased from Makro, £14 for 4, big black plastic tubs with rope handles designed to hold kids toys. Drilled some holes in the bottom, and have planted each up with 5 tubers each in my polytunnel, will move them outside later in the season.
I started some Duke of York off in the winter in large pots in an unheated tunnel. They're growing fast now and will be ready for Easter Sunday. I've done this before with some success.
The next lot (still first and second earlies) are in land drains set into grow bags (I've described this before, so I won't bore you with a repeat) in an unheated tunnel.
Main crop are going outside into a purpose built raised bed which sounds very similar to JB's. I don't ususally grow main crop spuds but got lured into buying them at Ryton's Potato Day. Let's hope they're worth it!
The next lot (still first and second earlies) are in land drains set into grow bags (I've described this before, so I won't bore you with a repeat) in an unheated tunnel.
Main crop are going outside into a purpose built raised bed which sounds very similar to JB's. I don't ususally grow main crop spuds but got lured into buying them at Ryton's Potato Day. Let's hope they're worth it!
Hi Happymouse,
if you've never been tail-whipped by a Spaniel you can't appreciate the damage they can do! I have 5 Springers and I think the neighbours must get fed up with the call of 'get off the garden you daft article!'.
I have to be careful not to leave the greenhouse door open as the young one decided to leap up on the bench and have a quick run over the boxes of onion seedlings!
In the summer I have a 3ft high wire mesh frame that fits inside the doorway or I have excavated tomatoes and very dirty dogs.
Carole.
if you've never been tail-whipped by a Spaniel you can't appreciate the damage they can do! I have 5 Springers and I think the neighbours must get fed up with the call of 'get off the garden you daft article!'.
I have to be careful not to leave the greenhouse door open as the young one decided to leap up on the bench and have a quick run over the boxes of onion seedlings!
In the summer I have a 3ft high wire mesh frame that fits inside the doorway or I have excavated tomatoes and very dirty dogs.
Carole.
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Geoff
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Don't understand this dense planting in containers. I've put one tuber each in tubs I've made from 25 litre containers with the tops cut off so they end up about 11" square and 12" deep. I thought this way each plant would get nearly the space it gets outside so I'm hoping for 2 or 3 lbs per tub - never grown them this way before. Surely the yield per tuber is pretty grim with several in a pot.