After watching the tops go yellow for a week, today was the day to do the big harvest. Who would have thought that four months had passed since the build stage of the potato tower?
Above you can see the yellowing stalks and leaves, a sure sign that things are coming to an end inside the bin.
A gentle shove, and a few potatoes spill out onto the ground.
My total harvest, not as big or as productive as I had hoped. 
A whopping great 1.5kg of potatoes…
What a learning experience this has been, I have a long way to go before I catch up to my grandfather who grew bulk potatoes for wholesale. Not bad for a half arsed first try.
While the total cost to produce these potatoes was $12/kg (not too bad considering they can be as much as $6/kg in the supermarket), there are some simple things will do next time to increase my yields:
- More dirt / compost in the bottom of the bin
- Water more regularly
- Fertilise more regularly (including seaweed extract)
- Put straw on top in small regular amounts instead of 1ft every three weeks
- Build the bin higher as the leaves grow
- Insulate the inside to prevent too much heat transfer
This was a really worthwhile experience that I would recommend to any one, especially people with young children. I did get a tad excited picking them and I’m well over half way to 50, must be a big kid at heart.
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8 Comments
I haven’ tried to grow potatoes yet. Maybe this method would work in my backyard. Anything is possible!
Thanks for posting this. Raises a question about costs: This year, you spent $12, but was that to purchase wood with which to build the potato box? If so, then you could amortize the cost over the next many years that you reuse the wood. If you get 10 growing years from a box, perhaps the cost per year becomes only $2 or $3?
I understand the problem with keeping the stems covered as they grow. My potato box got away from me before I added a second layer of soil. I’m performing better with a sweet potato bag, but I don’t know whether sweet potatoes will produce more if grown this way… it’s an experiment that I’ll eventually blog about.
Good show!
Even though they seem to be pricey spuds, just wait until you eat them – so much better tasting than store bought. I also agree that you have to amortize the costs over the life of the box. At any rate, enjoy them!
hey i tried with the potatoes this season not a big outcome but after reading your post sure to make some improvements!!! happy garderning buddy and they look delicious. how about some french fries???
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Another way… I have ‘The Permaculture Home Garden’ book and Linda Woodrow suggests making little burrows 30cm apart down through the mulch to the soil surface then put the seed potatoes on the surface of the soil and cover with 2 handfulls of compost. Then as the plants grow pull the mulch in around them leaving just the leaves exposed. The more mulch you pull in the higher the plants grow. Then after about 4 mths the plants die off and the crop of pototoes will be set in the mulch pulled around the plant. She’s also grown potoatoes with old tyres and as the plant grows upwards add another tyre and fill it with mulch, comfrey, etc – should be able to get to about 5 tyres high. In Sth Qld I should be able to plant seed potatoes in mid-late Jan so really looking forward to having a go! Just have to make sure I get some manure for extra potassium.
It always feel good to harvest your own plants regardless of the number, although you also have to calculate the costs. Nevertheless, it’s very satisfying to eat the ones that are handpicked from your own garden. Thanks for the tips. Will try that in the garden.
Nice potato tower. It would be nice to have a potato bake with a glass of wine in the shade of your self built pergola too. By pergola plan.
Although a few years back I was an avid vegatable gardener, time and my lifestyle forced me to set all the garden to flowers, trees and shrubs. I’ve always kept a compost bin though and all the kitchen green waste goes into it as well as the garden waste. On odd thing is that I get a continual growth of potatoes in the compost bin no matter what I do. They are obviously growing from the potatoe peelings that are being put in the bin but I would have thought the heat would stop them growing. But no. I chop them down everytime I go in the bin but the next time they have grown up to the top of the bin again. Maybe I should just accept the inevitable and possibly enjoy the end product!