The potato plant has sustained our nation for millennia and it's an invaluable
crop within the garden. Now there are lots of different ways to grow the
humble potato plant and each of them works really well. But in this episode
I'm gonna give you seven reasons for growing potato plants in your containers.
I'm Tony O'Neill and this is UK Here We Grow on this channel we deal with all
things gardening poultry keeping and beekeeping if you want that perfect
garden to relax in, or want to grow your own nutrient-dense foods, then start now
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release new content just like this. You can ask any gardener who grows his own
food which vegetable that they have to grow every single year and the humble
potato plant will probably be in the top three. And the reason for this is because
they are fantastic for the amount of effort that's put into them. They grow
really well, and they produce tubers that can be stored right throughout the year
to allow you to be able to eat through the winter. And this is an ideal
situation for the gardener because that's where we ideally want to be is to
be able to grow enough food to last us until next year, and it's ideal for those
people who want to be more self-sufficient. Over the years I have
grown potatoes in loads of different ways.
I've grown potatoes in buckets, I've grown potatoes in bags and I've grown
potatoes in the ground. But my most preferred method of growing potatoes is
in containers. So why do I like growing potatoes in containers so much? Well
there are seven reasons why I prefer it, and why you should consider growing
potatoes in containers too. Number one so the traditional way of growing
potatoes is that you would typically dig a trench and then you would lay some
manure in that trench and some feed, and then you would place any potatoes into
that trench and then you would backfill that trench.
Later on you would have to mound up that trench. That's a huge amount of work and
it's back-breaking, and not everybody can bend over and dig these trenches. And
it's just not for me. Now growing potatoes in containers mean that you
can either put the container on the ground, there is no digging, or you
can lift it up onto a counter. And you can then start to plant your potatoes. So
simple as putting in a little bit of compost and some feed and you seed
potatoes, and then filling the container right the way up. And you're done. Apart from
feeding and watering throughout the year that's it. Whereas with the traditional
method of digging trenches you have to keep revisiting and hoeing up the
potatoes to keep them safe, and to stop them from popping up the surface. Now I
know some people that grow in containers they plant them as if they would with a
trench. They put a little bit of soil put the potato and wait for it to grow then
put some more in wait for it to grow there's no need for none of that just
fill the containers right up and you're done.
Number two. You can plant the potatoes much earlier.
Now potatoes are not frost hardy, so you have to wait when you're planting
outside in trenches, to be able to plant the seed, because if the haulms come up
and the frost hits them, then it kills the top of the potato off. Now with
planting in containers, you can literally plant early as you like, and you can
leave them inside a greenhouse or polytunnel. And when the haulms come
through you can cover them over with fleece when the threat of frost appears.
And the great thing about this, if you have a nice day like this, that will
typically gain early spring. But is cold you can still move them out if you wish
to to get some more Sun. But keeping them in the greenhouse or the polytunnel is
the best bet. And when all frost is past then we can move them out. Now frost dates
they are different for every single place on the planet. And you would have to
judge yours by that frost date. But typically, it would give you about 4 or 5
weeks worth of growth before you could plant them out in the soil.
That's a huge advantage. Tip number three. Now when grown in containers the soil
warms up much quicker, and that's because they're black in color and they absorb
the heat much better. And because they are outside of the ground. They are not trying to heat up
all of the area. It's just heating up what's inside here,
so it's much quicker, and that gives the potatoes more time to establish. It also
restricts the root growth within the container. And that means that the plant
has no option but to absorb the water and the nutrients that you've put in
that container. Now by planting in the ground, those root zones are free to roam,
and they can be pushed out past the feed zone sometimes. So the plant may not
necessarily be taking up all the nutrients that it could possibly be
taking up. And if you don't what I'm saying to you. I'll put a link in the
description and up here for you which will show you an experiment that I
performed last year. And I was able to double the yield over potatoes grown in
a container, over in the ground. And it is a a massive eye-opener for anybody who
typically grows in the ground. Now I know some of you will disagree with me on
this. But I have been able to show over a number of years that that is the case.
And I have the video footage to show that. And the reason I can say this with
confidence is because I ran that same experiment for three years. I have all
the videos on the playlist for you to be able to watch. So make sure you go and
have a view of those after this video. Number four. Although you may not think
it, watering is much more efficient because you're only watering the root
zone and the plant can take up what is required because of the root zone is
compressed. And it also has a smaller surface area. Which means that there's
less evaporation for the water to go. In the ground soil wicks the water away
from the root zone. And there's also a bigger area for evaporation, and when it
comes to watering you may not even be watering the root zone, because the plant's root
zone is free to go in all directions.
So you may not be applying water where it's required. Number 5. You're less
likely to catch disease also. Now there are loads of diseases for potatoes, such
as Alternario now Alternario is a soil born disease is otherwise known as early
blight. And there are loads of other soil borne diseases and pests such as wireworm,
that you can cut out the equation altogether when growing in containers.
Instead. In containers, you're using compost. Whether that's shop bought or
homemade. And over the years I've had loads of you come to me and say, "wow what an
expensive way to grow potatoes". but I will put a link in the description below
to my last compost video. Where I show you how to make all the homemade compost
you could need at home. And this is high-quality compost. And you can use
that to fill these containers, which is totally free from your own garden. Now
even if you had to buy your compost because you didn't have it to start with.
That's still a good investment, and the reason for that is that you can reuse
this medium over and over again. Providing you haven't had blight. And all
you need to do is put an additional feed into the compost because after all, it's
just a medium. And once you can no longer use it for potatoes, or it's not giving
you the growth that you would require. Then you can put it into your garden
beds. And by putting it in your garden beds, that's improving this soil
structure in your garden as well. So those who tell me that it's a waste to
buy compost and use it this way, just don't understand how the garden is supposed
to work synergistically with itself. Number six. Now if you've had storms like
we've had this year in the UK. Then all the other gardeners around you are
catching blight. You can simply pick up your containers and take them back to
the greenhouse or the polytunnel. And that will help to prevent blight. If
you're in the garden, you can't do that. They are tied to the ground, you can't
just lift them and take them somewhere. Not only that. When
they're in containers if you need some spare space in a bed or something like
that. You can simply just pick them up and move them. Or even put them onto a
the patio where you wouldn't normally be able to grow crops, and then that would
free up beds for other things. They are fantastic, especially if you were short
of space. Number seven. Last but not least is the harvest. Now
when growing in the ground. You've got all the back-breaking work that you had
from putting them in. Because it's just the reverse of putting them in. You have
to dig them all out, and I hate this and I tell you why. You usually stab half of
the potatoes with the fork or cut them in half with a spade. Or you miss them
entirely, which means that your crop is less, and you get volunteer potatoes next
year coming up in areas of the garden you don't want them to. With containers, it's
much, much easier. You can either pick the container up and put it into a
wheelbarrow. Or you can just tip it over where it stands. And it's easy to pull
out all the potatoes. None are missed, and None are stabbed. So you get a fantastic crop,
and you've got clean compost with no potato tubers coming up in ground that
you don't want next year. After harvest, we can think about drying off the
potatoes and storing them. Now, I have a video which I'll put below, which shows
you exactly how you can store your own potatoes right through the winter, so
that you can eat them until the next harvest. And how to save your own
seed potatoes too. Which will save you money next year when it comes to buying
seed potatoes. Because they are very expensive to buy. And if you can save
your own, well that's just a bargain. Because those plants are already
acclimatized to this area. Question of the day. How do you grow your potatoes
and why? Let's get some conversation starting below, so that all the new
growers around can make a more informed decision on how they feel is the best way
to grow potatoes is. We already know why I prefer containers. But I admit, that
growing potatoes can be done in almost any way. And the ground is very good. I
just like the double yields I get out of the containers. And how much easier it is
for my efforts. Now if you've enjoyed this video you can
subscribe here! And if you want to see the results to the Ground over the
Container experiment, then that video is right here for you, I'm Tony O'Neill this
is UK Here We Grow. And remember folks. You Reap What You Sow!
I'll see you in the next one. bye-bye