What a year its been in regards to our Potato’s..
The Bean Teepee spuds where planted out in the 3rd ring and they were outstanding in volume and taste.. they were the early’s that I planted and were eat though them in july.. for 4 pound bag, we got a solid 10 to 1 yield of 40 to 45 pounds of fresh eating potato’s
Kitchen Garden Plot 15 which was given some compost and lightly turned in.. got a huge amount of one of my best growing potato’s, we covered the plants with straw, we feed it with comfrey leaves and I even watered it out once with rabbit/nettle compost tea..
It did not matter.. the plants struggled in the drought, they were stunted and did not want to grow.. they yellowed hard and fast.. I was lucky to get one med and two small per plant.. such a waste.. maybe 20 to 25 pounds..
The side patch has done well but its yield is lower then it should be.. I am going to guess another 35 to 40 pounds.. it should be at least 60.. but shugs.. what is what is..
However.. then comes rose hill
It was a lower area in our yard and its a odd combo of a slightly hugel type base of small branches, lots and lots of leaves and then it became a compost pile.. bird, rabbit, bedding, horse.. We stacked and let it rot down and stacked again.. but never really turned it..
Last year it just sat..
This spring in the yard rebuild.. I needed something done in that area.. so Amano Gardens
Gave me a helping hand the one day for some of the really heavy lifting and they spread the whole pile for me across what became Rose Hill and that included bedding the whole area down in very thick straw.
When it came time to potato planting time, it was the perfect spot to slip seed spuds into the area’s where the straw meet.. it was a great call!
A solid 140ish pound of potato’s came out of that patch.. the best one of the year for sure.. I am very happy with the size and yield from that patch for sure..
However I have major work to do in the Kitchen Garden Plot 15.. and I need to really think about maybe, turning Rose Hill into a regular main garden plot.. thinking thinking.. it is the best soil spot in the whole new garden due to the fact that it was created over a older compost pile.. it can grow anything..
How was your potato growing this year? did you get a good harvest? Did you have any pest issues? did you have any nibbling.. I had one spot that I had a bit of mole bites but the farm cats did their job and did it well..
Just another Day on the Farm 
I’m curious how you keep the potatoes over the winter to avoid sprouting or rotting?
Hi Blue stem.. I do have a root cellar box that is built for potato but the main ways other then fresh eating from store for the first few months are the fact that I can a lot of them, we both loved grabbing a jar of canned potato’s.. you can heat and mash, you can add to stews or soups, or you can fry them up as a hash Brown.. The other way is that I grate them and par-cook them a touch and then I freeze in layers and make my own patty hashbrowns that can be stored in the freezer. I had a lot more “loss” when I tried to store over the whole winter.. This way I process the best/biggers, eat the little ones first.. store the next two sizes and eat them fresh from storage till around the new year and then move over to the canned or frozen.. with a bit of bought fresh from our local potato farm.. they sell the big ones at 50 pound bags for 15 dollars.. Its a amazing deal but you have to go to their office to get them.. which is just up the road by about 10 minutes.
Too much rain and too little sun too late, and my mains turned up their toes, but the one that self-sprouted out of the compost heap is still going strong! 😀 … isn’t it the way! 😀
We haven’t dug the main crop yet (that’s a project for later this week), but we’ll have a good harvest of potatoes. Our summer was mild and cool, with lots of rain in mid-summer, so our root veg did very well. Our squash, on the other hand, was not so happy with the weather we got.
Up here in the high mountains of BC we generally have a few frosts throughout the summer so spuds never have a chance here. A neighbor gave us a large bucket of winter leftovers and I’d bought a couple of bags of reds and we planted them in the old hay storage area across the river. A hundred and forty seed spuds. Weeded them a few times early on and then they were on their own. It started raining here when summer officially started and hasn’t quit since. One frost that burnt them bad about three weeks ago but I left them in. Good call! Dug them out today with the kids. Just shy of 500 pounds. Not bad considering I told the family they didn’t stand a chance!
Congrats on your 500 pounds of potato’s.. I am so happy for you giving the struggles of the season.. great yield!