Winter Stores and Potato Planting

Today we finally got to plant our first potato bed. By "we" I mean me and my faithful potato planting pal. Q. James.

First we tilled the bed and cut rows. We use two simple tools to get this job done. The broadfork and hoe. This bed is about 30 feet long with 4 rows. It accounts for about half the potatoes we will sow.

On a side note. This bed was grass two years ago. Last year we covered the grass with a thick layer of composted soil and planted corn. This year we deep dug the soil for the first time then turned the compost into the soil with the hoe. It's rich looking soil. We look forward to what the potatoes will do here.

Next we went to our winter storehouse. No sorry it's not a root cellar or a cool blockhouse with a sod roof. It's a silly hole. It's about 4 feet deep, 4 feet long and 2 feet wide.

A large glass shower door covers the hole.

Gunny sacks are layered over the lid for insulation.

The last of our winter stores -a box of rooting potatoes and the last bag of garlic.

So here's how we prepared the potatoes...

We cut each potato separating the healthiest eyes while leaving enough potato flesh with each eye to nourish the young roots for growth in the dirt.

This came from winter storage. It's teaming with roots! We have German Butterball, Desiree and a purple flesh no name variety.

Five pounds cut to make almost 30 plants.

We planted 28 Purple Viking (Fedco), 5 purple flesh (winter stored), 21 Desiree (winter stored). We still have to plant about 50 German Butterballs (winter stored), 30 Yukon Golds (Fedco) and 30 Keuka Gold (Fedco).