potatoes in containers

[loolootinkerbell]

You can purchase vegetable, "bags " from places like homebase, to grow potatos and veg in, these cost about £15 for three. i prefer to use the bags homebase sell for packing up the shopping, they cost £1 i think, and are round about the same size. I plant 5 seed potatos and earth up as much as i can over time. I think some would recomend 4 though...

[crichmond]

Ive got 10 tubs of potato's on the go in the greenhouse covered with fleece in case of frost, the tubs I use are those yellow builders tubs that they sell in wickes except I have drilled holes in the bottom to allow for drainage.

Cheers Chris

[veg4681]

Ive got 10 tubs of potato's on the go in the greenhouse covered with fleece in case of frost, the tubs I use are those yellow builders tubs that they sell in wickes except I have drilled holes in the bottom to allow for drainage.

Cheers Chris

How many spuds do you put in the tub? I gather it's a 40 litres flexi tub (with handles). I'm guessing upto 6 spuds should be alright.

[crichmond]

I put 5 in each tub, they are about half way up the tubs now, and I just have fleece over the tops of the tubs in case of frost.

Cheers Chris

[spud57]

You could either use good well rotted compost from your dalek/compost heap or well rotted farmyard manure in the tubs or potato fertilizer/growmore then when the leaves appear feed once a week with a potash feed/comfrey.

Hello Paul, what is a good potash feed please?

[gemlady]

[QUOTE=crichmond;192380]Ive got 10 tubs of potato's on the go in the greenhouse covered with fleece in case of frost, the tubs I use are those yellow builders tubs that they sell in wickes except I have drilled holes in the bottom to allow for drainage.

Got some builders tubs, but if I don't have enough room in greenhouse overnight will they be ok outside with some newspaper or fleece over them?

[shirlthegirl43]

I just put a good handful of well rotted muck, chicken poo pellets or potato fertiliser (new trial for me this year) in the bottom of the bucket when I plant the seed spud. They don't get fed after that.

[crichmond]

Got some builders tubs, but if I don't have enough room in greenhouse overnight will they be ok outside with some newspaper or fleece over them?

If putting them outside I would double up the fleece just in case.

[si'sraisedbed]

I just used multi purpose compost, will they be OK or should I put something on top of the pots, nothing has come through as yet, been in about a week and a half...

[shirlthegirl43]

How much soil on top of the seed spud Si?

[si'sraisedbed]

I half filled the pot, put the spud in and topped with about twice the depth of the seedm pot, I would say about 5 inches.

[shirlthegirl43]

I plant mine closer to the bottom of the bucket and usually just cover with a couple inches of earth so that I see them popping up quicker. It will take a while longer for the shoots to get clear of that depth of soil, be patient. You don't really want the tender shoots to appear while this frosty spell is about anyway.

[Snadger]

I am growing more early potatoes in containers this year than I usually do for two main reasons.

1) I can move them around indoors or into the greenhouse if frost is about, which means I can have earlier crops.
2) If I tip out a bucket of spuds there is just enough for a meal and they can be cooked within the hour!

I have Belle de Fonterey, Charlotte and Winston in containers now and I intend to put in some Duke of York at the weekend.

My strangest containers are two 'mop buckets' that were being chucked out at work, but I also have plastic mushroom boxes,pots,buckets etc You can basically use anything as long as it will hold compost, has drainage and is big enough!

[fizzywitch]

I'm waiting for my Roosters to come from the LGV offer - I was a bit late sending it off, but they've banked the cheque, so I think I was in time. I'm going to try one in a stack of tyres and the others in the ground and see what happens

[si'sraisedbed]

I plant mine closer to the bottom of the bucket and usually just cover with a couple inches of earth so that I see them popping up quicker. It will take a while longer for the shoots to get clear of that depth of soil, be patient. You don't really want the tender shoots to appear while this frosty spell is about anyway.

Having checked when I got in from work the shoot is about 1cm from breaking through. Brought it inside alst night as frost forcast but out in the sun now, may break through today...