Anyone tried this?

[ChocClare]

I belong to a self-sufficiency-ish sort of forum which is mainly American-based, and one of the good ladies thereon assures me that you can grow potatoes very successfully by a) digging a hole in the ground about the size of a bucket, b) chucking in three seed potatoes c) covering them over with...wait for it... grass clippings and then "earthing up" with more and more grass clippings as the potatoes grow through. She assures me she has had great success with this method and with old straw, used in the same way, and that it's absolutely brillo as the potatoes come out all clean when they're ready.

Anyone tried this? It sounds brilliant, but I wondered whether the grass would get all slimy when you watered it?

[smallblueplanet]

We do our potatoes by planting them like bulbs - dig a 6" deep hole drop them in and then when they start pushing up the soil, cover them over with grass clippings.

Edit - the clippings didn't go slimey.

[Mcbee]

I've not done it, but a guy on my old allotmet used to. I had reservations about excluding the light etc - but he always seem to have a good crop.

Personally, i think i'd be reluctant to grow my whole crop that way -but it might be worth while trying a few tubers if you've got some spare! Good luck

[snuffer]

I have never tried it, don't know anyone else who has and never heard of it being done. My firsts thoughts would be to agree with you and wonder if the grass clippings would go all slimy. However, perhaps the growing potato plants (which are very thirsty) take up enough moisture from the decomposing grass to prevent this. Sounds feasible, perhaps it's worth experimenting with.

[Flummery]

I'm sure Two Sheds is a great advocate of grass clippings for spud earthing up. I also think Snadger said something about covering them with straw. I'm sure it would work.

[Snadger]

Potatoes like an acid environment which they would certainly have surrounded by grass clippings. I've heard of people surrounding the seed spud with peat/coir for the same reason.

Try a few and let us know how you get on!

[vegnut]

Potatoes like an acid environment which they would certainly have surrounded by grass clippings. I've heard of people surrounding the seed spud with peat/coir for the same reason.

Try a few and let us know how you get on!

And i think the acid environment is also meant to stop potato scab too.

[Jenegade]

If potatoes like an acid environment, would it be good to include some coniferous needles when earthing up? I've heard that they are good mulch for Blueberries and Strawberries.

[kate&rob]

do you get as goo results by just digging a hole for the spuds as you do by earthing up at planting? presumably you do earth up in the same way when the plants have grown.

[Two_Sheds]

Yes I do mulch my spuds with grass clippings (we get them delivered free by the school groundsman).

I avoid digging, if at all possible. I just make a hole with a trowel, and drop a spud in. Backfill with earth or grass clippings. Don't use too many at once or they will go slimy... about 3 inches is about right, at a time. Water them afterwards to stop them blowing away (they will form a mat). Repeat as necessary. Don't use grass that is in seed, or you'll end up with a growing lawn instead of a mulch.

You need to keep doing it, to exclude light, or your spuds will turn green and poisonous.

It is much easier than traditional earthing up; you don't need to dig heavy soil. Harvesting is easier too, you just push the grass mulch aside.

[ChocClare]

Thanks chaps - so is the consensus to dig the bucket-sized hole and fill in with grass-clippings, or just to plant in the normal way and "earth up" with grass clippings, do we think? My gardener (sounds posher than it is) always dumps great mounds of grass clippings on the river bank at the bottom of my garden every time he cuts the grass and I have now got two insurmountable heaps I'd be happy to get rid of. Incidentally, they get INCREDIBLY hot when the sun shines on them, so I suppose they might even heat up the soil???

[terrier]

Last year I earthed up the spuds once but then used grass clippings and old straw and hay and it worked fine. If you just use grass clippings, make sure they are dried out befor you put the next lot on or else they do go 'orrible and stinky.

[smallblueplanet]

Thanks chaps - so is the consensus to dig the bucket-sized hole and fill in with grass-clippings, or just to plant in the normal way and "earth up" with grass clippings, do we think?

Depends whether you want an easy life? Plant them like bulbs, 6" or so down and cover them over with grass cuttings when/if the tubers start showing through the soil.

[ChocClare]

Depends whether you want an easy life?

Thanks Manda, that is the correct reply, as they say! Not digging out a bucket-sized hole is ALWAYS the best option, I find - thank you!

[smallblueplanet]

Lol! Works for us. You might want to first draw up the soil with a hoe when they start coming thru, or not and just throw grass cuttings over 'em!