Potatoes in bags or Potatoes in big pots

[Potstubsdustbins]

I use MPC but like all composts I have to start feeding about week 6. The thing is at the end of the season if you've had no problems riddle and store your compost, sweeten it with 7-7-7 fertilizer in spring and reuse.

[Chris11]

I've grown a few potatoes in both large tubs and the Wilko potato bags that Bobbin mentioned.
Wilko Grow Bag Potato 2 pk 42L at wilko.com

They both need a lot of watering compared to being in the ground, so ideally you'd have enough rain water collected in butts available.

The advantage of the bags is you can roll them down when you first plant the seed potatoes, so the emerging shoots will get the maximum light that they wouldn't get half way down in a tub. Then as the foliage grows you can roll up the sides of the bags and add more soil/compost for earthing up.

[spamvindaloo]

Last year, I used 30 litre heavy duty plant pots (like many others on here) with handles filled with MPC. I scattered some 'spuds galore' fertiliser around the seed potatoes and seemed to get good results. I Put the seeds potatoes about a third of the way up but I now know that was wasting a third of the pot as the spuds grew upwards. This year I'll be using the same pots, placing the seed potatoes on about 2" of MPC and then filling up to around 1-2" below the rim.

[Penellype]

The Wilko bags look worth an experimental try..though I can see drying out a possibility. (42ltr)
But I'm going to trial buckets as well. I'm not anywhere near a Morrisons...can't see Waitrose doing that offer! Anyone else selling them? I've no ..or at least very little shame when it comes to begging lottie supplies. I actually lust after one of those big silver wire link grids they put around building sites but I'd need the rubber feet thingies they stand them in...Then there's the impossible transport of it. I digress.
My biggest problem is FUNDING the purchase of compost to fill all the potato bags and pots! I don't make enough compost and have limited amount on lottie to dig out to use. Just how good does potato growing medium need to be? I have some rotted manure

Potatoes will grow well in most things as long as they have enough water and feed. Manure is fine, although I would mix it with compost because it can be a bit acid so you might get some scabby potatoes. When I first got my hotbin one of the things I tried to put in it was fresh horse manure, but I found the wood shavings bedding didn't rot down well in the hotbin in the quantities I had envisaged using. I was left with half a sack of manure which was rotting down slowly, so I mixed it in with some compost for some of my potatoes last year. They did very well.

[bobbin]

I use MPC but like all composts I have to start feeding about week 6. The thing is at the end of the season if you've had no problems riddle and store your compost, sweeten it with 7-7-7 fertilizer in spring and reuse.

Do you mean you feed the compost the spuds are in and what's MPC compost and 7-7-7. .? ?
Can you translate into Geordie for me please.

[bobbin]

AAAAHHH. YOU MEAN Multi Purpose compost. Sorry had a dim moment there. Still don't know what 7-7-7 is though, I'm perplexed about feeding spuds. I've grown a lot in the ground but never fed them what should I feed them with? These will be in containers incidentally.

[Lumpy]

The number 7 as far as feeds are concerned means that they are balanced and neutral rather than acidic (1 - 6.6_ or akaline (7.3 +).

[Penellype]

7-7-7 refers to a balanced fertilizer. Fertilizers are categorized in terms of the nutrients they contain, the 3 numbers referring to N (nitrogen), P (phosphate) and K (potassium). If the numbers are the same the fertilizer is balanced, if the first number is large for instance, the fertilizer is high in nitrogen.

[Paulieb]

This is worth a look...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vNml1YeDS5M

This is exactly how I grow my spuds now. Have those buckets off eBay roughly a fiver each (or less for bigger qty) and I only put 1 spud per bucket. Let the roots grow out the bottom and watering isn't essential every day.

Always get good yields and they're easy to harvest.

Also the buckets are made with a material that really lasts. Most of my plastic buckets only last 2 seasons max after being out in the winter but these buckets are still 'as new' after 4 years!

[jackarmy]

AAAAHHH. YOU MEAN Multi Purpose compost. Sorry had a dim moment there. Still don't know what 7-7-7 is though, I'm perplexed about feeding spuds. I've grown a lot in the ground but never fed them what should I feed them with? These will be in containers incidentally.

Take a look at this Bobbin, first pot is a disaster, second not too bad at all, growing potsin seaweed and leaves.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cddPfEqsQME

[Potstubsdustbins]

Bobbin, very few people feed potatoes grown in the open ground, the preparation of the soil before planting takes care of that.

However when growing in any sort of container they will need a supplementary feed as time goes on as the growing medium will run out of nutrients in about 6 weeks.

Watering can also prove problematic for the first time container grower. At harvest spuds are about 90% water therefore if you allow them to dry out the result will be a poor harvest.

[MarkHackwell]

Yep but if your shy or have no success you can buy them. Like I said last year they were 99p for eight which makes them very cheap pots.

Thinking of getting the 30 Litre pots now as I just don't think I will have enough space in my plot itself and it seems a waste to put my earlies in the plot if they do better in containers. Just wondering about the morrisons flower buckets, are they big enough to grow potatoes in as they do seem rather small? :/

[Potstubsdustbins]

For new spuds yes, I put one seed per pot two at a push. These are already in the GH and will start harvest mid May

[Jungle Jane]

If you're interested the other day I bought some plastic pots from b&m for £3.99 each they're 44cm tall & 55cm diameter. A good size for carrots too.

[spamvindaloo]

Thinking of getting the 30 Litre pots now as I just don't think I will have enough space in my plot itself and it seems a waste to put my earlies in the plot if they do better in containers. Just wondering about the morrisons flower buckets, are they big enough to grow potatoes in as they do seem rather small? :/

I can't comment on growing spuds in the flower buckets (get some anyway though as they are a brilliant value general purpose pot for tomatoes etc) but can recommend (I know I already have done so in this thread) the 30 litre heavy duty pots with handles.

A bit of compost in the bottom, then the seed potatoes, added a bit of slow release fertiliser around the seeds (I used spuds galore), topped up with compost and watered. When it came to harvest, I just picked the pot up by the handles and tipped it into a wheelbarrow and picked out the spuds. You can even cut down the foliage when they are finished and place the pot, compost tubers and all, in a garage etc and store them in the compost they've been grown in (although there is a slight slug risk from this..).

I've only grown spuds last year so only used this method but I don't want to try any other way, I'm so happy with how they turned out