Growing potatoes above ground

Hi everyone,

I'm planning to build my own Tiny House and to have a little garden. Well.... trying to have one since I'll be remote and there are lots of deer all around. And since I don;t want to fence the whole place, I'll have to be creative, or use techniques used by people with lots of proven creativity!

Deer won't go for the potatoes,  but still, I prefer to be on the safe side so I looked around and saw buckets, big bags with a door, etc, etc.. to grow potatoes above ground. I also read that you can add soil as long as the stem and leaves are 1" above. This to get way more potatoes per load. That's about all the knowledge on the subject so far.

So... what are your recommendations for products, type of potatoes (I like Russet and Red) and techniques to use for growing potatoes above ground?

Thanks a bunch for helping me!

Hi Steve, check out the potato forum here: https://permies.com/f/53/potatoes

There are a lot of threads about bags, containers, towers, etc.

I'm not sure I'm following you Steve. How will growing in containers make the potatoes more deer resistant?

Nancy Reading wrote:I'm not sure I'm following you Steve. How will growing in containers make the potatoes more deer resistant?

Hi Nancy 2nd paragraph, 1st sentence: "Deer won't go for the potatoes,  but still, I prefer to be on the safe side". It 's simple, I want everything above ground, if possible. Deer proof, easier (I think), etc. etc.I prefer one way instead of mixing setups/techniques.

I've never known deer to mess with potatoes; I often grow them outside the fences. As far as off the ground I grow some in large tubs with composted and non-composted stuff in the bottom. I generally prep that in the fall. In spring I barely set the potatoes below the surface and pile lots of a similar only even less composted on top. I add a little more at time along with a little actual compost to simulate "hilling them up". In the ground I do similar, with the potatoes barely buried and heaps of stuff on top. At harvest time I can just dig for them with my fingers. That ease of harvest is a primary reason I grow them like that.

My favorite suggestion is to plant potatoes in a cardboard box.

When the potatoes are ready to harvest just pick up the box and the potatoes fall out of the bottom making it easy to pick them out.

I used to believe deer won't eat potatoes.  

What they mean is that they don't enjoy eating potato tops.  In a bad year, they have no problem digging up the roots and munching on those.... if they are from the group that knows how.  The other family of deer that comes by has no idea roots are edible.

I enjoy my fence.  

I had a hard time keeping mine watered enough when in a container;  my potatoes came out pretty small.  If I had to grow them in containers, I'd make sure my potting soil was really rich and moisture retentive.  

r ransom wrote:I used to believe deer won't eat potatoes...

Years ago I had some store potatoes that got out of hand when I left the boys to fend for themselves for 2 weeks. I put the well-chitted potatoes in an unused garden space back where I hadn't noticed the deer going.

Maybe r ransom's deer won't eat the greens, but my deer walked across 6 feet of weeds just to chomp down on my potato greens.

I read somewhere that there are two types of potatoes. Ones that grow tubers spread out but on a mostly single layer - hilling this sort is just to keep the sun off the tubers and won't likely give you more layers of spuds. Other types will grow more vertically in the ground, so they will grow well in a container that you keep adding soil to. Has anyone else read this anywhere? Does anyone know some way of knowing which type of potato you have?

To me, the only advantage of container gardening potatoes is being able to tip out the container to harvest it. Many of the methods I've read about involving tomato towers/stacks of tires/grow bags, the people in my ecosystem have found the methods uninspiring. The year I did best, they were in a row of aged compost/wood chip mix and I planted them in late August and covered them with row cover when the weather got cold. I got a great harvest in February and was giving many away.

I think the greens have a worming or medicinal value as occasionally my animals will nibble when feeling lethargic. The first few times I panicked, but the vet assured me it was self medication and the animals improved in a few days.

Animals are cunning that way.

Jay Angler wrote:I read somewhere that there are two types of potatoes. Ones that grow tubers spread out but on a mostly single layer - hilling this sort is just to keep the sun off the tubers and won't likely give you more layers of spuds. Other types will grow more vertically in the ground, so they will grow well in a container that you keep adding soil to. Has anyone else read this anywhere? Does anyone know some way of knowing which type of potato you have?

This is absolutely true -- there are determinate and indeterminate potatoes (naturally the same is true of tomatoes).

Determinate potatoes typically finish earlier. They just decide they are done and that's it; the stalks wither and brown. Any variety grown commercially is determinate -- the farmer wants a crop that will finish at a consistent stage and size for harvesting.

Indeterminate potatoes (like my French Fingerlings) keep growing if they have suitable conditions, and can produce a lot more tubers over the season. Sometimes it takes a heavy frost to stop them, which is why I continue to hill deeply late in fall.

The biggest thing with container potatoes is keeping the moisture consistent, they dry out way faster than you'd expect especially in summer. I've had decent results with big fabric bags but only when I was really on top of watering. The cardboard box idea is brilliant for harvest though.

Anne Miller wrote:My favorite suggestion is to plant potatoes in a cardboard box.

When the potatoes are ready to harvest just pick up the box and the potatoes fall out of the bottom making it easy to pick them out.

Wow. I love this. I’ve been trying to grow them on growing bags, so far it has been a total failure. I suspect it was the horrible soil from the nursery. I’m learning to make my own. I hate to wash those bags. A box is way easier.

r ransom wrote:I used to believe deer won't eat potatoes.  

What they mean is that they don't enjoy eating potato tops.  In a bad year, they have no problem digging up the roots and munching on those.... if they are from the group that knows how.  The other family of deer that comes by has no idea roots are edible.

I enjoy my fence.  

HA! So the newbie me was right to be on the safe side! But, honestly, I never thought deer would do "THAT". It's just that I prefer  to set everything the same way: safe above ground and a fence when needed than using multiple different setup. This to save time most;y because I'm FAR from being as experienced as all of you guys!!! I just hope that I'll be at least a little better than Mr. Douglas with my garden! (Green Acres TV show). Thanks Ransom and everyone else for taking time to help/educate me.

Jay Angler wrote:

r ransom wrote:I used to believe deer won't eat potatoes...

Years ago I had some store potatoes that got out of hand when I left the boys to fend for themselves for 2 weeks. I put the well-chitted potatoes in an unused garden space back where I hadn't noticed the deer going.

Maybe r ransom's deer won't eat the greens, but my deer walked across 6 feet of weeds just to chomp down on my potato greens.

I read somewhere that there are two types of potatoes. Ones that grow tubers spread out but on a mostly single layer - hilling this sort is just to keep the sun off the tubers and won't likely give you more layers of spuds. Other types will grow more vertically in the ground, so they will grow well in a container that you keep adding soil to. Has anyone else read this anywhere? Does anyone know some way of knowing which type of potato you have?

To me, the only advantage of container gardening potatoes is being able to tip out the container to harvest it. Many of the methods I've read about involving tomato towers/stacks of tires/grow bags, the people in my ecosystem have found the methods uninspiring. The year I did best, they were in a row of aged compost/wood chip mix and I planted them in late August and covered them with row cover when the weather got cold. I got a great harvest in February and was giving many away.

Thanks a lot for sharing this Jay. I may go for the big bag (there's a video posted about that from a guy who lived and worked on a potato farm), and if not, I'm going to use Nancy's setup. The bag thing is nice because I can "move" the garden if needed to be and it seems less work. And maybe I'l;; spray some Tabasco on the leaves for a little "surprise" for the deer and ... who knows, I maye evenget spicy potatoes! (LOL just joking).

Toria Rozo wrote:

Anne Miller wrote:My favorite suggestion is to plant potatoes in a cardboard box.

When the potatoes are ready to harvest just pick up the box and the potatoes fall out of the bottom making it easy to pick them out.

Wow. I love this. I’ve been trying to grow them on growing bags, so far it has been a total failure. I suspect it was the horrible soil from the nursery. I’m learning to make my own. I hate to wash those bags. A box is way easier.

Toria, there's a video posted in the potato forum. It's from a  guy who lived and worked on a potato farm, and he explains how to do it right and also tells people about the REAL expectations to have and not to believe the scam from the marketers. I don;t know much about the subject, but it seems good information.