Potato
Solanum tuberosum
Potatoes are popular tuberous vegetables that are easy to grow and provide a versatile harvest for the kitchen. They are herbaceous perennials grown as annuals, native to South America and part of the nightshade family (Solanaceae). UK gardeners typically group potatoes by harvest time: first earlies (new potatoes), second earlies, and maincrop. First and second earlies produce smaller 'new' potatoes earlier in the summer, while maincrop varieties mature later and yield larger potatoes for storage. Potatoes grow best in full sun and fertile, well-drained soil. Regular watering and 'earthing up' (mounding soil around the stems) as they grow will help produce a good crop and prevent tubers from turning green.
Growing Guide
Step-by-step instructions for growing Potato
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Growing maincrop potatoes in the ground for a late summer to autumn harvest.
1 Chit Seed Potatoes
If possible, chit your maincrop seed potatoes a few weeks before planting. Set them out in a light, cool area to encourage short, sturdy sprouts on the tubers.
2 Plant Maincrop Potatoes
Plant your maincrop potatoes outside once the risk of frost has just passed in Woolsthorpe-by-Colsterworth. Plant each seed potato about deep, spacing them apart in rows about apart. Cover with soil, firm down and water well. Maincrop varieties need space and time to grow, so ensure they have plenty of soil nutrients (add compost or fertiliser to the planting trench).
3 Earth Up
Regularly earth up your potatoes as they grow. When stems are about 15cm tall, begin mounding soil around them, covering the lower stems and leaves but leaving the tops of the plants exposed. Repeat this process every couple of weeks through early summer to create a ridge about high. Earthing up protects developing tubers from light and improves yield.
4 Watch for Blight
From June onward, keep a close eye on your potato foliage for signs of blight, especially during warm, wet weather. Check the leaves for dark patches or a white, fuzzy growth on the undersides. If blight is spotted, remove and destroy affected foliage immediately (do not compost it) to slow the spread. Early-maturing potatoes might avoid late blight, but maincrops are susceptible in mid to late summer.
5 Harvest
Harvest your maincrop potatoes in August to September in Woolsthorpe-by-Colsterworth once the plants have yellowed and died back. For storage potatoes, cut the dead foliage down and wait 10–14 days before lifting the tubers — this allows the skins to harden. Then dig up the potatoes, dry them for a few hours, and store them in a cool, dark place. Properly cured maincrop potatoes can be stored for many months.
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