Has anyone tried the "new" way to grow potatoes by covering them with straw or leaves instead of dirt? Supposedly, they are much easier to harvest. If you tried it, what were the results?

I grew them once a few years back, right on top of the grass which we cut short, then we put the straw on top of the potatoes very thick. You should use small whole potatoes.
It worked very well, when the plants start to bloom you can start gathering potatoes without disturbing the mother plant.

Thank you for the info. Did it change the potato crop at all? Bigger potatoes? More potatoes, less diseased potatoes?

Not a big change, except for less potato bugs and the convenience of harvesting without having to uproot the plants.
Also the potatoes were very clean and nice and you could take what you need at each time.

I planted mine in a trench but didn't seem to have any soil to keep hilling them so I just piled on the straw. Worked great!

I do seem to recall that method is supposed to help reduce potato bugs, which sounds like another good reason to try it!

Thank you all. I was going to use the uneaten portions of the round bales of hay my critters won't eat, (recycle) but I have been afraid of the weeds from the million + seeds. So, I think I'll just invest in some straw. I'm all for making things easy. I have 2 square areas I'm going to plant potatoes in. They are 8' x 8' each. Anyone have an idea how many square straw bales I will need? Do you pack it down, or just leave it fluffed?

I don't know how much you will need, just lay it down, not packed, and water it really well to settle it.

I have a straw bales garden book. And it states that potatoes should be planted 10"-12" in the bale. Three potatoes to the bale.