Potatoes can also be grown in a sack. There are a lot of examples on Internet, YouTube. Basically roll down sack to about 12", fill burlap sack with a bit of dirt and seed potatoes. Then add dirt and compost as the plant grows, unrolling sides of sack to add height.
My first time doing this I didn't get a huge crop but I didn't use any compost just dirt. I'm going to try this year adding lots of shredded leaf compost with a bit of composted chicken manure.

That's a neat idea too!

I bought a bunch of those felt planting bags (round with flat bottoms) and have tried for several years with them. I get potatoes but it takes a lot of soil to fill them as I unroll. I have tried leaves and straw but that didn't seem to work. I watered well and we get a fair amount of rain so they had moisture. But I wasn't impressed. Oh, the bags sit on my front deck facing south west (more west than south) so they get good sun. Also I got scab the first year (used darn store bought potatoes instead of good certified potato seed) and now I don't think I can use the pots again. Haven't planted in them in two springs. Do you figure whatever made them bad is gone.? Could I put them in the washing machine with a little bleach??

Use a soil acidifier or sullhur to bring the pH of soil down to arange beteween 5-6 to control scab.

So even though the bags are 'infected' with what I guess is a virus changing the pH in the soil would negate it?

It is a bacteria. Acidity seems to suppress common scab, but there are a couple of rare species that will attack in acid soils. http://vegetablemdonline.ppath...

Thanks for the article Farmerdill! I too get mild cases of scab.

I never grew potatoes. I just don't have room in ground what with everything else I cram in here. I guess I could use a bag or pot on the driveway but just have never gotten to try it.

I grew up on homegrown potatoes so I am lucky enough to have room.

Question: some say that using manure can cause scab. Is that true? (I might have missed an earlier reference.)

It was beaten into my thick head as as kid That I was was never to put horse manure on the potato patch because it causes scab, and never put chicken manure on the potato patch because you get all vines and no potatoes. Never tested it tho, I got plenty of switchings for other reasons. We used cow manure with no problems.

Since I have 20+ horses, I use well composted horse manure on my whole garden, Including potatoes. I've never had issues with scab. I also have chickens, so I use the chicken manure selectively on the garden after it has composted for a year or more. Last year I used it on my artichokes. I buried it in a trench and covered it and then planted them. Had the best crop ever. I haven't used chicken manure on the potatoes though. I remember a long time ago using chicken manure that was a bit too fresh on my tomato patch, and getting wonderful foliage.

Thanks for that info! Just trying to figure out what I'll fill my Smart Pots with when I plant potatoes. I do have some oak leaf compost that I can use but no access to any manures unless store bought other than worm compost. Maybe really good potting soil like Happy Frog and my compost? I do have acid fertilizer to add as well.

I am tempted to try the idea of growing them in a bale of hay. Then I can shred the hay (certified seed free) and mix it with leaves and garden detritus in the fall for winter mulch. I have room for maybe two bales. That should accommodate maybe four plants? Two each? or do you think I could go three each. Standard size hay bale I think. What would I feed them with and how?

tveguy3 said:Since I have 20+ horses, I use well composted horse manure on my whole garden, Including potatoes. I've never had issues with scab. I also have chickens, so I use the chicken manure selectively on the garden after it has composted for a year or more. Last year I used it on my artichokes. I buried it in a trench and covered it and then planted them. Had the best crop ever. I haven't used chicken manure on the potatoes though. I remember a long time ago using chicken manure that was a bit too fresh on my tomato patch, and getting wonderful foliage.

Well, that horse manure and chicken manure are one of the reasons you get such great production on your tomato plants.

I read an article about hay bale growing and it said you first have to prepare the baked by wetting them down thoroughly and letting them partially break down. It was in Costco magazine but in sure folks here know the method b

Turning the garden I dug up a red potato. A bit squishy, but intact, lol!

I always find a few in my garden that got missed too, Sally ...

Sandy,
I was amazed one year to find a Kennebeck plant growing the next spring. But try and fall plant and they would all rot!

billyporter said:Sandy,
I was amazed one year to find a Kennebeck plant growing the next spring. But try and fall plant and they would all rot!

That's interesting -- I've wondered if fall planting would work (just haven't wondered enough to actually try it).