How We Plant Potatoes

We normally purchase certified seed potatoes from our local feed store to be used as the basis of our potato plants. Do not buy regular potatoes from the supermarket as these have most likely been treated with chemical sprays and many times won’t do well at prorogating themselves. If the seed potatoes are large, cut them into sections each having at least 2 buds, or eyes. Do this about 2 days before planting, which allows them to heal and develop a protective coating. Cured (healed) pieces retain their moisture when planted and will have a hardened surface resistant to rotting. Do not cut these potatoes into small chunks, as small seed potatoes contain less starch (stored food energy) and can be more susceptible to unfavorable environmental conditions.

If the seed potatoes are small, simply plant them whole. This has an advantage to it as the skins are on the potatoes already and make them less subject to rot and helps maintain their internal moisture.

In either case, first try to determine how many potato plants you will be planting in your outside garden. Then plan on creating only this many seed potato cuttings, with perhaps one or two more.

If none of your seed potatoes have buds (eyes) on them, or you aren’t really sure, then do this: place them into a bucket of dirt inside of your home or garage. This tricks the potato into thinking that it has been planted underground and starts to grow buds and sprouts.

Since Wisconsin has naturally alkaline soil (above 7 pH) and potatoes like acidic soil (around 6 to 6.5 pH), just before you plant the cut seed potatoes in your garden, do this: put them into a brown grocery bag and add 2 tablespoons of sulfur (available from garden stores). Shake well and then plant. The sulfur not only lowers the pH of the soil in the vicinity of the potatoes, it will protect them from disease and rot organisms in the ground.

To plant, cut a hole in the plastic and dig a good size hole. Add some fertilizer and mix it with the dirt in the hole. Take a potato from your brown bag (containing the sulfur) and place it into the hole with the cut side down. Cover with soil and water good. Space them 12” apart but stagger the plants in relation to those on the row next to it. The potatoes are planted in rows only 12” apart, which is a very tight spacing, but seems to work well for us. Plant these as soon as the ground can be worked, usually in late April. Pour the unused sulfur from the brown bag into your compost pile.