It seems like every month another GMO veggie or fruit is being approved. Only last year, there were several new potato varieties approved for farmers to grow commercially. DIY Everywhere reports there are even GMO versions of the famous Atlantic and Russet potato. In other words, you buy and eat potatoes full of pesticides!
The only solution to this problem is to grow your own potatoes. You’ll have delicious potatoes and you’ll be 100% sure they are organic and free of pesticides.
This vegetable requires little work when grown in the ground or pot.
What’s more, if you plant it properly, it can last quite long, and give super nutritious potatoes, loaded with vitamin C and potassium. The Seattle Times says you need just 4 ft2 .to grow up to 100 lbs of potatoes in a box.
The method requires the following things:
- Soil,
- Seed potatoes,
- Lumber,
- Careful attention to watering.
The image below shows how to make a potato growing box that can yield up to 100 pounds of potatoes in 4 ft2.
Plant somewhere between April and August the 1st, and make sure there are around three months until the harvest season.
Here are a few main pointers on how to grow 100 lbs of potatoes in 4 ft2 :
- Slice the seed potatoes in half and plant the halves which have at least 2 potato eyes.
- Dust the potato halves using fir dust, to seal the open ends from bacteria
- Use 10-20-20 fertilizer when planting the pieces, and a few more times during the season.
- Water the plants at an even rate to prevent them from drying out.
- Potatoes can attract various diseases, so if you like to grow them again the next year, don’t use the same soil and don’t plant them in the same area.
A good idea to save space is to make a box and plant it inside it. Then, as the plant grows, add sides to the box and fill in with soil or mulch. Once it blossoms, it’ll begin setting the potatoes on the added side of the box. Soon, you’ll pull out the new potatoes from the bottom boards of your potato box.
The following handy label from the Us Potato Board shows the nutrition content of this vegetable:
