In recent years there has been a strong increase in people wanting to grow their own vegetables. Whereas some vegetables might require a further introduction, the potatoes do not! They are part of our basic vegetable here in the Zimbabwe, more often than not partnering any kind of meat, fish or poultry on our dinner plates, in one shape or another.
Little wonder then that many people are looking for advice on how to grow potatoes, so I decided to set up this website to give out some tips and advice, and point out a couple of resources you can use to become an expert potato grower.
Little wonder then that many people are looking for advice on how to grow potatoes, so I decided to set up this website to give out some tips and advice, and point out a couple of resources you can use to become an expert potato grower.The truth is that growing potatoes is not all that difficult, as long as you stick to a few ground rules. Potatoes can be grown in practically any kind of soil, and if you’re considering turning a piece of lawn/grassland or wasteland into a vegetable plot, potatoes are an excellent first crop to help break up the soil.
If you’re struggling for growing space, potatoes will quite happily grow in containers as well, which come handy if your back yard is all flagged or you live in a flat with a small balcony.
Before you can start growing your own potatoes you need to decide what kind of crop you’re after, to help you find the right variety of seed potatoes to get. You might want to have fresh homegrown potatoes when the new potatoes come out in the shops at a premium. In that case you should go for a first early varietyor the slightly later maturing second early variety. If, on the other hand, you want to grow enough potatoes to feed your family throughout the winter, it’s a maincrop seed potatoyou want.
Once you’ve got your seed potatoes put them out for chitting, before you put them in the soil, and apart from a bit of ‘looking after’ there is very little left for you to do until can harvest your potatoes 14 weeks down the line (early varieties) or after 22 weeks (maincrop).
Sounds simple – doesn’t it? Maybe because it is, although there is a couple of things you need to look out for as time goes on. These will be further explained on other pages of the site, so have a look around for the tips that are best suited to your needs.
Happy potato growing!
