Due to so many questions on my Growing Potatoes the Lazy Way video, I have decided to make a video to answer the most common questions:
Should you use straw instead of hay because of grass seed? 0:49
Were some green due to shallow planting? 2:07
How long until harvest? 3:20
How often do you have to water them? 4:02
Can you use old leaves instead of straw? 4:49
Did anyone count how many times he said potatoes? 5:54
Where did the green potato stems go? 6:07
What about hilling or earthing up? 7:21
What is the other way of growing potatoes? 8:07
Take a look at the (Growing Potatoes the Lazy Way) video here:
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My name is Huw Richards, I live in Wales, UK and I am a teenager who loves vegetable gardening. Unusual right? I love to teach people around the world about growing their own food organically and my end goal is to get as many children as possible to have the experience of growing food which I believe is one of the most important things a child could learn. If you’re new to HuwsNursery then please hit that subscribe button (and also notifications) so you can learn more about growing your own food inexpensively 🙂
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I gots to try it!
Your questions format is good Huw. I grow the potatoes in buckets. I saw Patrick Dolan one yard revolution growing in leaves. I practiced the no dig way now for two years using leaves with good success. Interesting video . Thanks for sharing Patrick
Very informative! Thank you!
Great video.But what happens when there are no potatoes in the Supermarket and you don`t know how to grow your own.Forget the supermarket folks.Keep em coming Huw.
Really useful to hear those answers. Happy to report that I tried your "lazy way" this year and its working a treat. Used straw for first layer (watered in), then topped up with grass clippings. Never watered again and now I'm harvesting the Charlottes, so far they've yielded from 750 to 1200g per plant. I just pull back the straw and there are the potatoes ready to be plucked off the ground. Simplicity itself! No green bits either. Having seen sweetolyve's tip about selecting the big potatoes, I'm going to try that too.
Sounds like a great method for growing potatoes. Like the FAQ format as it answers lots of similar questions and saves you having to repeat yourself. Take care. Nick
i enjoyed this video because you answered people's questions which helped me. thank you, and yes more videos like this one would be good .
Thank you for answering the questions. I do like this format, keep up the good work. I truly appreciate your content and the hope it gives those of us just beginning to garden.
Hat off to you young man for the kind service you are teaching young folks of the world to learn how to grow for themselves. It is very educational, REWARDING and FUN….great form of natural exercise as well….and all of the FRESH AIR you can breathe. You are definitely on the right track my friend. CONGRATULATIONS on all that you do. GOOD JOB!!!
Ken
Orlando, Florida, USA
What was your production? Kilos per Square meter? And how does that compare to traditional methods?
Watched your video about "growing potatoes the lazy way" and I'm currently growing an experimental bed myself in straw. I'm looking forward to see how many we get and how big they might be. Thanks for the great video and follow-up questions w/answers.
You rock the potato world! Another nice and informative video from you thanks for sharing this.
Love the lazy way. I live in Las Vegas and I planted 3 potatoes about 3 weeks ago. I moved all the wood chips aside (@4”) then layer down some compost. Set the potatoes on top then covered with the wood chips. Last weekend I hilled them up with more wood chips. Hoping for a good harvest in a couple of months.
Great teaching ! I must try on my rooftop. thank you !
Just subscribed, because the lazy way is the closest to what the nature does..Will be doing that in Bulgaria..
Just a point for those of us who ars older this method us the differences between growing poratoes and not growing poratoes. Aldo it us no dig so the fungal community is not dammaged.
You did a great job and picked the perfect questions to answer. Thank you! We are also trying the Ruth Stout method (or lazy way) for our first time. That was very helpful!
https://youtu.be/hJIyCP1eQY8
How often do I water potatoes and garlic here's a link to what they look like I just made a video.
i am experementing too, planting potatoes the easy way, because im a little disabled it lets me garden. so good for people like me to be able to continue gardening.
As far as watering taters. They don't need or want much water at all. They often can have too much water. If you don't get rain for 7 to 10 days, give them some water. If it rains a bit, you're good to go. A couple of years that we had a lot of rain the taters grew small spores on them. That is how they try to expel excess water. They are still edible but don't look appetizing and didn't seem to taste quite as good.
If blight is a problem, try mulching with pine needles. The pine adds acid to the soil as it's watered and the acid rich soil helps prevent many diseases, such as blight. This is a natural way to add acid to soil and prevent disease. Also, no need to fertilize much. They don't do as well in overly fertile soil. This is why they can grow in hay,straw or almost anything.
Containers also work well for growing potatoes. As the plant grows 6" , add 3" of soil or hay/straw. Repeat until containers are full. Harvest when the plant dies off to maximize growth. You can then simply dump over the container and pick out your taters by hand and maybe a small hand rake. This gives you all of the yield you get from hilling them without having to use up lots of space. Just don't crowd them when planting. Give 8 to 12 inches at least between plants.
PS
Try German butterball potatoes. Delicious.
Just my 2 cents. Hope it helps.
Fresh taters are so much tastier than store bought and super easy to grow. It's pretty hard to kill them. I start some very early and have had 3" babies freeze up from frost and still grow to maturity.
Hi Huw, I’m about to prepare some large bins as an experiment to grow earlies this year (2020.) Should I put them in just a shallow layer of soil/compost at the bottom of the bin then cover with hay/straw and top up gradually over the weeks, or should I fill up the bin to just under the rim, place the pots then put a layer of hay on top? Which would give best results do you think?
I attempted potato sacks last year. It was pathetic, and didn't work at all. I appreciate the FAQ video. There are more leaves around my area, that grass/hay/straw. The last question "what's the other way of growing potatoes" was well answered, because there are so many gardeners teaching alternative methods, I've never heard of the traditional way! How funny.
Excellent follow up Huw! Never worry about those who think the worst either. You’re clearly a hard worker and needn’t ever consider “faking” it. I wish all comments were positive and building others up. You’re doing such an amazing job! God bless.
Use cardboard with mulch or straw on top to block off weeds.
Its Great ! Thank You
Hi Hugh. 2 questions please. Will it be ok the plant some potatoes now? And I've had these seed pots since Jan and the abit shrivelled is it still ok to plant them?
I've been poorly so didnt get to plant my main crop. Thinking g of planting them in tubs ?
Thinking on doing your course. I think it may be interesting and helpful. X
Great questions, and great answers! Thanks Huw and everyone else. The lazy method has worked great for me, but it's good to know we can always scale it up using the traditional method.
Can be used the green potato for next season planting?
I've seen videos of using straw and they used alot, very deep, perhaps they added more thru the summer
One video had a good layer under the seed potato as the ground wasn't that fertile