Growing Potatoes
Everyone loves the taste of new potatoes, and trials in recent times with growing potatoes in big pots, old dustbins, buckets, plastic refuse bags and special "potato bags" have been very successful with huge yields.
Anything goes really; just make sure there is a drainage hole in the base. All you do is add about 10cm (4 inches) of multipurpose vegetable compost to the base of the container and about 5 small seed potatoes and cover with a small layer of more compost.
Look for disease resistant varieties, so that no spraying against potato blight is necessary and your potatoes are organic as nature intended.
When the green shoots appear, add more compost regularly as the stems grow until the container is filled to the top with compost and the green shoots are still showing. The buried stems produce more roots and more tubers all the way to the top of the pot.
The potatoes will produce attractive white or pink flowers. As soon as the flowers fade, the first potatoes will be ready to eat. Don't pull the plant up, but dig into the soil and you will find the potatoes there. Just remove a few at a time and keep the pot well watered and feed occasionally with some liquid plant food,
Enjoy with real butter melting over them, skins and all. Then you will know why the Irish were always so fond of them in times gone by.
