The Spud Barrel

A family project for any family in any size home.
Pictures to come! With Thanks to Whitney Farms for the ideas and their good products to ensure success.

In our Urban life we are so far removed from the farm it's difficult to make the connections between the French Fries at McDonalds and the life cycle of how a potato grows. How do you connect the potatoes seen in the Supermarket with potato plants growing on a farm in Central California? Do your children know that potatoes grow on the roots of the potato plant? Do they know how delicious tiny new potatoes taste?

They will when they get to burrow down in the soil, gently pull off the tiny new potatoes, then cook them with a little help from mom. Do the Potato Barrel Project and your children and the whole family will have fun doing, learning and eating the results. You can even throw in a ‘Cooking Together Time' as an added bonus. This project is so easy. You don't even have to have a yard. This Spud Barrel can go on your deck, the patio or in a sunny spot outside your garage.

Here is all you have to do.
1. You will need a 20 to 30" tall container, like an old trash can or half whiskey barrel . Cut large drain holes in the bottom or cut out the base. The trash can is the easiest because if yours are like mine they already have some holes in the bottom from dragging them out to the street. Note: If you are using an old containers, be sure to scrub them out well and then do a swash rinse with one part bleach to 5 parts water. This is to kill any bad fungi lurking in the corners.
2. Place bottomless containers on loosened soil in a sunny spot. Containers with bottoms can be placed on pavement,. Make sure they have good drainage. Next fill in the bottom with several inches of loose planting mix. Use an acidic mix such as Whitney Farms Garden Mulch or Whitney Farms Azalea, Camellia and Rhododendron Planting Mix or a mix that has a good amount of peat moss in it. You can also use any good soil mix that has lots of peat moss in it. The acid level helps prevents potato scab. I have no idea what ‘scab' is and quite frankly don't want to know, but it obviously something you don't want. You may add in up to 50% clean sandy garden soil to the mix..
Next plant the potato or several potatoes a few inches deep into the container. It's best to use Seed potatoes that you can buy in January or early spring at your garden center. If you can't find them or you have your own potatoes that have sprouted that's OK but not as good a yield and might have disease problems. For the heaviest yield plant seed pieces about the size of a small chicken egg. Use certified, disease-free seed potatoes.

Soon your potatoes will grow and when they have about 6 to 8 inches of foliage add some more soil mix covering about ½ to 2/3rds of the stems and foliage. Do this every time you have a flush of new growth. Soon the potato plant will be flowering.. Every time you add a layer of soil add ½ cup of Whitney Farms Cottonseed Meal or water with Ellis Liquid Fish and Kelp or another good liquid fertilizer. You want those potatoes to grow vigorously until they start to flower. Then stop feeding.

Be sure you keep your Spud Barrel watered but not so much that it gets soggy!! When the potato plant is blooming well you can begin the fun. Let your children dig down into the barrel and feel the potatoes growing on the roots. The potatoes at that time will be small. We call them new potatoes. They can gently pull some of those new potatoes up for an immediate treat. Yummy boiled in their skins with butter and parsley sprinkled over the top.
After the plants are done flowering and begin to turn yellow then the potatoes are reaching their full size. (poke around to see), stop watering and let the tops die back. Let potatoes cure in the soil for a few weeks, then dig them out by hand or tip the container to harvest. Your whole family will love eating their own potatoes and be ready to try it again.
For more children's gardening ides go to www.whitneyfarms.com For an interesting story of the long journey the potato took on its way to your American dinner table go to www.weidners.com to the Potato Story