POTATOES planted today 2/28/2026

[gary350]

I am not very good at knowing how to measure how much food my potato plants need. My potato plants started growing fast then 2 rows slow down and seem to have stopped growing. 2 rows have grown several inches taller than the other 2 rows. I guessed and gave 4 rows the some fertilizer.

I feed the 2 short rows again they did not grow much taller. I feed the 2 short rows a 2nd time small plants are slowly catch up to the taller 2 rows.

Part of the problem might be row 2 are different type potatoes maybe plants are naturally smaller.

Fresh made wood has contains a lot of K and K slowly evaporates away if not used right away or kept in a closed container. Any type urine added to wood ash produces a lot of Potassium nitrate which is a good N fertilizer. I think potatoes need K more than they need N but not sure but they need both in ? amounts.

Soil is cracking open there must be a lot of good size new potatoes in there. Oh well, 6 more weeks to harvest day. I will feed the 2 short rows only to see if they catch up with the 2 taller rows.

 

[gary350]

My potato crop is 4 days away from the last 30 days until harvest. We have lots of rain in the forecast I need to fertilize today or garden will be too much mud to do anything for 10 days. I don't trust N fertilizer videos so I am not giving my plants all nitrogen. We often have rain every day for the month of May. My plants are now large enough to shade themself from the sun. I think 10-1-10 is a good choice but there is no such fertilizer. Potato plants like slightly acid soil plants might like a very small amount of 21-0-0. In the past I have poured vinegar on potato rows the plants like slightly acid soil. I saved a lot of wood ash to add K. Some people claim wood ash caused scabs on the potatoes. I have never seen scabs on my potatoes.

 

[gary350]

 

[Meadowlark]

My potato crop is 4 days away from the last 30 days until harvest.

So, @gary350 ...are you going to try the techniques you recommended here based on videos:

1) apply nitrogen at 60 days
2) remove tops at 60 days
3) use 6-inch spacing

Which of the following two-plant photos do you think will have the best production:

Photo 1...tops removed at 60 days

Photo 2...Nitrogen applied at 60 days

Photo 3...control plants

 

[Meadowlark]

Do people actually get paid to make these videos?

 

[gary350]

So, @gary350 ...are you going to try the techniques you recommended here based on videos:

1) apply nitrogen at 60 days
2) remove tops at 60 days
3) use 6-inch spacing

Which of the following two-plant photos do you think will have the best production:

Photo 1...tops removed at 60 days

Photo 2...Nitrogen applied at 60 days

Photo 3...control plants

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I plant seed potatoes with no less than 5 eyes per seed potato. I plant seed potatoes with 5 to 12 eyes per potato spaced 6" apart. Seed potatoes with less than 5 eyes get planted side by side with another potato, example, 4 eye potato + 3 eye = 7 eyes. 3 eye+ 2 eye + 3 eye = 8 eyes. I have very good luck squeezing seed potatoes in tight. I never cut seed potatoes any more I plant seed potatoes any number of eyes 5 to 12 eyes. My 30 ft seed potato rows will have 60 seed potatoes with a minimum 5 eyes per seed potato. I have no 1 lb. new potatoes I never want any potatoes that large.

Just because a commercial grower gives there potato crop N at 60 days does not mean I will. I find it interesting but NO info of geographical location and no info on what potatoes they grow. Same thing with cutting tops off of potato plants. It is interesting but I am not doing that to my plants. Yes I plant seed potatoes 6" spacing. I know from past experience too much N produces very large green plants with few new potatoes.

 

[Meadowlark]

Just because a commercial grower gives there potato crop N at 60 days does not mean I will. I find it interesting but NO info of geographical location and no info on what potatoes they grow. Same thing with cutting tops off of potato plants.

Very interesting.

Somehow, it seemed that you were recommending those things here...as well as saying you were going to do an experiment also.

 

[gary350]

Garden finally got 1.5" of rain last night. I hope I gave my plants enough fertilizer. I sprinkled about 1 lb. of 15-15-15 on 4 rows 2 days ago. Then I decided I am being too greedy with fertilizer and gave plants another 1 lb. the next day. In the past I only fertilized potatoes the day I planted them. Fertilizer at day 60 is new to me. The first 20 ft of row 2 are the only plants that have blossoms. I don't remember what is planted in row 2 and 3. I think row 1 and 4 are all Kennebec's. I have 120 ft of potato plants. We are having a very dry spring we usually get rain 6 days a week the month of April & May. 3 grand kids had lots of fun assembling the windmill flowers and placing them along the garden edge.

 

[Sluggy]

Now if I only had a garden that size there would be no need to visit the vegetable shop in my village. Lucky you I am envious.

 

[gary350]

3 weeks before harvest time wife said, we have no potatoes in the kitchen. So I dug up 1.4 lbs. of potatoes. Not much rain this year soil is very hard. Looks like its time to put plastic irrigation hose in the potato patch and let it run for a while.

 

[Meadowlark]

Has anyone ever heard of cutting potatoes plants off after 60 days?

I found a commercial potato grower video that cuts potato plants off at 60 days. Grower claims, the last 60 to 90 days of growing will grow larger potatoes if less energy is used to grow plants.

Absolutely did not work here. Larger potatoes...not hardly, potatoes were
smaller and fewer in number.

Two plants in each item:

Item	Tot Number of NP	Weight of NP	Number of Bakers
Tops cut at 60 days	15	11 ounces	0
N added at 60 days	15	34 ounces	0
Normal	30	105 ounces	6

Neither does adding nitrogen at 60 days...another claim

 

[gary350]

Absolutely did not work here. Larger potatoes...not hardly, potatoes were
smaller and fewer in number.

Two plants in each item:

Item	Tot Number of NP	Weight of NP	Number of Bakers
Tops cut at 60 days	15	11 ounces	0
N added at 60 days	15	34 ounces	0
Normal	30	105 ounces	6

Neither does adding nitrogen at 60 days...another claim

The commercial grower that claimed he was cutting plants off at 60 days was not digging potatoes up until 90 days was past. This is interesting but don't believe it until I see it for myself.

I have dug up 1/2 inch diameter new potatoes at 30 days and many people claim there are NO potatoes at all at 30 days.

Maybe potato variety has something to do with this. When you plant too many potatoes it is ok to dug up some new potatoes 30 days early.

 

[Meadowlark]

In each of the items, the potatoes were dug at 90 days from planting.

No way cutting tops at 60 days is a plus at 90 days here. No way.

Neither is adding nitrogen a plus at 90 days. No way.

Variety matters? No, not in my opinion...and I have no desire to try again with a different variety. I am convinced.

 

[gary350]

Wife needed more potatoes. I dug up 6 lbs. this time.

 

[gary350]

Grand daughter dug up 3 lbs. 6 oz. of potatoes to make stew.