I had a friend years ago that was allergic to many things, her worst allergies were to any and all petroleum products, including fertilizer, and to all members of the grass family. She grew most of her own vegetables, of course all organic. She prepared her potato bed by sprinkling bone meal and blood meal on the ground, then covered it with about 2 inches of dry leaves, then put the potatoes where she wanted them and covered them with 12 inches of loose straw. When the potatoes had 3-5 leaves above the straw, she covered them with another 12 inches of straw. She did this ‘layering’ until the bed was about 5 feet high(every time she put straw on, of course the rain, and watering them, packed it down) when ready to harvest, she literally peeled back a layer of straw and picked up the cleanest, most perfect potatoes I have ever seen. Beautiful red skinned potatoes that tasted wonderful! Every layer of straw removed revealed another layer of potatoes! From a 4’X 10’ patch, she got enough potatoes for a family of 6 for a year! She gave me some, and several other neighbors too. She was a good friend, RIP Leonie.
I wish more RU-vidrs would do this longer term video format where you show the stages over time. It's a lot more engaging and entertaining. Now I'm hungry for potatoes!
A lot of people don't recognize the effort that goes into these videos, notice how his audio stays really good even when his neighbor is using a leaf blower.
Thank you for the start to finish on the crop. I know it takes a lot of planning, follow through, and persistence to make a segment which covers 75+ days. Seeing a whole season in one video is extremely useful for us to see. Also amazing to look back at the days when Jacques was not yet the superstar he is today. Many thanks for your great work. Keep it up.
I’m a big fan of eating potatoes, and assumed I’d eaten potatoes in about every preparation, but that smashed potato just blew my mind- so simple but the CRUNCH is next level. Nothing like potato crunch, EPIC crunch 😂🙌🏻 yesssss.
You are the reason why I started my urban garden. No front/backyard. I have HOA land that’s connected to my townhome which is an end unit. I am using all grow bags and containers to grow corn, asparagus, tomatoes, tons of potatoes, strawberries, blueberries, onions, zucchinis, cucumbers, and edamame! Thank you for making me a gardening addict.... it’s so fun to grow something and I hope they survive and continue to grow. I also planted a bunch of mammoth sunflowers in our bioswells just to make others smile.
I have your videos autoplaying and when you mentioned "Harvest Moon and StardewValley" I instantly looked up and smiled. Harvest Moon series inspired me to love gardening and take responsibility for animals that we choose to domesticate. Thanks for all the into you share, you're great :)
Been tossing my "Oops, getting a little squishy" Farmer's Market spuds into an unused bed for several years. No rhyme or reason to my planting scheme - but super-fun to go out and dig up 'taters when I need 'em! Definitely an easy crop to grow!
@@epicgardening lmao I thought it was just me we all got it I guess also love ur vids man I just came back cause I’m bored I already watched this vid but got nothing better to do school almost done lol point is shop vac is normal in my neighborhood oh and that dude who has no grass yet insists on using a weed watcher and a lawn mower 8 times a day every day
Only halfway through the video and I want to run out into the yard and plant potatoes. Love the video and love how you didn't edit tripping over the potato fork!
I appreciate that you’re a gardener first but also a memer second. Appreciate the “lil bois” and “over 9000” moment. Bless ur soul mah man. I love that there’s finally a gardening channel that has just a lil bit of *f l a v o r*
Alright. I don't grow potatoes. They are cheap and abundant here in Atlantic Canada. I grow dozens of other things from apples to zucchini.........but NOW I want to find a 4' × 4' sunny patch and grow 16 potato plants. THANKS A LOT, KEVIN!!!!
I'm in Atlantic Canada too! Potatoes are cheap everywhere, it's all about the security. Potatoes have a lot of calories, so growing them is a great way to get a chunk of your necessary food intake.
Here in Texas , along with all food has gone up alot , I started planting everything this spring ,especially potatoes as here in Montgomery County, Texas a 5 pound bag is costing now $5.98 even Sam's & Costco has a limit on their 10 pound of russett baking potatoes of 2 bags per customer and they are costing $8.99 when last year they were $1.99 for a 10 pound bag, plus the fingerlings that me an my husband love are costing for a 1 1/2 pound of melody of yellow,red & purple bag just cost me $3.98 . Our meat has doubled ,we r planning on going in on a 1/2 cow & pig and splitting the cost with our older Sons, everything has went up .it's getting very scarry and also in the surrounding states & Florida. Thank you for such a great video ,I planted some on our land & some in pots ...actually tomorrow I'm planting more since we can garden year around here . God bless you & amazing video ... Josette Tharp Montgomery County, Texas 🙏🏻
My grandparents never pulled the vines until they were almost dead. That gave those tiny potatoes you saw time to grow large enough to eat. If the plant is still green it's still feeding the tubers.
Kevin it's so true about potatoes being easy to grow. I tried last season with some 'overrripe' potatoes leftover from my Aldi shop. Threw them in a round 60cm plastic pot filled with bagged compost and bagged, rotted manure. Mulched with sugar cane mulch. Irrigated for a spell, then turned irrigation off for ages as we had an unseasonably rainy summer. Went to empty out the pot a few weeks ago cos I wanted to move it and though it would just be filled with failed potatoes and spent growing soil. Nope! Got like 30 potatoes out of that bad boy. Can't wait to scale up next season! From Zone 9b in Australia.
You gotta sprinkle some shredded cheese and bacon bits on the smashed potatoes about 15 minutes before they're done. Then a little dollop of sour cream to top them right before eating.
I think that counting your losses at the first sign of blight is definitely the right idea. Blight spreads ridiculously fast, especially here in the wet UK and when growing in the allotment, where I could only visit weekly, the whole crop could be affected.
Stardew Valley is my favorite game of all time, I just love it. It certainly has made me more interested in growing my own food, I'm doing a little garden on my balcony this summer.
@@rachelk4805 I can totally relate to that. I'm gonna have a little allotment garden plot this summer and I've also started to dream about my own homestead. Good luck on your journey!
Try listening to Stardew music while you tend to your lil garden if you haven't! It brings me so much joy to listen to the soundtrack as I water my plants and do garden tasks.
You inspired me to grow my own plants. I just planted St. John’s wort mugwort potatoes and lemon balm. I’m a young gardener 15 years old the plants I plant I use for medicine. Keep on inspiring the new generation to grow plants
Any tips on the lemon balm? I just started using lemon balm for anxiety and insomnia. I got 4 plants and I'm sure what to do. You're way ahead of the game. 15! I'm 58.
Ayy, same here. I got into herbs initially, but hated how fast they died. Got into pepper plants, if taken care of enough my bhut jolokia will last for 5-10 years. Got a few jalapenos, bell peppers, and even banana peppers.
I've seen some of the farmers in my parent's village in china when we'd visit when we were little cut the potatoes to 1 eye per nub and coat the cut ends with wood ash and then directly planting with no waiting at all
honestly, you still could. but it's never really necessary unless you're trying to maximise your yield. The way I do it is I just plant a bunch and whenever I need potatoes, I'll dig up whatever I need, while letting the plant just sit there and do it's thing and whenever a plant starts yellowing, I'll just pull up that plant and harvest it... xD But that is mid season, if I'm going to use the potatoes very soon. If I'm going to store them long term (for use during the winter and into spring). I'll cut back the plant, let the spuds sit for a couple days and only then harvest them. then let them sit out in the open for a day before bringing them in. It's what I've been taught the potatoes need to toughen up their skin so they store better. not sure if it's true, but I do it anyways :P
Year later and still relevant. And heck yeah to us gamer nerds. We love those games because we love the process and seeing the results of our hard work and planning. Cheers from the PNW!
I love your channel, seriously it's a great one. You dont blather on, you have a personality and you even talk about your flaws in growing... I love it, thank you. Perfect for a somewhat beginner on a budget like me. Now., I got some potatoes from a friend and they're ready to be planted for sure. She told me to plant it, cover with dirt. Let it grow to 6 inches high and cover again, let it grow again and cover again. Then harvest at 6 inch tall. Have you ever heard of this?
Here in Idaho, we had a fantastic harvest last year. We planted Purple Viking potatoes in mid-April, 6 weeks before last frost. They were so beautiful. A marbled purple to lavender skin with White, Very crisp centers. So good. 👍. We ate them all the way into February. Wish I could show you some pictures. We waited until med Oct to harvest.
LOVE your Plant Daddy shirt! My kids and husband gave me a Plant Mama pair of socks for my bday. And LOVE your videos- all of 'em. Thanks for sharing your knowledge, struggles, and triumphs with all of us!
Omg 😍 For some reason, I love when I see people harvesting potatoes. It’s extremely satisfying 🥔 I’m growing some in buckets, and I can’t wait to try this method.
Love the Harvest Moon reference! My 30 y.o. daughter just purchased her dream home and started a garden. She said "Mom - I am playing harvest moon live and living the dream!" :-)
Hi from Australia and thankyou. Loved the vid. Was searching potato growing tips and found your vid. Loved it!!! Hit subscribe. Will re-watch again. And your backyard transformed through-out the vid. You have been busy. Thanks again. Super excited to start growing some spuds. Survival food, just ask the irish.
Oh my goodness. I planted some purple potatoes in double buckets stacked vertical inmy growroom under lights in Maine 5b like last winter, very early spring and I'm still waiting for the harvest lol. I was brought the potatoes from a farmers market and didn't realize they take a really long time to grow. No regrets though. They're lovely.
I so appreciate this video!!! My folks did a great job feeding a family of five with the help of a giant garden that they always planted three long rows of potatoes in. I remember how much work it was, and they stopped doing it after a rainy, rainy fall one year turned everything into soup and made harvesting impossible. Never wanted to dedicate some of my grow pots to taters because they take so danged long, and new potatoes are pretty cheap at the store. HowEVER, this method has me considering starting my own small potato patch now! Thanks so much!
Your content is refreshing. I love gardening and growing my own vegetables! My favorite part of this video is 22:28 - 22:29 when you closed your eyes to appreciate the taste. I am a recipe developer and this is me every time I create something that hits the spot. Thanks for sharing your smashed potato recipe. I will try them out and link back to you. Cheers!
This video was perfect. So well structered, explained, filmed, from start to finish. I love it. The humor was there, the quality. Thank you, seriously. Now I feel like I could actually do gardening.
It’s great to hear you say it’s like a treasure hunt, that’s how I feel about harvesting potatoes. Some say it’s a waste of real estate. It’s exciting, great video!
You are a gardener, and you don't ever grow a big harvest. A farmer such as I will not be talking about how they love digging potatoes. Gathering eggs is easy, digging potatoes is hard work, but you are are harvesting a patch about the size of my dining table.
Those taters look so good! Just planted nearly half of my gifted box of seed taters! Soooo many lol I did pretty much exactly what you did here. It was like a mash up of everything I remembered from research and RU-vid aha!
Inspirational buddy. Love it. well done. From the garden to the plate. WTF with the 84 thumbs down??? How could anyone knock you for being so knowledgeable, straight shooting and enthusiastic.
I just planted 5 buckets of potatoes and waiting to see what happens, I've already planted and harvested, yellow squash, baby cucumbers, now tomatoes and butternut squash are starting to grow, many herbs as well, so inspiring to grow and eat your own food.
@@ioky212Well, I learned what not to do.. like dont over water. And that in order to grow squash you must attract bees so they can pollinate the flowers of the plant otherwise you have to do it. So out of 5 buckets two were edible. We did eat them. I recommend small potatoes red or white for bucket growing. I have also had pretty good luck with Japanese eggplants and peppers red and yellow and green. Other then that I tried spinach but bugs keep eating the leaves and lettuce and tomatoes. Tomatoes depends on what time of year they grow pretty good too. Thanks for asking! 😊
I was so excited to see this video!!! I decided to throw some potatoes in the ground and left them just to see what would happen.. A few months later and now there are about 10 plants growing! We've been getting a lot of rain so I haven't even had to water them! Idk why I never thought to grow potatoes, they're so easy to grow! Can't wait to harvest and see how many I get!
@@sockhal4595 oh I've played it. Its such an amazing game with content still coming out. A wonderful life has that soft spot in my heart as a game i played throughout all 4 years of high-school
I’m trying potatoes 🥔 for the first time this year, except I’m growing them in buckets 🪣 as Home Grown Veg shows on his channel. Thanks for taking us from planting to harvest! Very encouraging!
I planted mine in grow bag about a month ago. they are blowing up! I'm in Houston TX so we have a really long growing season. I think I have about 2 months left. I planted and hilled them up in organic raised bed mix. They reach 2 feet tall above the soil after hilling and the potato are about a foot deep now. I'm hoping for a good harvest. I absolutely love potatoes!
I love to grow potatoes! So easy and it's like finding buried treasure when you dig them up. Love your new place, Kevin. So happy for you! Bless you ❤️
Thankyou for this video. And thankyou for allowing us to see your backyard. Mine looks similar with things I am storing mine is messy in the corner but you see all these video of gardeners with pristine yards and I cringe at mine. Like yours we are gradually sorting it out Love all your videos. Love from Australia
Really wish you would do a segment on establishing a native garden. It’s so important now from an ecological point of view. CNPS is starting a program to put identifiable safe native plants into nurseries! I have a designated part of my yard planted in natives and will continue to expand it. Every little bit helps!
I recently found some potatoes with huge eyes in the back of the pantry, so I let them sit in some shallow water with a little light, and the eyes grew big and green with lots of roots. I've been splitting the eyes off and planting them just to see what happens.
I agree that potatoes are easy. I grow Kennebec and Potomac reds. I also have sweet red onions. Cook the potatoes and onions on the grill to get your moment of food zen.
I planted my potatoes about a month ago and noticed the first sprouts out of the ground yesterday! it’s the first of the season in my new garden. Good to know that the eyes don’t need to be super developed bc I did plant some potato’s that the eyes weren’t fully sprouted as an experiment. Excited to try my home grown potato’s
I tried growing potatoes for my first time ever, several years ago. I used organic potatoes bought at a store, roughly quartered so each had a couple eyes, then planted in a loose mix with vermiculite and compost, in a food barrel cut in half, drilled drainage holes, and lined with black 20 yr landscape fabric. I started late, didn't do any mounding, and still got a decent harvest. They were so delicious! I love low effort food production. I'll be growing more this year. 😁
My mom and I forgot about some new red potatoes we bought and they shriveled and sprouted so I thought.. plant them! What do I have to lose? I’ve never owned a plant so I bought so nice plastic pots, drilled holes, mixed some compost, peat moss and perlite and planted them 05/15. It’s 05/24, we’ve gotten 2 days of partial sun and tons of rain since I planted (I’m in 8a this is so rare for us what the heck). With 9 seed potatoes I’ve seen 3-4 identical tiny sprouts and 2 that look nothing like the first 3-4 and are growing REALLY FAST (a small bud to 10+ little leaves in 48 hours). Confused and excited for the coming months!
Great video as always! You know, I never thought of comparing harvesting potatoes to an Easter egg hunt but when you think about it, it's a perfect analogy! I will definitely be trying the smashed potatoes. I have a bunch of harvested garden potatoes that I haven't used yet. Waiting on my Burbank russets that are still in containers. I did an experiment where I took a poor harvest from last year (due to late planting and heat), and planted them as seed potatoes this year. Well, even the tiny marble sized ones sprouted. So we'll see what kind of harvest I get this year.
@@mistyniles333 They went pretty well. Interestingly, I started experimenting with growing potatoes from organic store bought that had started to sprout. I have had overwhelming success with those and just harvest a bunch last week. It's a bit warm in Southern California now, I may start a new bunch soon and just heavily mulch the container.
