Potatoes are one of the most rewarding crops for beginners because they are grown not from tiny seed but from seed potatoes — small tubers you plant whole. Give them loose soil, sun and steady moisture and a single seed potato returns a generous cluster of new tubers. Here is how to grow them well in the ground or in containers.
Start with seed potatoes, not shop potatoes
Buy certified seed potatoes rather than planting supermarket tubers, which may carry disease and are often treated to suppress sprouting. Seed potatoes come as first earlies, second earlies and maincrop, which simply differ in how long they take to mature — earlies are ready fastest and are ideal for containers and small plots.
Chitting (sprouting) before planting
A few weeks before planting, stand the seed potatoes in a cool, bright, frost-free place with the end that has the most small buds (“eyes”) uppermost — an egg box works well. They develop short, sturdy green shoots, called chitting, which gives earlies a head start. Maincrops benefit less and can be planted without chitting.
When and how to plant
Plant once the worst frosts have passed and the soil has begun to warm in spring; the emerging shoots are frost-tender. Set seed potatoes about 10–15 cm (4–6 in) deep with the shoots facing up, spacing earlies roughly 30 cm apart and maincrop wider, around 40 cm, in rows. Choose an open, sunny site with loose, fertile soil that has never recently held potatoes or tomatoes.
Growing in containers and bags
Potatoes grow superbly in large tubs and potato bags — ideal where space or soil is poor. Start with a good depth of mix and one or two seed potatoes per large container, and top up with more mix as the shoots grow (see earthing up). Containers dry out fast, so watering is the make-or-break factor.
Earthing up
As the leafy shoots reach 20 cm or so, draw soil (or add mix in containers) up around the stems to bury the lower half, and repeat as they grow. Earthing up does two jobs: it protects new shoots from late frost and, crucially, keeps the developing tubers covered so they do not turn green. Green potatoes contain solanine and should not be eaten, so keep tubers covered.
Watering and feeding
Consistent moisture matters most as the tubers form (around flowering); irregular watering causes small yields and knobbly or hollow tubers. Water containers frequently in warm weather (see watering). A general feed supports growth, but avoid excess nitrogen, which pushes leaves at the expense of tubers.
Common problems
Potato blight (brown, spreading leaf patches in warm, wet weather) is the main threat — grow earlies to crop before blight season, or choose resistant varieties. Scab causes rough skin patches (cosmetic). Frost blackens shoots — cover with fleece if a late frost threatens. Keep tubers covered to prevent greening.
Harvesting
Lift first earlies when the plants flower, around 10–12 weeks after planting, feeling under the plant for tubers of usable size. Leave maincrop longer for storage potatoes; cut down the foliage and lift a couple of weeks later, then dry the tubers briefly before storing somewhere cool and dark.
Choosing a variety
Beyond the earlies/maincrop split, varieties differ in texture and use. Waxy potatoes (many first earlies and salad types like Charlotte) hold their shape when boiled and suit salads; floury maincrops (such as Maris Piper or King Edward types) are better for roasting, chips and mash. First and second earlies dodge blight and are ready quickly, so they are the best choice for containers and small gardens; maincrops need more room and time but store for winter. Pick two or three types to spread the harvest and the risk.
Where to grow, and rotation
Grow potatoes in full sun in fertile, well-dug soil. Do not plant them where potatoes or their relatives (tomatoes, peppers, aubergines) grew in the previous couple of years — rotating crops helps prevent the build-up of soil diseases such as potato-cyst eelworm and blight-carrying debris. An open, airy site also dries the foliage faster after rain, reducing blight pressure.
Container method, step by step
Half-fill a large tub or potato bag with mix, set one or two chitted seed potatoes on it, and cover with about 10 cm of mix. As shoots grow, keep adding mix to bury the lower stems until the container is full — this “earthing up” in a pot builds the depth where new tubers form. Container potatoes rely entirely on you for water and food: keep the mix evenly moist and feed once flowering begins.
Storing the harvest
Only maincrops are worth storing. Let lifted tubers dry on the surface for a few hours, discard any damaged ones, and store the sound tubers in paper or hessian sacks (never plastic, which sweats and rots them) somewhere cool, dark and frost-free. Check occasionally and remove any that soften. Earlies do not store — eat them fresh, which is their whole point.
Related guides
Part of our Vegetable Gardening guides.
- Best vegetables to grow in a greenhouse
- Seed germination & starting seeds
- Why leaves turn yellow
- Powdery & other plant diseases
Growing this under cover? See our guide to choosing and setting up a greenhouse.
