Growing Potato

Solanum tuberosum : Solanaceae / the nightshade family

Jan F M A M J J A S O N Dec
            P P P P P  

(Best months for growing Potato in Australia - temperate regions)

  • P = Plant seed potatoes
  • Plant tuber. Best planted at soil temperatures between 10°C and 30°C. (Show °F/in)
  • Space plants: 30 - 40 cm apart
  • Harvest in 15-20 weeks. Dig carefully, avoid damaging the potatoes.
  • Compatible with (can grow beside): Peas, Beans, Brassicas, Sweetcorn, Broad Beans, Nasturtiums, Marigolds
  • Avoid growing close to: Cucumber, Pumpkin, Sunflowers, Tomatoes, Rosemary

Your comments and tips

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03 Apr 20, Genevieve (Australia - cool/mountain climate)
Potatoes are normally planted in mid to late spring when the possibility of frost is over.
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07 Feb 20, Claudia Muscat (Australia - temperate climate)
Can i plant potatoes in February? I m in NSW Wollongong area
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09 Feb 20, Liz (New Zealand - temperate climate)
Check here for suitable planting times www.gardenate.com/plant/Potato?zone=2
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06 Feb 20, Margareth Parua (New Zealand - sub-tropical climate)
Where can I buy sequoia potato seedlings?
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06 Feb 20, Anon (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
You actually buy seed potatoes. That is actually a potato to plant not a seed.
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06 Feb 20, Anon (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
Look up seed selling companies, nurseries, farm produce agencies.
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03 Feb 20, tristan kawau (Australia - temperate climate)
this so helpful
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05 Jan 20, Sarah-Jane Wicks (Australia - temperate climate)
We used seed potatoes to grow Kilgore in our school garden. As the tops have now died off we harvested them today, only to yield Ferny tiny potatoes. Less than 300g from a whole 3.6m x 1.2m garden bed. The potatoes were watered a minimum of 4-5days per week, were regularly fertilised and grown beside sweetcorn. How did this go so wrong. We yielded less than the bag of seed potatoes that we planted. The soil was beautiful and rich. We mounded around the growth for the first 6weeks. So disappointing. Any help greatly appreciated.
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06 Jan 20, Anon (Australia - temperate climate)
I would say you over fertilised them way too much, and probably too much water. That would produce a lot of leaves and little potatoes. In future prepare the ground adding manures compost etc., don't over do it though. They WILL NOT require any more fertilising. When young a lightish watering each day or two. When bigger a good watering 2-3 times a week, depending on temperatures. Put your figer in the soil to see if wet or dry and water accordingly.
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03 Nov 19, Woza (Australia - temperate climate)
Are the green potatoes safe to eat? I always get a few in my crop
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I would like to endorse the comments above regarding the use of tyres to grow Potatoes or in fact use to grow any any food. The rubber compounds in both the carcase and tread contain significant numbers of nasties. Tyres are designed to perform at high speed under quite arduous conditions, absolutely not designed as end of life food growing receptacles! They contain many potential hazards/chemicals, far too many to fully list. I will list just a couple,so that fellow readers who do not have my background can appreciate better what they are dealing with. Firstly the reinforcing Carbon Blacks utilized in the rubber compounds, contain significant amounts of Organo-Nitrogen compounds, blacks of this type are banned for use with any "Potable Water" applications! the reason being these compounds are considered as being high risk carciogens. There are special Blacks made specifically for food contact applications, rubber reinforcing blacks are definitely not suitable. Processing aids, The rubber in the tyres must be made to be strong/resilient/heat resistant; specially designed chemical compounds are encorporated into the rubber compounds to achieve this. The chemical compounds used present problems in many directions, firstly they are not ( dont need to be) pure compounds they contain debris from the chemical synthesis processes used to make them; these same compounds also decompose both during Vulcanization and during the life of the tyre. The Organo-Chemical families many of these compounds belong to include compounds that are considered hazardous and not suitable for food contact. The possibility of side chemical reactions between both the impurities and the debris from the degradation, resulting in compounds that could present significant hazards is real. Are tyres dangerous? yes! when attached to cars driven by idiots and when used as receptacles to grow food; otherwise no!

- Geoff Brooks

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This planting guide is a general reference intended for home gardeners. We recommend that you take into account your local conditions in making planting decisions. Gardenate is not a farming or commercial advisory service. For specific advice, please contact your local plant suppliers, gardening groups, or agricultural department. The information on this site is presented in good faith, but we take no responsibility as to the accuracy of the information provided.
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