It is only one more month before the real gardening season begins. On this last day of January, it is time to take stock of what we plan to plant this spring and where we are going to plant it. There are always more

things to plant then there is space, so planning is essential. Yes, it is the middle of winter, but here in the Houston area, spring is right around the corner and some things do need to be planted right on schedule or they will not do well here.

One of those things are regular potatoes. I say regular only to distinguish them from sweet potatoes which we typically plant in mid to late May. The variety we typically plant is a red skinned one called LaSoda. There are other types such as Russet, yellow, fingerlings, petite, and even purple ones. The LaSoda potatoes seem to do well here, better than most of the others.

Theoretically you can plant any potato, as long as it has developing eyes. The eye is the little spot, usually with a dimple where a sprout develops. Some supermarket potatoes may be sprayed with a growth inhibitor to keep them from sprouting, so it is usually best to buy “seed” potatoes. This year I found the LaSoda at both Knox Feed and Seed and at Warrens. At Knox you could pick your own potatoes out of a big basket for $1.65 a pound. At Warrens they were bagged in a three-pound bag for $2.99. So, in both cases nothing that will break the bank. At Warrens though, you won’t know what is in the bag. I bought some from both and they were pretty much the same quality. The eyes on the Knox specimens were a bit more developed but probably not worth the extra 65 cents a pound.

Preparations and planting: Cut the potatoes into chunks about the size of a golf ball or a little larger. Make sure each piece has at least one and preferably two eyes. Roll the potatoes in dusting sulfur. This helps to eliminate rotting once planted.

Loosen the soil by digging or cultivating to nine or more inches. Add a general fertilizer to the whole bed. We use MicroLife 6-2-4. About every 12 to 16 inches dig a hole about nine inches deep. Mix in some rock phosphate in the bottom of the hole.

Place the potatoes in the bottom of the hole with the eyes pointing up. Cover with about two inches of soil or compost. Even though that leaves them well below soil level, it will enable the sprouts to begin their trip to the surface. Water enough to make sure it gets down to the potato, but don’t drown the potato. Too much water and they may start to rot.

Once the sprouts are several inches above the soil, start filling in the hole with the excess soil you dug out of it. (hoe up the hill). Repeat doing that as long as practical. The potato will continue to grow out but will form potato tubers along the stem. Water them if needed until about the beginning of May. At that point, the plants will start to yellow and look sick. It is the end of its life. Let it go until it looks pretty much dead and then

dig quickly before the tubers start to rot. Depending on how loose your soil is, the tubers may spread out a foot or more from the plant stem. Does this sound like a lot of work? Well, maybe, but it will pay off in some delicious organic potatoes, lots of good eating and, lots of good outdoor exercise.

A big shout out to all the OFE garden volunteers. They and the students have or will have planted 30 pounds of seed potatoes at the school gardens. With luck, we should harvest 200 to 300 pounds in May.

Don’t forget to put your orders in for MicroLife products. If you missed the January meeting Judy and Anne recorded the presentation by Greg Cooper with MicroLife. Watch it here to get all the scoop on MicroLife and then place your order.