This past weekend after pulling up the remaining Green Arrow pea vines, and I was able to harvest a little over 4 pounds of yummy peas. I don’t know why, but every year I get sucked into planting peas. Don’t get me wrong, we love fresh peas, but this year I’m going for poundage, and if I had to do it all over again I would have bypassed the peas altogether, and planted squash in their place on June 1st instead.
Even though the pea harvest was nothing to write home about, the volunteer potatoes I found hiding beneath the soil were pretty awesome. I harvested 13 pounds, 2 ounces. Not a bad for something I didn’t even plant in the first place.
So after digging up the potatoes, I was left with a large naked bed of land.
What did I plant?
More potatoes.
Why not? We like potatoes, they store well, and I need the weight.
Plus… I think an excess potatoes harvest would be much easier to barter with than a bunch of Swiss chard. Let’s just hope Mother Nature doesn’t have an early frost planned for this fall.
Finger crossed.
~ Mavis
P.S. Do you think it’s too late to plant potatoes? Am I nuts?
Don’t want to wait to harvest your own potatoes? Amazon has a 12 pack of Libby’s Canned Potatoes on sale for $9.89/$.82 each shipped when you use the subscribe and save option at check out.
Mamalala says
Where do you recommend storing potatoes? I’ve done garage in Rubbermaid container but it wasn’t a good place. In home they never last long. Love some ideas. And no, you are to crazy for trying. 🙂 I think they will be small but yummy.
Mavis says
I store them in our pantry. It’s dark and cool in there. I place them in cardboard boxes then place them on the shelves.
Bren says
No you are not nuts. I think there is enough time for those seed potatoes if they are sprouted well which I bet they are and also the smaller potatoes can stay in the ground for next years volunteer potatoes. Is there enough time for those onions too? I just put down some potatoes too and am thinking of putting down onions again. Are the onions for now or for wintering over?
Mavis says
I like to plant the onions in the fall so we have green onions all winter. 🙂
Erika says
I just put red potatoes in where my corn had been. But, we’re in Arizona and have a longer growing season than you do. Potatoes are like weeds in my garden, but that’s ok since we really like them 🙂 I love seeing all the stuff you can grow where the weather’s actually nice!
Krista says
Those volunteers are beautiful! What a cool thing to find.
Crystal says
It takes a good deal of cold weather to really kill potatoes. I bet you will get a good harvest on them. And, any not ready to harvest this fall will simply be there to volunteer for next year.
And, I love the variety of colors of your potatoes. I need a whole potato bed just so I can plant a huge variety of them!
sara says
that’s a great idea! i lost out on planting my potatoes this spring due to rain, mud, and laziness of not wanting to get out in that rain and mud. In Portland we have the same enough climate and planting potatoes now sounds fantastic. did you use your just harvested potatoes to replant, or are you starting from “actual” “seed potatoes” ?
Mavis says
I used actual seed potatoes. 🙂
Kari says
From what I can tell, russets are late season. Do you think they will have enough time? I think the reds will be just right. I’ve never grown potatoes. Are there any tricks to planting?