Potato
Solanum tuberosum
Potato is a cool-season crop established vegetatively from seed tubers rather than ordinary seed. It needs standard bed space, generous soil depth, and room for stems and developing tubers to be managed through the season.
Plant family Solanaceae · Also called Irish potato
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Plant seed pieces into warming soil.
Potatoes are planted from seed tubers, so the profile does not use seed depth or germination days. The outdoor window runs from roughly four weeks before the last spring frost to the frost date itself.
The crop is hardy, but planting still depends on workable soil. A frost-date offset is a planning reference; saturated, frozen, or very cold soil can make the nominal calendar window unsuitable.
Use this range as a planning baseline and adjust for local conditions.
Use this range as a planning baseline and adjust for local conditions.
Use this range as a planning baseline and adjust for local conditions.
Use this range as a planning baseline and adjust for local conditions.
Plan space for hilling and tubers.
Allow 30–40 cm between plants and about 75 cm between rows. Row space provides access for earthing up soil around the stems and later lifting the crop.
Container production needs substantially more volume than the plant’s early top growth suggests. Use at least 40 cm of depth and around 40 litres of growing medium. No cage or trellis is required.
Core measurements
Crop-level planning range.
Crop-level planning range.
Crop-level planning range.
Crop-level planning range.
Allow for the mature form of the selected variety.
Install support early when it is required or useful.
Keep moisture steady during bulking.
Potatoes are listed for full sun with a six-hour direct-sun minimum. The growing tubers remain covered by soil even though the leaves and stems need light.
The crop has a moderate water classification and a weekly range of 25–35 mm. Even moisture is especially relevant during active tuber development, while poor drainage can leave a deep container wet for too long.
Sunlight
Full sun (6+ direct-sun hours/day)
Soil pH
A suitable acidity range for general growth.
Weekly water
Moderate water need.
Aim for even moisture and water deeply when the upper 2-3 cm of soil begins to dry.
Use plant maturity as a harvest cue.
Because potatoes begin from tubers, there is no germination-day estimate in the dataset. The 70–120 day harvest range begins at planting.
The crop is a tender perennial usually grown as an annual. Variety and intended harvest stage account for part of the wide maturity range, so the earliest and latest figures should not be treated as interchangeable.
Read with the full crop profile.
Read with the full crop profile.
Read with the full crop profile.
Read with the full crop profile.
Hill soil or mulch around stems as plants grow to protect developing tubers from light.
Potato growing questions
Are potatoes grown from ordinary seed?
This profile uses seed tubers as the planting material. Germination days and seed-sowing depth therefore do not apply.
How large should a potato container be?
Use at least 40 cm of soil depth and approximately 40 litres of growing medium as a minimum starting point.
When can potatoes be planted outdoors?
The dataset places planting from about four weeks before the last spring frost up to the frost date, provided the soil is workable.
When does the potato harvest range begin?
The 70–120 day range is counted from planting the seed tubers.
Profile values are crop-level planning ranges compiled from sources S1,S2,S4. Local climate and variety can change actual results.
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