growing own veggies in bags and pots (Merged)

CazW_2

HA HA HA!!

I am so daft! I have just noticed/realised we have an old fasioned black bin just sitting next to the shed doing nothing.... how many tubers do you think i could put in there?? I was thinking about 5??

Would i still go with about 4 inches of soil then plant with 4 inches on top? then keep 'earthing up' ?

Also.. will put some holes in the bottom but have 'loads' of spare shingle so would it be a good idea to put some in the bottom?

god i have alot of questions..lol

Caz

angie_loves_veg

CazW wrote:

HA HA HA!!

I am so daft! I have just noticed/realised we have an old fasioned black bin just sitting next to the shed doing nothing.... how many tubers do you think i could put in there?? I was thinking about 5??

Would i still go with about 4 inches of soil then plant with 4 inches on top? then keep 'earthing up' ?

Also.. will put some holes in the bottom but have 'loads' of spare shingle so would it be a good idea to put some in the bottom?

god i have alot of questions..lol

Caz

amazing how we never see the obvious isn't it!

but to answer:

5 tubers sounds about right to me.
the earthing up thing will do wonders in this sized bin (or any other size for that matter) too....
drainage is always essential - and shingle sounds fine. top up with 4" or so of soil and you are ready to plant!:T

sheng719

Hiya all! I have about 5 empty sacks which were used to bag up the horse manure that I have purchased. Could that be used to grow my potatoes? My OH thinks it would be a waste of time as it would make it difficult for us to take the potatoes out or tipping the potatoes out when they are ready but I have looked high and low for cheap large tubs and the biggest that I have found was at wilkinsons for £6.99 and I think it would be such a waste not to use them. Is this a good idea or not? Suggestions and comments are all welcome...:o

angie_loves_veg

You can use large plactic compost bags very successsfully. People turn them inside out to improve appearance, drainage holes and you're away.

I can't see why you couldn't use woven sacks - no drainage holes required! If it is made from natural materials it would probably only last the one season. So long as it hold the compost I imagine there are all sorts of things that would be possible to use........

angelavdavis

sheng719 wrote:

Hiya all! I have about 5 empty sacks which were used to bag up the horse manure that I have purchased. Could that be used to grow my potatoes? My OH thinks it would be a waste of time as it would make it difficult for us to take the potatoes out or tipping the potatoes out when they are ready but I have looked high and low for cheap large tubs and the biggest that I have found was at wilkinsons for £6.99 and I think it would be such a waste not to use them. Is this a good idea or not? Suggestions and comments are all welcome...:o

As long as you use compost to fill the bags - soil is more likely to dry out and compact preventing you from removing the potatoes.

[Deleted User]

angie_loves_veg wrote:

PS. are the tubs you mention going to be big enough? I would suggest that you need something the size of a bucket (1 tuber) or bigger (2/3 tubers). When planting in pots, I put 2 tubers in a pot 40cm deep, 40cm diameter. I don't live near a morrisons, so don't know how they display the flowers!

What quantity of potatoes would you get from the above?

Also, if starting at this time of year do the pots need to be indoors?

madhouseof4

Would a large hessian sack be a good grow bag? (we're all full of questions now!) I have 2 rabbits and order their hay online which comes compacted in a large hessian sack. It seems like a good idea as it is natural, no need to add any more drainage. I am not thinking of potatoes as I already have 2 large tubs, like the ones you put toys in (one is 55cm wide x 34cm tall, the other is 55cm wide x 41cm tall).

I also have a stack of 3 tyres out the front of the house, that I have aquired on my travels. I may use those for carrots or parsnip.

angie_loves_veg

Deleted_User wrote:

What quantity of potatoes would you get from the above?

Also, if starting at this time of year do the pots need to be indoors?

(finally proving how sad I really am...... )

Last year I kept a record of some of my plantings etc...... glad they might be of use to someone.

Catriona (a second early) 2 tubers in 1 pot = 3lb 5oz
International Kidney (a jersey royal, second early) 2 tubers in 1 pot = 2lb 7oz
Golden wonder (good for frying, late maincrop) 2 tubers in 1 pot = 3lb
Aaron Victory (red skinned, v tasty, late maincrop) 2 tubers = 4lb

All of the above were planted on April 7th, last year.
You would expect the maincrops to have a greater yield because they are in the ground for longer.

Re planting now. If you are intentiomally forcing an early crop, then yes, you would keep them indoors (greenhouse) for a bit. I intend to plant my potatoes this year towards the end of march. Many people plant on Good Friday. There is some superstition about planting before then.

Iona_Penny

Before I got my allotment I grew potatoes in an old black plastic dustbin. Put two potatoes in near the bottom and as the green shoots grew I covered them up with soil (used grow-bag contents) and did this until the bin was full. on harvesting there were lots of potatoes all theway down the bin.

I found gro-bags to be quite shallow and so used storage crates for my tomatoes and runner beans; they are esier to move around and deeper soil depth for staking.

Shelle

In my lunch hour today went a little mad! First lot of seeds bought, so now trying to work out when best to sow in containers!

Do I go off dates on packets, or dates on various websites? I had planned on sowing around early to mid march.

Seeds I have bought:

Beetroot Bolthardy - plant in one tub (largeish) filled with compost. How many seeds?

Parsnip Hollow Crown - plant in one tub, presumably deep for roots? Filled with compost. How many seeds in tub?

Carrots Autumn King 2 - Plant in one tub, again presumably deep for roots? Filled with compost. How many seeds in tub? Packet says not to use manure. That is different to compost????

Radish Sparkler 3 and Spring Onion white lisbon - intended to get one large tub and plant these two together. Is that ok? Can I plant anymore with them? Compost ok? How many seeds in tub?

Potato Kestrel. Will plant 3 or so in a large bag or tub. What do I do with the m until I plant? When can I plant - mid march or earlier?

I may well use more than one tub for each so would just multiply accordingly.

Sorry for all the questions;)