I forgot to add the Cornell link, here: http://plantclinic.cornell.edu/FactSheets/potatoscab/potatoscab.htm
And by the way, it says that potato scab is cosmetic only - you an still eat the potatoes. Chris Reid Stamford, CT --- On Fri, 3/6/09, Chris Reid <[email protected]> wrote: From: Chris Reid <[email protected]> Subject: growing potatoes in containers To: [email protected] Date: Friday, March 6, 2009, 3:50 PM Anna said: I am thinking of starting some trashcan potatoes with my kids. In the > instructions that I found it said to use acidic soil or to use soil and > add acidic material (leaves, peat, etc). I have several large bags of > potting soil that are left over from last year. Would it be ok to use > potting soil? Also, when should I begin this project? I live Central > Ohio, Zone 5b. Sorry if this question seems basic, but this is the first > season I am putting in a garden so everything will be a learning > experience for me and the kids Anna, Yes, you can grow potatoes in a trash can, but not the real tall 55 gallon types. the whisky half barrels are probably a better shape. I am growing potatoes in a container this year too because I found out I have high lead levels in my garden soil. The instructions for the potatoes that call for acid soil are using an approach to try to prevent potato scab, but if you read this link from Cornell, they say that the problem with this method is that at 5.2 or lower, many important minerals will not be available to the potato plant (the higher the pH up to about 7, the more the plant can use the NPK you give it in the form of fertilizer). However, you can grow the potatoes without using acid soil if you do a couple of things: 1) first, buy seed potatoes that are certified disease free (from a catalog or nursery, not using supermarket potatoes) and 2) look for a type that says it is "scab resistant". Then the soil will be less of a worry. When you say potting soil, I am guessing you mean a soilless mix based on peat moss, right? The caveat on reusing the potting mix would be that if you used any chemicals on your plants that are NOT for food crops, or if you had any serious diseases or insect infestations, they may carry over in the soil (so compost them instead). The potting mix should help you have good drainage in the pot, but you will have to add fertilizers since the mix won't have any. Mellow aged compost (not fresh manure or compost that isn't ready yet) would be perfect for potatoes. I have a friend who re-uses her potting mix every year by sifting out old root and plant parts and adding in some fresh compost. She has been doing it for 10 years and says she has not had a problem with plant disease and her flowers grow very well. It breaks all the rules about being careful about spreading disease through old compost -- but I guess the potting mix can't read the rule book. Growing potatoes and digging them up is great fun. I think your kids will love it. Chris Reid -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: <http://list.communitygarden.org/pipermail/community_garden_list.communitygarden.org/attachments/20090306/08691be4/attachment.html> _______________________________________________ The American Community Gardening Association listserve is only one of ACGA's services to community gardeners. To learn more about the ACGA and to find out how to join, please go to http://www.communitygarden.org To post an e-mail to the list: [email protected] To subscribe, unsubscribe or change your subscription: http://list.communitygarden.org/mailman/listinfo/community_garden_list.communitygarden.org
