Potatoes are E-A-S-Y

Potatoes are cheap you can by a ton from the grocery store for not much at all, but they can not even touch the taste of a homegrown potato. New potatoes are the best. Even when small, between the size of marbles or a golf ball. They are delicious cooked whole and even with the skin on!

What is even better - they are a cinch to grow! Super hardy and can grow in the worst conditions.

Here are the varieties that we have this year:

Norland Dark Red

• The excellent flavor, appealing deep red skin, and white flesh set this variety apart
• The texture is moist, firm, and somewhat waxy making this Potato perfect for salads, and for boiling or steaming
• When baked, 'Dark Red Norland' is lovely -- moist and delicious
• Medium-size plants sport lavender flowers with bright yellow anthers and are very good producers
• Potatoes are ready for harvest in as few as 70 days, so two plantings are possible, a boon for home gardeners

Superior

• This potato is a 'keeper' in that it stores exceptionally well, but also yields good-sized 
• Smooth skinned, consistently oval-shaped, buff colored spuds 
• Developed by the University of Wisconsin, specifically to meet the high demands of the potato chip industry, both in terms of production and quality, Superior has earned its name, also being a 
• Good baker, steamer, masher and boiler 
• French fries aren't bad either! 
• Resistant to scab, arguably the most common disease to strike potatoes, this newer white potato is fast becoming a favorite for home gardeners 

Yukon Gold *customer fav! 

• Attractive, smooth, thin yellow skin, shallow eyes, yellow flesh and uniform yields. 
• Lends itself well to any method of potato preparation 
• Immensely popular since its 1981 release from Canada 
• If you like your fried potatoes golden brown, Yukon Gold will almost turn that color by themselves 
• Yukon Gold is also favored by top chefs for making traditional mashed potatoes however, with Yukon Gold, your mashed potatoes are golden and beautiful to both the eye and the taste. When first harvested, Yukon Gold shows unique pink eyes not seen in other yellow varieties.

How to Grow Your Seed Potatoes

1. Store your seed potatoes in the refrigerator or another cool, dry, and dark spot until about a week before planting time. One week before planting, place the potatoes in a bright, sunny window. 
2. A day or two before planting, use a sharp, clean knife to slice the larger seed Potatoes into "seeds". Each seed should be approximately 1 1/2-2 inches square, and must contain at least 1 or 2 "eyes" or buds. Smaller Potatoes may be planted whole. In the next day or so, your 'seed' will form a thick callous over the cuts, which will help to prevent it from rotting once planted. 
3. Use the shovel or a large spade to dig a trench in the garden where you plan to plant your potatoes. The trench should be between 3 to 4 inches wide and 6 to 8 inches deep. Place your seed potatoes in the trench, cut side down, eyes facing up, each piece of seed potato between 4 and 15 inches apart. How far apart you space them determines the size of the potatoes; planting close together yields fast harvests of baby potatoes, while plants spaced further apart will take longer to mature, but will produce much larger potatoes.
4. Cover the potatoes in the trench with 3 or 4 inches of soil. Once the potato sprouts emerge over this layer of soil, fill in the rest of the trench with the other 3 to 4 inches of soil. 
5. Water your potatoes regularly--the soil should be moist but not wet.

Be sure to stop in and pick some up! See you soon!

-your friends from Grove Gardens