Kids corner
Let’s grow some scrumptious spuds – Potatoes!
Brought to you by Jane Byrne our Kids’ Corner Contributor
Potatoes are such wonderful vegetables! They can be prepared and eaten in so many delicious ways. What is your favourite potato dish? Mashed? Roasted? Cut into chips? Yum!
Have you ever seen potatoes that start to sprout shoots? These shoots are called “eyes”. Sometimes the skin of potatoes turn a green colour if they are too old. Best not to eat green potatoes.
If you want some potatoes to sprout, place them into a paper bag in a dark place. If you put an onion in the bag they will sprout even faster.
Growing potatoes is very easy and they can be grown in pots or straight into the soil in a garden bed. If your potatoes aren’t green and have sprouted some eyes, cut them into pieces, being careful not to cut through the eye. It’s best to have two eyes on each piece of potato.
You can plant your potato pieces in late winter to early spring. September is a good time.
What you will need
- Potatoes that have sprouted “eyes”
- Soil
- Pots or a place in the garden
- Water
Method
- Dig a hole in a garden bed, or fill a large pot with soil.
- Cut your potato into pieces, being careful not to cut through the eye.
- Place your piece of potato in the hole about 10cm deep (15cm apart if planting more than one piece) with the eye facing up to the sky.
- Cover the potato piece with soil and give it water.
In a few weeks you should be able to see the potatoes emerging from the soil and leaves will start to develop. Depending where you live and how warm the weather conditions are, your potatoes will take around 3 – 5 months before you can harvest them. How will you eat your yummy potatoes?
Send us some pics of your potatoes to operations@opengardensvictoria.org.au
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