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When should you plant potatoes?
Follow planting guidance for your region and check soil and weather conditions. Cold, wet ground can cause seed potatoes to decay, so do not treat the last frost date alone as a signal that the bed is ready.
- Maine guidance: University of Maine Cooperative Extension recommends planting when soil has warmed to about 50°F, noting that seed planted earlier into cold, wet soil is susceptible to decay. Read Maine Extension’s potato-growing guidance.
- Oregon guidance: Oregon State University Extension Service’s quick guide uses daytime temperatures reaching 60°F as its planting cue. Its suggested windows vary within Oregon: April through May in central and eastern Oregon, late March through May in the Willamette Valley, and mid-April through mid-June on the coast. See OSU’s potato guide.
- Minnesota guidance: University of Minnesota Extension advises planting as soon as the soil warms; its example is early April around the Twin Cities, with later planting farther north. See Minnesota’s home-garden guidance.
These are regional examples, not interchangeable rules. Check a local extension calendar and the condition of your soil before planting.
What potatoes should you plant?
Choose seed potatoes or seed tubers sold for planting, preferably disease-free stock. Potatoes sold for eating are not a substitute for seed potatoes intended for growing; OSU makes this distinction explicitly in its potato guide. University of Minnesota Extension also recommends disease-free seed tubers.
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Small seed potatoes can be planted whole. Cut larger ones into pieces, each with at least one eye—the sprouting point—with two or three eyes preferable. Use clean cutting equipment. Minnesota Extension advises leaving cut pieces at room temperature for a few days, until a protective layer forms over the cut surfaces. Its home-garden guide provides the preparation details.
How deep and far apart should you plant them?
For an in-ground home garden, a practical starting range is 3–5 inches deep, with seed pieces roughly 8–12 inches apart and rows 30–36 inches apart. Extension recommendations differ modestly: OSU gives 3–5 inches deep and 6–12 inches between pieces; Minnesota gives about 3–5 inches deep, 10–12 inches between pieces, and 30–36 inches between rows.
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Maine Extension describes a different measurement: make a 4–6-inch-deep furrow, place pieces 8–12 inches apart, and cover them with 2 inches of soil. Furrow depth is not the same as the amount of soil covering the seed. Use one method consistently rather than combining measurements from different instructions. See the Maine planting directions.
How do you plant potatoes in a garden bed?
- Prepare the row. Make a furrow or individual planting holes in soil that is workable and not saturated.
- Set the seed pieces. Place whole seed potatoes or cut pieces with their eyes, following the spacing and depth guidance above.
- Cover with soil. If using Maine Extension’s furrow method, cover seed with 2 inches of soil; otherwise follow the depth guidance for the method you chose.
- Water carefully. Keep soil damp, not waterlogged, as OSU advises.
When and how should you hill potatoes?
Begin hilling when plants are about 6 inches tall. Add soil around the row as the stems grow; OSU also allows clean straw as hilling material. Hilling covers developing tubers and helps prevent shallow ones from becoming exposed. Work carefully so cultivation does not damage roots or stolons, as Maine Extension advises.
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Can you grow potatoes in a container?
Yes. OSU recommends a container at least 18 inches wide and 3 feet deep to allow the most potatoes to grow; a shallower container can grow fewer. This is guidance about growing room, not a promise of a particular harvest.
- Partly fill the container with soil and set seed potatoes in it with sprouts or eyes facing up.
- Cover them with about an inch of soil and water as needed.
- When plants grow to about 6 inches tall, add soil or clean straw around them. Continue as they grow.
See the OSU container directions for the method.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What if you are planting late?
Late planting depends on the variety’s days to maturity and the likely conditions at harvest. In a March 23, 2022 answer, University of Maine Extension’s Abi Griffith, Horticulture Community Education Assistant, said planting roughly 90 days before first frost may work, but some late-season potatoes can take up to 120 days. Treat that as advice from Maine Extension, not a universal deadline. Read the full Maine Extension answer.
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If you want potatoes for storage, allow extra weeks after the tops die back so the skins can set. A late harvest can be complicated by cold or wet conditions. Minnesota Extension says new potatoes may be dug about seven to eight weeks after planting; that is an estimate for new potatoes, not a maturity schedule for every variety or for storage crops. See Minnesota Extension’s guidance.
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Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
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