When to harvest potatoes
The potato plant in your vegetable garden are doing well, and now you must be wondering: When to harvest potatoes? Well, what month to harvest potatoes really depends on the type of potato you are growing. For example, the best time for harvesting sweet potatoes will differ from the best time for harvesting red potatoes or storage potatoes. Harvesting potatoes is a lot of fun and once you know how to pick the best time to harvest, you will be left with full and tasty potatoes!
How long does it take for potatoes to grow?
The best time to plant potatoes is usually in early spring, because potatoes are cool weather vegetables. Growing potato plants are not very demanding, which means that it is an easy crop to grow. Like planting potatoes, harvesting potatoes is best done in cool weather. This will usually be late fall or early winter. Overall, when growing potatoes, there are three things you need to do:
- Plant potatoes in early spring, buy sweet potato seeds here!
- Harvest potatoes in late fall;
- Store potatoes until you will eat them.
How to know when to harvest potatoes
To determine when to harvest potatoes, it is important to know the type of potato you have grown. Here we will discuss harvesting new potatoes and storage potatoes. These can be the same type of potatoes, but depending on when you harvest them, they become one or the other. New potatoes are to be harvested early, usually about 50 to 60 days after planting the potatoes. When the plant starts to flower, your potatoes can be harvested and are ready to be used for cooking. Storage potatoes, on the other hand, are ready to be harvested at the end of the growing season. The potatoes are ready to be harvested when the tops of the plants have turned yellow. Make sure to harvest potatoes before the hard frost starts in the area where your potatoes are growing.
Storing potatoes through winter
After harvesting, the potatoes are ready to be cured. This process takes about one to two weeks and helps the potato to thicken its skin. Now the potatoes are ready to be stored inside boxes or baskets, such as this beautiful basket, placed in a dark and cool spot. This way, potatoes can be stored for up to eight months, and you will have delicious potatoes all through winter!
