Happy Earth Day everyone! I know I just posted a blog entry yesterday but I promised to let you see what I’m up to in my farmer trainee program. What better way is there to celebrate Earth Day than to post about working with the Earth!
This is a picture of the field from the back end. The whole field is about five acres. The area in the forefront is one of the large beds of potatoes. The upper left corner closest to the treeline is another large bed of potatoes. We planted fingerling potatoes (they are shaped just like long fingers) and red potatoes.
We also placed hay around the strawberries to give them a nice bed to lay on as they grow and to provide a barrier between the berries and the soil.
You can see the mulch on the strawberry bed directly in front of where my farm partner is covering up potatoes.
So, here’s something you can try for Earth Day. If you have some potatoes that have sprouted and you are getting ready to throw them away….don’t! Those sprouts are called “eyes”. Cut the potato in half and be sure that there’s at least one eye in each half.
Now, you can either plant the potato in a large pot or you can plant them in the ground. If you plant them in the ground just dig a shallow trench and place the potato with the eye pointing up in the trench. Cover and let it grow. As the sprouts get taller, continue to hill the dirt up around the plant. Hilling the dirt provides the environment for the potatoes to grow in. If you plant your potatoes now, you’ll have your own fresh crop of potatoes in July!
If you are planting the potatoes in a pot, there’s a little more to it. But not much, so don’t be scared. Here’s a great link to some step by step directions.
Well, that’s all for now garden gals and guys. Do something great for Mother Earth today and until next time….happy gardening!