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how high should I pile up dirt for my potato furrows?

So, I planted potatoes in late March/early April in my backyard garden. Then, for the longest time, NOTHING HAPPENED. I was ready to go back to the garden center and track down the rat bastard who sold me the defective seed potatoes and give him a piece of my mind. Just as I was formulating my plan for revenge, the leafy plants started popping up, and now OH MY GOD there are HUGE POTATO PLANTS EVERYWHERE. Some of 'em are 3 1/2 feet tall!

Neighbor told me to pile up grass clippings, compost and soil in furrows along the rows to "eat up" some of the stalk/leaf portion, and allow more root growth upward. She said it's also important to do this to make sure that the potatoes aren't exposed to sunlight. My question, though, is how far should I be piling up the soil in the furrows?

I've piled it up 6, 8, maybe 10 inches deep but they keep shooting up. How far should I take this? I've exhausted all my resources of soil, clippings and compost, on hand but I'm willing to fire up my pickup truck and go get a yard of topsoil if need be. When the potato plants are several feet tall how high should the furrows be?

soundslikepuget asked in Edibles & Herbs 11 months ago | Report

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    The more your pile up, the more potatoes you get. As long as you don't cover up all the leaves (which is what are supplying most of the energy to grow the plants), you're good.

    Btw, look for 'free dirt' in the neighborhood or on Craigslist. There's no need to buy topsoil for this purpose.

    Also, don't eat the above-ground fruit. They kinda look like tomatoes, but they're poisonous.

    Greg Barnes answered in Edibles & Herbs 11 months ago | Report
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