Though my local deer merrily eat their way through the garden, they don’t eat everything. They ignore lemon balm, which I use as an edging plant to discourage deer from coming in the beds (with indifferent results). They don’t eat rhubarb foliage, which is mildly toxic. So far, they haven’t eaten my potato or tomato plants, both of which also have toxic foliage. Even so, I keep mine out of reach, since they DO eat both potatoes and tomatoes!
Because of the deer, my kitchen garden is actually on my back deck, some 20 feet above the ground. This year, I planted my potatoes in a large storage tub, cutting drainage holes in the bottom and along the sides as well. It holds three bags of potting soil, enough soil volume to support plenty of potatoes.
I planted both Peruvian Purple fingerling potatoes and Ozette potatoes. Both are exceptionally flavorful, as are most of the thousands of varieties grown in South and Central America. We are just figuring this out, since until recently, Americans mainly grew (and ate) a handful of potato varieties, all bred for uniformity of appearance and the ability to store and ship well. Fortunately, unusual looking foods are now trendy, especially if they taste great.
Purple Peruvian potatoes are relative newcomers, but the Ozette potato has been around since 1791, when South American explorers built a fort near Ozette Lake at Neah Bay. They soon abandoned it, leaving a plot of potatoes behind. Ever since, generations of Makah Nation gardeners have enjoyed the Ozette potato. This lumpy, thin-skinned little potato has a rich, almost nutlike flavor. It’s awesome boiled, mashed, or roasted, and makes terrific potato salad. So does the Purple Peruvian fingerling potato, which keeps its color when cooked. Both are late varieties, so they’ll be ready to harvest this fall.
To grow your own, cut up sprouting organic (fungicide-free) potatoes and let the fresh cuts cure (I dry them out on a mesh cooling rack). Plant each sprouted chunk several inches apart in full sun in compost-enriched soil. Each plant may produce 10-15 potatoes this summer. Since potatoes form along the stem, plant them in a trench, filling it in as stems grow. In a container, put 6 inches of soil in the bottom, plant your starts, then gradually add more soil as stems lengthen until the tub is nearly full.
Harvest potatoes when the tops start to turn yellow and collapse. Early potatoes and tiny new potatoes can be harvested in mid- to late summer, while late varieties are ready in early to mid-fall. In the ground, gently lift soil around the plants with a garden fork. Use any that get speared right away so they don’t rot. To harvest a tubful, simple dump out the soil on a tarp and sort out the spuds. Recycle the soil in a hot compost pile to eliminate potential diseases.
Potatoes can also help build muscle strength in the arms and shoulders. Standing on a comfortable surface, with plenty of room at each side, hold a 5-pound potato sack in each hand. Extend your arms straight out from your sides for as long as you can. Try to reach a full minute, then relax. Each day, you’ll find that you can hold this position for just a bit longer. After a few weeks, move up to 10-pound potato sacks. Then use 50-pound potato sacks, and eventually try to get to where you can lift a 100-pound potato sack in each hand and hold your arms straight for more than a full minute. After you feel confident at that level, put a potato in each of the sacks. Onward!
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