DIY-Grow Your Own Potatoes in Small Spaces

I hope to put in a vegetable garden this year. I have a nice healthy herb garden and only need to expand on it...but my goal for this year is to grow some potatoes, carrots, peas and beans. I would tuck lettuce and a few other small, complimentary veggies alongside them, but I want to keep it managable.

Because our front and back yards are heavily shaded with trees, it creates quite a challenge. I figured I would have to dig up the middle of my back yard as it is the only sunny spot...except, this is where the kids play so I was feeling a bit guilty. So, when I found this article about growing potatoes in plastic bags I was thrilled. It would allow me to take advantage of the narrow sunny spots available in my yard and move them if necessary.



My only concern was the plastic and how heating plastic allows chemicals to leach into soil. I might try to track down burlap bags and if needed, set the burlap bag inside a plastic bag...but maybe I am worrrying about nothing??

Check out the article and attached link as it is very interesting.

Living in the city, it can be hard to find a place in your garden for potatoes. Potatoes, grown conventionally, take up a lot of growing space and are time-intensive when it's time to dig them up. There are benefits to growing your own potatoes though. You have a much wider selection than that which you get in the grocery store. You will also have a ready supply of baby new potatoes, considered an expensive delicacy if you have to purchase them but just another potato in your own garden. There are, however, many different methods to growing potatoes in your small garden that save time, space, and work. I have tried many of these methods but the Garbage Bag method is the easiest and most productive.



To use the Garbage Bag method of growing potatoes, all you need is a sturdy garbage bag, like Glad Force Flex, some compost, shredded leaves and seed potatoes. You can purchase certified seed potatoes from a nursery or use sprouted potatoes from your pantry. Seed potatoes are your best bet as they are certified disease free and come in many varieties and colors, from yellow to pink to purple and blue. Cut larger potatoes into pieces that have two or three eyes each. Let potato pieces sit out to dry overnight.

When you are ready to plant, fill garbage bag four inches deep with compost. Roll down sides of bag until just above the level of the soil. Poke holes with the point of a pair of scissors around the exterior of the bag just below the soil line. Site the bag where it will get at least 6 hours of full sun every day. It can be by a fence, on your balcony, or in a sunny unused area of your yard. Plant three seed potato chunks into the soil and cover shallowly. Water lightly. The black garbage bag will provide extra warmth to the potatoes in the spring and fall and they will grow faster than if they were in the ground.

cont'd here

Springs warmth...

Today was finally warm, sunny and smelled sweetly of spring! I left church today feeling pretty flat and discouraged. However, ella really wanted to go outside, so together we went outside and started weeding the flower bed. It is a huge double sided bed with little flagstone steps seperating the two sides. One side is still wild and overgrown with grasses, and I am hopeful that this spring I will have more time to focus on my garden and make it something to feel proud of.


We spent the afternoon outside enjoying the warmth, working away without jackets and happy to discover the plants sending out their little fresh spring shoots! Ella's two little friends stopped over to play with her and while they played I enjoyed weeding and puttering. I always feel as though my thoughts become clearer as I pull the weeds! I can often work out things that bother me and put all those weedy thoughts into their rightful place!

So, even though half my yard still has snow...I feel hopeful that spring is here. No more looking back!

Shade Gardening

My house is tucked into a mini forest in the suburbs...my own private oasis, my little private slice of paradise...with trees all around, towering high above us, maple trees extending their big long branches dripping in full lush green leaves...to dapple the sunlight and protect us from the heat of summer. I have apple trees flanking both sides of my u-shape driveway, I have huge pine trees, cedar trees and the towering (my mind went blank here) trees...

However, with all these great trees comes the challenge to garden. I only have certain areas with full sun... one huge bed along my garage, which is loaded with plants. I have a herb garden, garlic bulbs growing, rose bushes, and loads of perennials. I am working on taming the other side, it is a beast...it really does need to be dug up and replanted but the job will be huge, so I have been holding off till we do some other work around the garage.

I have been busy working on thinning the branches in the trees that seperates my property from my neighbour. I started trimming almost immediately when I moved in just over a year ago. I find it very relaxing to trim the branches and remove dead wood. I want the kids to be able to walk or run through the trees without taking an eye out. Plus, I am hoping to improve my chances for the ferns and the woodland flowers to have more sunlight to grow. I am removing the wild buttercups that have tentacles that stretch for miles, I take great pride in ripping them out! I have also started transplanting shade loving plants to the bed I am creating along the tree line.

I discovered I have lots of beautiful moss covered rocks scattered throughout the woods. I also find them beneath the soil as I plant my new flowers. I also snagged some great deals at my local grocery store. It was closing the garden center for the season. They were giving away the tall grasses for free and you could fill one of those large trays with any amount of plants that you could squeeze in for the grand price of $2.00!!!! My kind of gardening!

I have also enjoyed planting some succulents into my rock borders. I also created some nice, low maintenance containers. I used different succulents then finished it off with moss from the woods which looks so pretty! Once the fall comes, I will plant the succulents into my rocks that border different beds and start fresh with new pots next year.