Where to buy individual seed potatoes

snowey07

Hi All,

I was given a few seed potatoes and chitted them in the cupboard instead of daylight so theyve grown white sprouts instead of green tough ones. So I reckon I should start again and chit them properly.

How ever I cant seem to find anywhere selling individual seed potatoes anywhere in Dublin. They are all sold in bags of 2kg+ and I only have space to put down one grow bag which holds 3 or so potatoes .

So does anyone know where to buy just a few seed potatoes? Dublin preferably

Thanks in advance

yellowlabrador

I tend to keep a few organic salad potatoes back from the ones I buy to eat. I use organic potatoes in the hope they have a better resistance to blight. rather than a grow bag, try growing in a plant pot or even a box or an old tire. Put a small layer of soil in the bottom, place the potato on top and keep on adding soil as the plant grows. a grow bag is quite tightly packed and shallow so there isn't much room for tubers to form and they need to be covered or they turn green.
the ****ted potatoes with the white stems will turn green if you put them into light.

snowey07

cheers for that, I thought they were for the bin.

Originally I was going to plant in the big mayonnaise containers you get in commercial delis but saw the grow bags in the garden centre. Would they really be too small as the theyre very wide and tall , much taller than a pot
this is similar to what i saw

yellowlabrador

potato growbags would be fine, it's the ordinary flat ones that wouldn't do:)

Sgt Pepper 64

snowey07 wrote: »

Hi All,

I was given a few seed potatoes and chitted them in the cupboard instead of daylight so theyve grown white sprouts instead of green tough ones. So I reckon I should start again and chit them properly.

How ever I cant seem to find anywhere selling individual seed potatoes anywhere in Dublin. They are all sold in bags of 2kg+ and I only have space to put down one grow bag which holds 3 or so potatoes .

So does anyone know where to buy just a few seed potatoes? Dublin preferably

Thanks in advance

try Aldi's.
And any bag capable of holding soil will do

snowey07

thanks a lot !

Oldtree

I chit my potatoes in the shed in a tray with some light coming through the partially opaque roof, This gives sturdy short purple eyes. Long white eyes can be very brittle and break on planting.

Sgt Pepper 64

Oldtree wrote: »

I chit my potatoes in the shed in a tray with some light coming through the partially opaque roof, This gives sturdy short purple eyes. Long white eyes can be very brittle and break on planting.

Ive actually grown successfully without chitting

Oldtree

Sgt Pepper 64 wrote: »

Ive actually grown successfully without chitting

Potatoes are bombproof to grow
I don't do a second mound up instead preferring to do the mounds at the start.

Sgt Pepper 64

Oldtree wrote: »

Potatoes are bombproof to grow
I don't do a second mound up instead preferring to do the mounds at the start.

Never done them in the ground, always in bags.
Going to try this year though, I'm betting I will get more and bigger ones

Macy0161

I have used standard growbags for spuds before - cut them in half (half the length) and stand on the two ends to give you two growbags (which is also better for tomatoes in my experience than trying 3 in the top!). As has been mentioned, the one thing you have to watch is the light as some growbags are pretty thin.

I've also used trugs that can be picked up cheap enough (€5) in the likes of heatons - a few holes drilled in, or just above the bottom - I've done 3 plants per trug the last few years (think they're on their 5th year this year). I use growbag compost to plant and earth up.

As for seed potatoes - some of the €2 shops, and heatons, do small bags of 5 or 6. Not the individual ones the OP wanted, but maybe an option as they're small enough money.

Sgt Pepper 64 wrote: »

Ive actually grown successfully without chitting

Chitting only gives them a head start - they sprout quicker in the favourable conditions than they would in the cold ground at this time of the year.

jpb14

Macy0161 wrote: »

I have used standard growbags for spuds before - cut them in half (half the length) and stand on the two ends to give you two growbags (which is also better for tomatoes in my experience than trying 3 in the top!). As has been mentioned, the one thing you have to watch is the light as some growbags are pretty thin.

I've also used trugs that can be picked up cheap enough (€5) in the likes of heatons - a few holes drilled in, or just above the bottom - I've done 3 plants per trug the last few years (think they're on their 5th year this year). I use growbag compost to plant and earth up.

As for seed potatoes - some of the €2 shops, and heatons, do small bags of 5 or 6. Not the individual ones the OP wanted, but maybe an option as they're small enough money.


Chitting only gives them a head start - they sprout quicker in the favourable conditions than they would in the cold ground at this time of the year.

Go to any garden centre or county council nursery and ask them for some of their empty compost bags out back for free.Puncture the bottom of the bags with a hand trowel or knife a few times,and you now have a grand sized potato growbag for free.You can reuse it eash time you want to grow more spuds,just remove the old compost and put in fresh stuff each time you harvest the spuds.Free easy and simple.

Macy0161

jpb14 wrote: »

Go to any garden centre or county council nursery and ask them for some of their empty compost bags out back for free.Puncture the bottom of the bags with a hand trowel or knife a few times,and you now have a grand sized potato growbag for free.You can reuse it eash time you want to grow more spuds,just remove the old compost and put in fresh stuff each time you harvest the spuds.Free easy and simple.

Yep, used empty compost bags too (and also to line hanging baskets). Best plastic option I've ever used though is the thick bags you get if you mail order bareroot hedging or tree's. No danger of light getting through those! In my experience, the advantage of the trugs is that they are easier to move, if that's an issue.

jpb14

My potatoes are chitting away nicely.Left them sitting in open cardboard egg cartons on the worktop in the window of the shed.Nice bit of sunlight and warmth and they are doing grand.Will be going into the ground and also empty compost bags in a while.

Sgt Pepper 64

In Dealz, they have 8 pack of seed spuds for €1.49
http://www.dealz.ie/home-and-garden/gardening/bulbs-and-seeds/potato-seeds-2-assortedz

http://www.dealz.ie/home-and-garden/gardening/bulbs-and-seeds/potato-seeds-2-assortedz-7342

and onions

http://www.dealz.ie/home-and-garden/gardening/bulbs-and-seeds/onion-seeds-4-assortedz

Marhay70

Tried the Dealz ones last year, they were fine. Dealz also have a potato growbag for €1.49.