How to grow potatoes:

Potatoes need to be 'chitted' or sprouted before planting, this means laying them flat on a tray in the kitchen and letting them sprout. This will give them a great head start. Simply find a sunny spot in the garden or you could use a large tub. Dig cow manure and blood and bone into the soil. You could cut each seed potato in half if they are large to start with, or plant them as is. Plant 30-40cms apart.

Potatoes like a deep rich soil, plant seedling potatoes in a trench and as they grow pile the earth up around them. This stops the potatoes from being exposed to light and going green. Green potatoes can upset the stomach. This process also helps produce more potatoes as they tend to form on roots near the surface, as you pile up the soil, new roots, new potatoes, more potatoes.... Use a good organic fertiliser, blood and bone, seaweed extract, fish or liquid comfrey. Water when you see the leaves droop.

How to harvest: In summer the potatoes will start to flower and this signals they are just about ready. At Christmas time the leaves will start to yellow and you can start to dig up your potatoes like buried treasure as they are needed. You can harvest all of them at once or from the top down a tyre at a time.  If you plan to store your potatoes, cut off the foliage and let the potatoes rest in the ground for 3-4 weeks to allow the skin to 'set', they keep longer this way. Store in a dark, cool, well ventilated spot. Leave them in the soil as they will stay fresher here than in your cupboard however if it is a wet summer dig them up and store in a cool dark spot.

Why do potatoes taste better when grown at home? Potatoes are full of natural sugars which quickly convert to starch when pulled out of the ground. Therefore they have their best taste when picked the day of eating.

Some of our favourites:

Pink Fir Apple is a salad potato, great for boiling

Pontiacs are a round red skinned potato with white flesh, good for boiling, roasting, baking and microwave.

Nicola are an oblong potato with rich yellow skin and yellow flesh. Good in salads, roasted and boiled.

Kipfler are a cigar shaped yellow skinned potato with light yellow flesh. Kipfler are good for salads, boiling and roasting.