Potatoes and Potato Towers

The Potato is one of the best crops for preventing famine. It is easy to grow, is well suited to utilizing even poor soils, and tends to thrive in weather that other crops tend not to do well in. In particular they do well in cooler climates like Maine, Idaho, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Ireland to name a few. In reality there is just about a variety that will perform just about anywhere. The potato produces large amounts of high energy food that can provide most of the nutrition one needs to survive when paired with just a few other foods. Its adoption into French agriculture helped put an end to repeating cycles of famine as the result of grain crop failures. Best of all, it doesn’t require any expensive specialized equipment to grow and harvest. For ten to twenty dollars worth of seed potatoes, a family could produce enough potatoes to meet the majority of its basic food needs for a year. Granted the diet will lack variety, it will prevent one from starving if need be. The potato has an interesting history, see the following link for more information; http://www.history-magazine.com/potato.html


Potatoes can tolerate some light frosts early on and still grow another day to produce. However, a frost further into the growing season could mean the end. The use of small hooped arches and floating row covers on cold nights can prevent damage from frosts and light freezes. Floating row covers made of breathable fabric creates a barrier in which warmth from the ground is prevented from radiating into the air. The result is that air around the crops will stay above freezing. Floating row covers are a must have for farming in cold climates. They are great for getting crops into the ground before the last freeze date and their use permits getting crops up to harvest size in short season growing areas by getting an early start. As a plus, they can also be used to prevent loss from insects at various times.

Another option for the small grower wishing to maximize production in a limited space that also lends itself to being covered to prevent freeze damage is the use of the potato tower. The following link describes the “Lasagna” method wherein the entire tower is planted all at once in layers. http://growinglots.blogspot.com/2010/06/potato-towers-living-fence-posts.html

The key to success with the potato tower is to plant near the outside ring so that the plant can poke thru the side for putting forth leaves. If planted in the center, the sprouting potato plant may never make it to sunlight and the seed potato will rot becoming a potential site for disease development. The soil can’t be too compact so as to form a concrete like soil. It must be able to breath, drain, and yet be able to retain moisture. If high carbon content materials are used as mulch inside the tower, don’t forget to add something with a high nitrogen content to compensate such as manure or a slow release fertilizer like osmocote. Be careful not to create a condition conducive for composting as you may end up cooking your seed potatoes. A tower with a two foot diameter planted with the lasagna method may be a great way to produce new potatoes if the tower is seeded heavy. Seed lighter for larger potatoes.

Another potato tower method is that of using wood frames made with 8” wide wood planks. The bottom frame is set on the ground, filled with soil and seeded. As the plants grow, an additional frame is set on top. Soil should be added before the plants get more than 5 inches tall. Soil should be spread by hand to cover plants all but up to the top inch or so of growth. When the plants gets tall enough, repeat the process. I recommend not going more than 3 or 4 layers tall using this method. Don’t forget it is the leaves which convert sunlight into energy for making potatoes. No bushy leaf mass= limited potato growth. So if you want potatoes you can only go so many layers high and still have enough time for the leaves to grow and convert sunlight to potato. Likewise, when establishing the tower do not let the plants grow too tall before adding more soil as the plants stem will become a woody stem that will not put forth more roots and potatoes when covered. The stem needs to be covered while it is still young to optimize root establishment. Those that let their plants grow too tall before making the next layer will end the season with a tower several feet tall and potatoes just on the bottom layer. If you are going vertical, you want to make sure you are using all of it. The frame tower method is the easiest of all to cover for an early season start to the growing season.

In researching the potato tower you may read of success and many failures. Letting plants grow too big before making new layers is one mistake. Planting in something that is dark and prone to heating up in the sun is another. Potatoes like their roots cool around 50-60°F, and a tower being above ground can warm up too much in the heat of the summer. Thus the use of tires for frames which are black and absorb heat may be a bad choice unless you live in Alaska. The lasagna method for making a tower wherein the leaves shoot out the sides thus providing shade for the tower itself may be better for areas where the summers are hot. For areas that do have hot summers, planting in the ground may be your best bet or you may want to plant very early when most people haven’t even thought of planting anything and keep an eye on weather so you can cover your plants if a frost is expected. If doing the later the use of covers made with infrared reflective insulation such as the foil lined bubble wrap from Home Depot or FarmTek may be a warranted. With an early start, you could be harvesting before the heat of the summer hits.

Good luck and please comment with your experiences with potato towers.