# Potato Price Increase



## Toffee (Mar 13, 2012)

I was reading the newspaper today and came across an article addressing the lack of rain/snowfall in the area. They are predicting a severe to extreme drought in southern Idaho. As most of you know, this is where most of Idaho's potatoes are grown. So, most likely either due to expectation of crop damage/failure/loss or just in taking advantage of this, potato prices will likely be going up quite a bit. Stock up as much as possible while you can.


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## OldCootHillbilly (Jul 9, 2010)

Tryin a new system a grown our own this year. Says ya can grow 100 pounds in a 4x4 area. We'll see how well it works. 

Yeah, they take a small area problem an turn it inta a world crisis so they can raise the prices. Bull hockey.


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## Davarm (Oct 22, 2011)

This year I'm going to try the "Trash Can" potatoes except I'm not going to use "Trash Cans".

Gonna line old tomato cages with trash bags and see how it works out, someone I recently met said they grew 50+ pounds of spuds from a single trash can.


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## Genevieve (Sep 21, 2009)

potatoes are already a dollar a pound or more here. Have been for a couple of years now.
just like oranges of any kind are a dollar a piece. so far ( fingers crossed) lemons and limes aren't that high yet, but I expect it to come to that * SMH*


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## Davarm (Oct 22, 2011)

A dollar a pound for POTATOES, I just looked at the "Shopper" and a local store had them on sale, 2 - 10 pound bags for $5.00.

Sweet Potatoes around here sometimes go up to $1.00 per pound but not the ordinary "Russets"!



Genevieve said:


> potatoes are already a dollar a pound or more here. Have been for a couple of years now.
> just like oranges of any kind are a dollar a piece. so far ( fingers crossed) lemons and limes aren't that high yet, but I expect it to come to that * SMH*


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## lotsoflead (Jul 25, 2010)

over the yrs, I've tried trash cans, tires, wooden barrels, trash bags, I got potatoes but not like I've seen advertised.. the best luck I had was tossing the seed potatoes on the ground and spreading old hay over them, no weeding just a little fertilizer and some water if mother nature didn't bring any.
now I just go to the farmer up the rd and buy enough for canning them


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## OldCootHillbilly (Jul 9, 2010)

masterspark said:


> OCH, Do ya mind sharing yer system. Grew up in the city and live in suburbatory...I can grow tomatos and stringbeans, thats it!


Lets see how mucha this transferred:

How to Grow 100 Pounds of Potatoes in 4 Square Feet

 
On many occasions, we've been tempted to grow our own potatoes. They're fairly low maintenance, can be grown in a pot or in the ground, last a fairly long time if stored properly, and can be very nutritious (high in potassium and vitamin C). Here's more incentive: according to this article, you can grow 100 pounds of potatoes in 4 sq. feet. Learn how after the jump...According to this article from the Seattle Times, potatoes planted inside a box with this method can grow up to 100 pounds of potatoes in just 4 square feet. All that is required:
•	Lumber
•	Seed potatoes
•	Soil
•	Careful attention to watering
The Times' guide for building a potato growing box yields up to a 100 lbs. of potatoes in a mere 4 square feet. 
Plant as early as April or as late as August 1, with an approximated 3 month till harvest turnaround time.
Here are some pointers from the article:
•	Cut apart larger seed potatoes, making sure there are at least two eyes in each piece you plant.
•	Dust the cut pieces with fir dust, which seals the open ends from bacteria.
•	Fertilize with 10-20-20 fertilizer at planting and a couple of times during the season.
•	Water so that the plants are kept at an even level of moisture.
•	Don't plant in the same area in consecutive years or use the same soil to fill your potato box, as potatoes can attract various diseases.
"To save space, Lutovsky recommends building a box and planting inside it, adding sides to the box as the plant grows and filling the new space with mulch or soil. When the plant blossoms, it starts setting potatoes in this added soil. Soon after that, you can start removing the bottom boards from your box and "robbing" the plant, reaching in carefully and pulling out new potatoes."

I ain't tried this yet. Gonna give er a whirl this year. Feller I know does sumtin sorta similar and it works so guess we'll see.


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## timmie (Jan 14, 2012)

Toffee said:


> I was reading the newspaper today and came across an article addressing the lack of rain/snowfall in the area. They are predicting a severe to extreme drought in southern Idaho. As most of you know, this is where most of Idaho's potatoes are grown. So, most likely either due to expectation of crop damage/failure/loss or just in taking advantage of this, potato prices will likely be going up quite a bit. Stock up as much as possible while you can.


i will be planting my own. we can grow taters around here. all we need is a little rain and a lot of sunshine.


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## Davarm (Oct 22, 2011)

Thats the same general idea as the trash can spuds, if I have any luck with them in the tomato cages I may try plan for a fall crop.



OldCootHillbilly said:


> Lets see how mucha this transferred:
> 
> How to Grow 100 Pounds of Potatoes in 4 Square Feet
> 
> ...


I went into town this afternoon and bought 50 pounds of the potatoes on sale(2-10 pound bags for $5.00), gonna go back in tomorrow and buy 50 more. One 5 gallon bucket will hold about 100 pounds(fresh weight) of them when they are diced, cooked and dehydrated. Its gonna take me 4 or 5 days to get them all(100 pounds) dried.


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## ContinualHarvest (Feb 19, 2012)

We'll be growing sweet potatoes this year.


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## Hooch (Jul 22, 2011)

potatoes are possibly the easest veggie to grow. I've been growing them for years know this..where you plant them you will always continue to grow taters in that stop and they expand every year. Its damb near impossible to get all the taters out of the ground and they just keep growing every year whether you want them or not..lol...

Ive tried the container big bucket grown ones and didnt have good luck with it. The walls of the bucket blocked out the light to much. I can see if the walls were built up as the plant grows would be way better and probably have great taters. 

I have a 4 by 8 foot patch and whatever comes up from around it and the compost pile and over by the blackberries bushes. I pulled some yukon golds that were bigger than my foot..would fed a few people with just one tater...no kidding..

taters like lots of compost..the biggest ones Ive pulled were by the compost pile..keep them watered but dont drown them. Plant the tater seed past the last frost as frost temps will kill the plant. Because everyones weather has been weird...you can cover them on nights that get weird. Once the plants are all above ground I lay out a nice layer of straw and keep building the straw up as the plants get bigger. The plant will keep the taters closer to the surface for easy harvesting. That is especially nice for grabbing young taters and once the main harvest is ready. 

I only grow the yukon gold, red, purples and Ive grown the french fingerling too but they are funny shaped and It just makes for more work to peal the skin off. The purples taste real creamy n rich like the golds and have such a beautiful deep purple color!


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## Davarm (Oct 22, 2011)

I got my first planter of potatoes going today but I didn't use tomato hoops.

I found the end of a roll of welded wire I used to make hoops with last year and made a big cage about 5 feet in diameter, lined it with plastic, put about a foot of compost and potting soil in and planted about 15 sprouting potato quarters in it.

I set it between two of my peach trees so they would get some shade when it turns hot and the UV index goes up to 10+. I'm thinking of doing the same between the rest of my peach and plum trees, if each planter only produces 30 - 40 pounds of spuds we'll have all we need for a year and then some.

If we have a cold spell before it turns warm for the year I'll just cover the cages with plastic and anchor it down with cinder blocks until any danger of frost or freeze passes.

I did add some rock phosphate and dolomite to the compost/potting soil mix for good measure.


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## JayJay (Nov 23, 2010)

I have 6 quarts now filled with dried potatoes.


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## Genevieve (Sep 21, 2009)

I actually managed to find a 5lb bag of white potatoes for UNDER $4 !!!
potatoes are usually $1 a pound here now


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## PrepN4Good (Dec 23, 2011)

I really love growing taters. I haven't had any luck with the straw method, but have with barrels & raised beds. 

Last year I couldn't find ANY seed taters in the local places.  But I picked up 6 lbs today, yippee!!! I started turning over one of the beds, & found 3 large pontiacs from 2 seasons ago!

Yay taters!!!


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## timmie (Jan 14, 2012)

just bought 200 pounds of red potatoes. we are going to sell some at the farmers market this year.


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## JayJay (Nov 23, 2010)

Genevieve said:


> I actually managed to find a 5lb bag of white potatoes for UNDER $4 !!!
> potatoes are usually $1 a pound here now


For some reason here in Ky, we are getting 10 lb. for 2.60/2.70.
I just finished dehydrating the second bag of 10 lb.


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## 21601mom (Jan 15, 2013)

JayJay said:


> For some reason here in Ky, we are getting 10 lb. for 2.60/2.70.
> 
> I just finished dehydrating the second bag of 10 lb.


Do you shred them before dehydrating, as if you were preparing hash browns? I tried 5 lbs this weekend as a test and they're pretty sharp.

Sent from my iPhone using Survival Forum


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## Elinor0987 (May 28, 2010)

This post reminds me of a question I meant to ask a while back. As I understand it, you would cut a potato in squares around the eyes and let it dry for a few days to a week before planting. Most of the articles I've read so far had some variation of these steps. Has anyone here ever let the potatoes sit for more than a week or a few months before planting them? Last year I tried an experiment where I was trying to see how long the dried pieces could sit and still sprout but bugs were getting in them and I had to throw them away. This year I'm going to use sheer curtain fabric around a frame as a moth screen to keep them out. I'm just wondering if anyone has tried that and if it's possible to keep the dried pieces for an extended period of time without having to constantly buy potatoes for seed.


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## JayJay (Nov 23, 2010)

21601mom said:


> Do you shred them before dehydrating, as if you were preparing hash browns? I tried 5 lbs this weekend as a test and they're pretty sharp.
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Survival Forum


Which is why I have started vacuum packing everything in mason jars.
Sharpness in no bother--and when opened, I just reseal with the vacuum sealer.
I also have a brake bleeder and it works well for sealing without electricity.
I don't dehydrate hash browns; but, if I did, I'd just buy frozen--no blanching needed.
I just slice my potatoes in thin slices with the mandolin slicer. Blanch, cool, and dry.

Sent from my 2 year old laptop.


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## Bushpig (Feb 20, 2014)

lotsoflead said:


> over the yrs, I've tried trash cans, tires, wooden barrels, trash bags, I got potatoes but not like I've seen advertised.. the best luck I had was tossing the seed potatoes on the ground and spreading old hay over them, no weeding just a little fertilizer and some water if mother nature didn't bring any.
> now I just go to the farmer up the rd and buy enough for canning them


I see you have tried tires, I was going to try them this year as I can get the tires for free and free is good. My concern would be the harvest. Are the tires hard to get apart without damaging the spuds when they are ready? Also I was expecting to go 3-4 tires high is that about right?


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