Growing Great Potatoes: Checklist

Sun: 6 to 8 hours.

Timing: plant 2 to 3 weeks before last frost, once soil is about 45°F to 50°F (7°C to 10°C).

Soil: loose, well-drained, slightly acidic, pH 5.0 to 6.0. Don't lime the potato bed; higher pH encourages common scab.

Spacing: 12 inches apart, rows 30 to 36 inches apart.

Water: 1 to 2 inches a week, evenly, especially at flowering when tubers form.

Feed: balanced fertilizer at planting. Too much nitrogen gives big tops and small tubers.

Seed: start with certified seed potatoes, not grocery store ones, which can carry disease or be treated to stop sprouting.

Hill: when plants are 6 to 8 inches tall, mound soil around them. Repeat once or twice. Sunlight turns tubers green and bitter.

Harvest: new potatoes after flowering. Main crop about 2 weeks after the tops die back. Cure before storing.

Rotate: no potatoes, tomatoes, peppers or eggplant in the same spot for 3 years.