Why early potatoes deserve a spot in your plot

There is nothing quite like the first colander of new potatoes, lifted from your own compost and eaten within the hour. The skins slip off with a thumb, the flesh is waxy and sweet, and the flavour is something no supermarket can replicate. That first taste, usually sometime in June, is the reward for a little forward planning in late winter and early spring.

Early varieties, often called first earlies and second earlies, are the quickest to crop, ready in roughly ten to twelve weeks from planting. Because they finish before the humid, muggy conditions of high summer, they usually escape the worst of blight. They also free up space in a raised bed for a follow-on crop of lettuce, beetroot or French beans. If you are short on ground, choose a suitable container, such as a heavy potato planter or an old plastic dustbin with drainage holes drilled in the base, and grow them on the patio. Choose your variety with care. Reliable first earlies include 'Rocket', 'Arran Pilot' and 'Sharpe's Express'. For second earlies and salad types, 'Charlotte' and 'Pentland Javelin' are hard to beat.

Chitting seed potatoes the right way

Chitting simply means encouraging the seed potatoes to sprout before planting, which gives them a head start and often a heavier, earlier crop. Buy certified seed potatoes rather than using kitchen leftovers, as these are grown to be disease-free.

• Stand the tubers upright in an old egg box, or in a shallow tray, with the end that has the most small dimples, or eyes, facing upwards.
• Place them in a cool, bright, frost-free spot. An unheated bedroom, a porch or a windowsill in a spare room is ideal. Aim for a temperature of around 10°C (50°F).
• Too warm and dark, and you will get pale, spindly shoots that snap off. Too cold and nothing happens at all.
• Within four to six weeks you should see short, sturdy sprouts, roughly 1–2 cm long, green or purple-tinged and firm.
• Rub off any extra shoots so that three or four strong ones remain on each tuber. On larger tubers you can leave a few more.

Small tubers sometimes produce nothing at all, and that is fine. Plant them anyway; they will still grow away once in the soil.

Choosing and filling containers or raised beds

Potatoes are hungry, thirsty plants, so give them plenty of room and rich material to work with. In a raised bed, allow a row spacing of about 30 cm between tubers, with 45 cm between rows if you have the space.

For containers, bigger really is better. A 40-litre pot or planter will comfortably take two or three tubers, while a 60-litre container can hold four or five. Whatever you use must have generous drainage holes, as soggy compost is the quickest route to rotting seed potatoes.

Fill your container or bed with a good-quality peat-free multipurpose compost, or a mix of garden compost and soil. Do not use fresh manure, which can scorch the young shoots, and avoid compost that has previously grown tomatoes, as both share the same soil-borne diseases. A handful of slow-release potato fertiliser or a little blood, fish and bone worked into the top layer will keep them going for weeks.

Planting out once the frost risk has passed

Timing matters more than almost anything else. Potatoes are tender, and a late frost will blacken the foliage overnight. In most of southern England you can plant from mid to late March, while gardeners in northern England and Scotland should generally wait until April. If you are growing in containers, you have a useful advantage: you can move them into a greenhouse, cold frame or porch whenever a cold night is forecast.

Plant each tuber about 10–15 cm deep, rose end, meaning the end with the strongest shoots, upwards. Water them in gently and label the container with the variety and the date. If a cold snap is threatened after planting, drape horticultural fleece over the rows or pots and weight it down at the edges. It is far easier to protect them than to replace them.

Earthing up as shoots appear

Earthing up is the single most important job once growth begins. When the shoots reach roughly 15–20 cm tall, draw compost or soil up around the stems, leaving about 5 cm of leafy growth showing above the surface. Repeat this every couple of weeks until the container or ridge is nearly full.

• It buries the developing tubers, which turn green and bitter if exposed to light.
• It protects tender shoots from late frosts.
• It encourages extra roots and tubers to form along the buried stems.

In containers, simply top up with fresh compost as the plants grow. This is the easiest way to earth up, and it means you can start with a half-filled pot and finish with a full one.

Watering, feeding and the first lift

Keep the compost consistently moist but never waterlogged. The critical period is when the plants come into flower, as this is when the tubers are swelling. A dry spell then will cost you yield, so water thoroughly, ideally in the morning, and check containers daily in warm weather.

First earlies are usually ready when the flowers open, or shortly after they fade. Have a gentle rummage with your fingers rather than pulling the plant up. If the tubers are still small, leave them another week or so. Lift the whole plant when the tubers are a decent size, and eat them as soon as you can. Second earlies can be left a fortnight or so longer for larger potatoes, but the joy of growing your own is in lifting them small, scrubbing them under the tap and getting them into a pan of boiling water before the kettle has cooled.