I just steamed the last of the lovely red potatoes I grew in my garden this spring, and it made me think of my Grandma Edge and her potato supply. She raised several long rows of potatoes in her garden on the east bank of Buck Creek. She kept the potatoes and the produce she canned in the storm shelter that was connected to the house by a breezeway. Her potatoes lasted into the winter. Mine don’t.
There’s two reasons mine don’t last. Pontiac Reds are one of my favorite potatoes, and they are early spouters. Also, I don’t grow nearly as many potatoes as Grandma did.
Grandma had help. There was a tractor to plow the long stretch of garden beside the creek. And when it came time to harvest, the potatoes were uncovered before family members went down to the creek with Grandma to gather them in. This potato gathering is one of my fondest memories. It may be why I grow my own potatoes when potatoes are always available at the grocery store. But I do like growing new varieties, discovering their textures and their tastes.
This year I got an inkling of what happens when something interferes with the potato harvest. Oklahoma weather is iffy. You never know if container gardening or in-ground gardening will be best. This year, the potatoes I planted in the ground produced almost nothing. I could blame moles, but I saw no sign of digging. I got a good crop from my containers, so I’m inclined to think it had something to do with the soil. A fungus, maybe?
My containers are old stock tanks. I drilled holes in the bottoms and filled them with good soil. I got enough potatoes from the containers to keep me to fall and to share a few with a friend.
Next year, I’ll dig new in-ground potato beds and see if I have better luck. I’ll plant King Harrys and Yukon Golds along with the Pontiac Reds to see if one variety is more successful than the other. I might even give in and start testing my garden soil like my friend, Phyllis, has been urging me to do. I’ll never be as self sufficient as my grandparents were, but I can do better. As I learn more, I’ll keep you posted.
Apocalypse Farm 