How to Grow Potatoes in Containers

6 Steps for Planting Potatoes in a Grow Bag

The trick to growing potatoes — and the fun part — is filling only a portion of your container with soil, letting your potato plants grow, then adding a few more inches of soil at a time (this is sometimes called "hilling" your potatoes), covering about a third of the stem each time, until your soil reaches the top of the container. This unsual technique encourages the plants to make lots of potatoes, which form along the buried portions of stems.

1. Pick the Site

Plant potatoes when the danger of frost has passed. Not sure of frost dates in your area? Contact your local Cooperative Extension Service or Master Gardener's Program. Select the sunniest site possible. All-day sun is best, but as little as 6 to 8 hours will do. Keep in mind that you will need to water the Potato Bag regularly, especially if rainfall is insufficient.

2. Prepare the Soil

Put the soil in a wheelbarrow or tub that can hold it all at once. If you've chosen potting mix that does not have fertilizer in it, add granular fertilizer. Moisten the soil and mix thoroughly. Only about one-third of the soil will get used on planting day. The rest will be used as the plants grow. Set it aside.

3. Prepare the Seed Potatoes

Cut the seed potatoes into five 2-ounce chunks — about the size of a lime. If your seed potatoes are small, you can plant them whole.

4. Plant Your Potatoes in the Grow Bag

Fold down the top edge of the bag to form a 4" cuff. Fill the bag with the moistened soil mixture until it's about 4" deep. Place the seed potatoes on the soil surface, spaced evenly. Cover with another 3" of soil.

5. "Hill" Your Potato Plants, Covering with More Soil

Once the plants have grown to about 8″, it's time to "hill" your potatoes, adding enough soil to bury about one-third of the height of the main stems. Unfold the edge of your grow bag, add about 4" of the soil mixture, then water in thoroughly. It's OK if some of the foliage gets covered — any buried stems will begin producing more potatoes. 

6. Repeat, Adding More Soil Every 8" of Growth

Allow the plants to grow, adding another few inches soil after they've grown another 8″. Repeat the process until the soil reaches the top of the container or you run out of soil mixture.

2. Empty the Grow Bag

Empty the bag — plants, soil and all — into a wheelbarrow. Dig through the soil and pull out the potatoes. You can expect to harvest about 7 lbs. of potatoes, although you could get as much as 13 lbs. in a good year. Add the old soil to your garden or compost pile. Clean out the bag and save it for next year.

How to Store Potatoes

Curing your potatoes hardens their skin and prepares them for long-term storage. Read about this simple process, our recommendations for where to store your potato harvest, and some helpful harvest storage products in our "How to Store Potatoes" article.

Shop for Harvest Keeping Supplies