Harvesting Potatoes:

Whether you have your potatoes growing in containers, bags, a raised bed or the ground. You've been waiting patiently and trying to figure out when to harvest those potatoes!!!!

-- The potato plant starts to die back turning yellow and brown. That is when you know your tubers are ready to harvest.

-- When the plant is flowering than that means that there are a few tubers ready. These tubers are good for cooking and not for storing. If the plant is dying back they have matured and can be stored.

-- You want to dig a few inches away from the plant. This way you can reach the tubers that are the furthest in the ground. And you won't damage the plant or your tubers in the process.

-- The tubers that are closest to the plant can be left for harvesting at a later date. These are usually very tiny and not ready for harvesting.

-- Ensure to water your plants well after harvest time. This will minimize stress on the plants. Also, ensure to hill the plants again so no tubers are exposed to the sun.

-- Any tubers that have been exposed to the sun will become green. These potatoes can be thrown in the compost bin. DO NOT EAT for they can be poisonous. Shortly after harvesting ensure to bring your potatoes indoor to ensure that they don't turn green either.

-- To store the mature tubers you will want them in a loose sack and placed them some where dark & cool. You can use these for cooking or replanting as cold weather crops during the fall.

GARDEN DEFINITIONS:

1. Harvest: A time or season of such gathering
2. Tuber: A fleshy underground stem such as a potato