I think I saw seed taters available at Logan's Trading Co in downtown Raleigh. You could swing by and see what names they are selling - I would guess that they are the types to do well in this area. I myself don't bother growing them because they are one of the cheapest things you can buy in the produce aisle,, well that and the low carb life I try to lead.

I have been buying from Wood Prairie Farms for a while now, its important to get certified seed taters to eliminate bringing diseases into your garden that can affect everything else.

My favorite varieties are Butte, Red Cloud and Reddale that grew well here in Pinehurst last year.

Chit Your Seed: The practice of pre-sprouting seed potatoes before planting encourages early growth. It is widely used abroad, but less known to Americans. Chitting is simple. Spread the seed tubers in boxes or flats one layer deep with the seed end up. Look closely at a seed potato and you will notice one end was attached to the plant. The other end has more eyes from which sprouts emerge. The end with the eye cluster is called the seed end. Place your flats in a warm area (70 degrees) where light is bright but indirect. The warm air stimulates the development of strong sprouts from the bud eye clusters, which, in the presence of light, remain stubby and are not so easily broken off.

Usually chitting is done a week or two before planting. Do not cut large seeds before pre-sprouting or they will dry out. Chit, then cut just before planting.

Chitting will get your seed up and to maturity faster. It is also believed pre-sprouting results in a heavier yield.

I grow hundreds of pounds of them each season and manage to get a late planting in too.

Termater

WHEN do you plant potatoes down here? I'm from Chicago and moved here 4 years ago. I understand that potatoes have to be planted in very cool soil (Feb/March), is this true? And has anyone heard/read anything about potato bushes preventing Japanese bettles from invading your flower/rose plants??? If that is the case, I'm planting potatoes ALL over my yard...

Ruthnc,

Potatoes are shipping about now into NC for planting, ideally planting March 1st - March 15th and harvested in June -July.

Havent heard about the deterrant to JBs though.

Termater

I plant potatoes every year, and have good luck with yukon gold (yellow), kennebec (white), and pontiac (red). These are available locally at feed and seed stores and Ace hardware. As for potatoes being not worth planting because they're so cheap in the stores, I guess you could say that about sweet corn or tomatoes too. But it's not about cost, it's about taste and appearance, and there ain't no comparison. Fresh potatoes are so moist that they kind of sizzle when you cut them. It's hard to describe, but you'll see for yourself when you cut a fresh dug potato.

RG

I've always had great luck growing potatoes here (Cary). I always get them from Logan's in downtown Raleigh. I plant them about March first and harvest in June.

I noticed today that Logan's has a new display of root crops. All sorts of taters and some really nice rhubarb roots.

I pre-order potatoes from Country Farm and Home Supply in Pittsboro.
www.countryfarmandhomesupply.com They bring in a tractor trailer load of certified potatoes from Oregon at the end of February and sell them for $2 per pound. I grew potatoes for the first time last spring and we especially liked Red Gold and Purple Majesty which I am growing again this year. The best part about growing our own is that we can harvest them small. roast them without having to peel them and not worry that I am poisoning the family with who knows what pesticides.

I'm getting mine in the ground Tomorrow evening. They shipped late this year due to weather, two weeks later. And the instructions say to keep them for two weeks in a warm place 65 to 70 degrees before planting, so the end of my two weeks is tomorrow. I've had the beds ready for a month or so. What calamity am I to expect planting so late here in central NC?
Also, I used claybreaker with gypsum as well as peat moss to amend the soil, which was really a mix of silt-loam and clay. I took a soil test last year and pH is spot on at an average 5.4. I wonder what, if anything, the gypsum will do to help?

If I were you, I would go to the state farmers market. Buy some from local growers and buy a few extra for planting. We grow quite a variety here. You may want to ask them if they grew them here or elsewhere though.

As far as the state farmers' market, I can't imagine that any local growers would still have Irish potatoes in sellable condition, not for eating. I sell potatoes at a farmers' market, but they're starting to look a little rough by late summer/early fall. By this time of year my Kennebecs are shriveled and heavily sprouted but still very usable for seed and my main crop red potatoes would be a couple months past the point where they'd even be usable for seed. With more sophisticated storage facilities one might extend those lifetimes marginally, but I still can't see a local farmer having Irish potatoes this time of year that would be fit to sell as anything but seed, and no one is going to be selling locally grown potatoes for seed.