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Potatoes are one of the easiest vegetables to grow producing heavy yields of tasty tubers when planted in garden beds and containers. Plus, there’s so many awesome potato varieties to grow – from fingerlings to russets – in a rainbow of colors. But because the crop is produced below ground, it’s hard to tell when the tubers are ready to dig. So, how DO you know when to harvest potatoes? In this article I’ll share expert tips on harvesting and storing your homegrown spuds.
When to harvest potatoes?
Harvesting potatoes is so much fun, even the kids will want to help. It’s like digging for buried treasure – treasure you can eat! There are two main types of potatoes: new potatoes and storage potatoes, and both harvesting time and techniques differ between the two types. Because I want both new potatoes for summer cooking and storage potatoes for fall and winter, I plant at least one bed of each. Figuring out when to harvest potatoes can be a challenge for new gardeners, but once you know the basics, timing the harvest is a snap!
- New potatoes – All potatoes can be new potatoes if harvested when the tubers are still small and thin-skinned, about 50 to 55 days from planting the seed potatoes for early maturing varieties. The first sign that new potatoes have formed are flowers. At that point, feel free to start harvesting from the potato plants. For a long harvest of new potatoes, stagger your seed potato plantings or plant early and late maturing varieties. That way you can enjoy tender new potatoes from late June through August.
- Storage potatoes – Storage potatoes, also called main-crop potatoes, are ready at the end of the growing season when the foliage has turned yellow and begun to dry, often after a frost. At this point they have reached maturity. In my zone 5B garden I harvest my storage potatoes in late September through October. Some gardeners cut back the leaves while others allow them to die back naturally. Either way, the tubers need to be left in the ground for about two more weeks. This encourages the skins to thicken up and results in better storage quality.
For a tutorial on when to harvest potatoes and how to do it right, check out this video by Savvy’s Jessica Walliser.
How to harvest potatoes
Pick a dry day to harvest potatoes as moisture can spread disease and rot. What’s the best way to harvest? Carefully! Whether you grow your potatoes in raised beds or directly in the ground, try to avoid piercing or slicing the potatoes when digging the tubers. If your spade does slip, eat damaged potatoes right away. I find it handy to keep a bowl nearby for damaged tubers which then head directly to the kitchen. Potato scab is a common potato disease and any affected potatoes are also taken to the kitchen as they may not store well.
New Potatoes – After the plants flower, usually sometime in mid to late July, start harvesting new potatoes by reaching into the side of the hill and taking a few tubers from each plant. I use a gloved hand, not a tool, for this task as I don’t want to damage the plants and I want to keep my hands (relatively) clean. Once I’ve harvested a few new potatoes from each plant, I push the soil back in place and mound it around the plants. They’ll continue to grow and produce more tubers.
Storage Potatoes – To harvest storage potatoes, insert a garden fork about a foot away from the plant and gently lift the root mass. Shovels may also be used. There may still be a few potatoes in the ground, so use a gloved hand to feel around for any missed tubers. Once harvested, gently brush off caked on soil and allow them to dry off for an hour or so outdoors. Do not wash the tubers.
Harvesting potatoes from containers and straw beds
If harvesting new potatoes from a container or potato grow bag, reach into the soil to feel around for the tubers, taking just a few from each plant at any one time. After harvesting new potatoes from in-ground or container plants, feed them with a fish emulsion fertilizer to encourage healthy growth and more tubers. Container grown storage potatoes can be easily harvested by dumping the container onto a tarp or in a wheelbarrow. Sift through the soil with your hands to grab all of the tubers. Learn how to grow potatoes in containers in this short video.
If harvesting potatoes from a bed mulched with straw, use a garden fork to carefully lift off the layer of straw. Most of the tubers will have formed in the straw mulch and be dirt-free. Gather them up for curing.
Prepare the soil for next year
Once the potatoes have been harvested, I sow a cover crop or add a source of organic matter, like manure or compost, to the top of the bed. The autumn and winter weather will work it down into the top few inches of soil. If you’re not sure of your soil pH, this is also an ideal time for a soil test. It’s also important to consider crop rotation and keep track of where you grew potato family crops, like tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant. Planting these crops on a 3 year rotation cycle can reduce pests and soil-borne diseases. Check out this article for suggestions of what to plant after potatoes.
How to store potatoes
Before they can be stored, potatoes need to go through a curing process. This helps the skin thicken up and extends the storage life of the tubers. To cure potatoes, lay them on newspaper, trays, or cardboard in a cool, dark spot (50 to 60 degrees F, 10 to 15 degrees C) with high humidity for one to two weeks. Pick a location that offers good air circulation or add a fan to the room.
Once cured, move the potatoes (removing any that have signs of damage) to bushel baskets, cardboard boxes (with ventilation holes poked in the sides), low baskets, potato bags, or brown paper bags. Don’t pile them too deeply, however as that can encourage rot to spread. Cover containers with cardboard or sheets of newspaper to block light. Light turns the tubers green and green potatoes contain solanine, a toxic alkaloid that makes them taste bitter.
The best storage area for potatoes
The storage area should be cooler than the curing site and be dark and well-ventilated. I use a corner of my basement, but a root cellar is best if you have one. You can also store potatoes in a garage, but it should stay above freezing. Aim for the ideal temperature of 40 to 45 degrees F (4.5 to 7 degrees C) with high humidity. Under ideal conditions, storage potatoes can retain quality for six to eight months in long-term storage. Check tubers regularly and remove any that show signs of rot or shrivelling.
The thin skin that makes new potatoes so appealing limits their storage life to weeks not months. Therefore, enjoy new potatoes soon after harvesting them.
Do you have any tips to add on when to harvest potatoes? Leave them in the comments below.
For more on growing potatoes in a garden, check out these awesome articles:
I’m having a hard time figuring out which are my seed potatoes and which are my new potatoes. Can you help.
Hey Paul… usually by the time you harvest, the original seed potato has rotted away. Sometimes they’re still attached to the root system where the stem emerges but they’re soft and mushy. So you shouldn’t worry you may eat it. Just harvest all the firm and lovely baby potatoes. Enjoy! – Niki
I’m trying something different this year. Instead of buying small, whole potatoes, I’m using true potato seed from William Dam Seeds. I ordered a variety called Clancy F1. So far I’m not overly impressed with how they have grown in the garden. In years past the growth would be sturdy and vigourous. These guys seem kind of weedy…spindly. They also don’t seem to want to ‘reach for the sky’ but prefer to be inclined to sprawl. I guess the real test will be when I harvest them. Will I get a good quantity of good sized tubers or will this just be another ‘learning lesson’? Time will tell.
Does anyone know if you can eat the larger more mature potato plants straight from harvesting, or do they always need to be cured first?
I tried my first potato planting this year and only have a single planter, so I’m sure there won’t be enough to mean there’ll be leftover to save for later.
I know you can eat the small new potatoes right away, but I’d like to leave then to grow a bit bigger if possible.
Hey Julie. You can totally eat your mature tubers as soon as you harvest. You only need to cure them if you want them to last for weeks/months. 🙂 – Niki
Perfect!! Thanks so much for clearing that up for me Niki, really appreciate that.
Now the only trouble is having the patience to actually leave them in there a bit longer! :oD
I have the benefit of living out of town. I literally store my spuds and carrots down the well. I just put the potatoes in 20L/5 gal pails tied to a rope and hang them down the well [36 inch opening] The humidity and temperature are about perfect to keep the potatoes from September through to next June. Don’t overload the pails or use pails with handles in poor condition. Losing a pail of potatoes into the water is not fun. I live in Manitoba Canada so winter freezing and low humidity are a problem.
Should I store my potatoes in the frig to cure? I do not have a cool dark place. I live in Houston, Texas!
Hey Cathy… good question! I don’t think you can cure them in a fridge, it’s just too cool. If I were you, I would start to dig plants once the baby spuds have formed and, depending how many plants you have, you can continue to do that for weeks. That would likely be better than trying to cure them in too warm conditions. Good luck! Niki
I’m a new “gardener” and I use the term lightly 🤫 . . . your article & the comments have been very helpful. Thank you
Hi! I have grown potatoes twice before and haven’t run into this problem. This year I noticed my plants beginning to wilt. While waiting a few days to harvest, we received a bunch of rain. The day after the rain, I went out to check on things and noticed I have several newly sprouted plants! What should I do? HELP!
I would go ahead and harvest. Any small potatoes growing at the base of the newly sprouted plants should be eaten first.
Thank you for such an informative article. I’ve just planted my first potatoes and am waiting now to harvest them. Can’t wait to grow new ones using the information you’ve provided. Thanks again!
I am new to growing potatoes and just harvested a couple dozen. Too many to eat at once. How long can I keep these? Can I cure these? And if so, what is the process?
I read about also leaving potatoes in the ground until October and then letting them sit on the soil to cure for a couple hours before storing. I will do that with the remaining plants.
Thanks so much!! I’m a new gardner and using bags to plant beets and potatoes. I didn’t have a clue about what I was doing but a good crop of potatoes came up in the bag. The flowers have just died leaving seed pods in their place. I learned that the seeds can be used to start new potato projects. The best part is that your description of how to check when to harvest the potatoes is both timely (for me) and useful. Many thanks again.
Hi it’s Andrew here iv mixed up my potato s in pots iv put in earlys and main crop but don’t no which is which how can you tell which ones are earlys and which are main thankyou