See our how to grow tab for full sowing instructions
Sow in early April
Seed Potatoes - Uses
Steaming, roasting, salads, gratins
Seed Potatoes - Pests & Disease
Great resistance to potato blight
Resistant to bruising & splitting
Seed Potatoes - Yields at Harvest
Yields from these will depend on your soil & conditions this Summer
A very good yield would be a 15:1 ratio
If you plant 1Kg of seed potatoes you would get about 15Kg of potatoes at harvest
But you can expect a yield of around 10Kg to every 1Kg planted on average
Orla are not a floury potato and are commonly described as waxy, wet or soapy potatoes
Soapy DOES NOT mean they taste like soap, it's just a term we use in Ireland for non floury potatoes
A lot of highly disease resistant spuds are non floury and this is a trade-off you have to accept when deciding what potatoes to sow
Index
Overview
Choosing the Right Location
How to Chit Potatoes
Ground Preparation
How to Sow Seed Potatoes
How to Earth Up Your Potatoes
How to Harvest
Pests & Diseases
Overview
Potatoes are a still Ireland’s most popular vegetable. Since its introduction to Ireland by Sir Walter Raleigh it has become an integral part of our everyday cuisine with almost 150million Euros spent on potatoes every year.
There are 1000’s of different potato varieties, the most popular being: Rooster, Queen, Kerr’s Pink, Maris Piper and Golden Wonder. Each different spud has distinct colours, shapes and flavour and all are worth growing even if you only have the smallest of spaces.
Spuds are divided into 3 growing groups
Earlies: These can be sown in mid March to mid April and are small crops that mature fast allowing you to sow a second crop later in July
Second Earlies: These are slower to mature and take 16-17 weeks to mature. They can be harvested between July and September. Varieties include: Queens and Orla
Maincrop: The largest and longest in the ground, the mains are sown in mid April onwards and can be harvested late into autumn. Varieties include: Kerr’s pink, Golden Wonder and Records
The steps involved in growing potatoes are easy to follow, just read these simple steps and get out and get planting!
Choosing the Right Location for Growing Potatoes
Potatoes like deep, fertile soil with a low pH of approx 5.5. If you are unsure of your soil pH, we provide soil test kits and tips and advice on how to improve your soil
Locate your vegetable garden in full sun and a sheltered location that is not exposed to strong winds and in not in a low lying frost pocket
Chit Your Seed Potatoes (Optional)
How to Sow Your Seed Potatoes
Earthing Up Your Potatoes
Just cover up the growing stems as high as you can with soil from between drills
Earth up the potatoes when they are around 10-15cm high
Do this 3 times over the growing season
Harvesting Your Potatoes
Earlies can be harvested first, harvest earlies soon after flowering
Main crops require time in the soil to fill out after flowering
Water well one week before lifting
Use a garden fork to lift roots from soil
Be sure to dig down 2 foot into soil and remove all tubers, this is very important to prevent blight build up in the soil
Potatoes can be stored in the ground as late as October
Pests & Diseases for Potatoes
Pests: slugs, wireworms
Wireworms: A larvae which burrows into roots leaving small irregular holes throughout
Control: Common in poorly kept or newly developed vegetable patch. Avoid long grass and untidy plots
Chemical control an option if pest problem is severe
Disease: Blight, this is most common in midsummer in damp warm conditions, stay tuned to weather alerts such as Met Eireann
Notice: brown spots on leaves, foliage begins to rot, foliage turns black, tubers begin to rot
Control: choose disease resistant seed potatoes or spray crops prior to infection with copper sulphate. A common spray available on the market is the burgundy mixture
I ordered those in February, planted them a bit late, due to the lockdown, but they turned out fantastic! High yield and very good flavour. Will definitely recommend as second earlies.
Natasha Connery 01/10/2020, 15:33
Very good delivery service. The products came in excellent condition.
Denise 17/02/2020, 17:17
My third year in a row to buy my seed potatoes from the Gardenshop. I ordered them late on Sunday night and they were delivered by courier on Tuesday morning. First class service and a top quality product as well
John O'Neill07/02/2018, 19:40
I got a good price and my order was dispatched quickly, the product was in excellent condition when it arrived, the only issue is that these seed potatoes are from Scotland! They taste soapy and could be called wet [STAFF NOTE: Soapy is a term we use in Ireland for non floury potatoes. Sometimes also referred to as waxy. They do not taste like soap], so I'll be back to Sharps Express next year. Orla are a great grower but lack the taste to match the yield.
PS30/07/2016, 19:02
This potato is an excellent grower, its foliage is strong and plentiful, the yield is the best I have had. The only downside is that they have a wet consistency. Which is a bit of a shame when you have half an acre of the dam things! [STAFF NOTE: Orla are a non floury potato and it's really a trade off between disease resistance and flouryness unfortunately]
Paul Mahony08/07/2016, 13:37
I got four bags of Orla seed potatoes and the delivery was prompt and eficient from time of ordering. The seed potatoes are of the highest quality and there appears to be plenty in the combined four bags that I bought. The price was by far the cheapest around and I managed to buy my seed potatoes, to include courier delivery, for less than I would have paid to any other supplier for the seeds alone, excluding delivery. I would highly recommend the Garden Shop for supplies and I will order more products from the Garden Shop when I am starting my allotment planting next month.
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