Watling Street, Towcester, Northants, NN12 6GX
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Mon-Sat: 9am-5:30pmCafe: 9am-5pm

Sunday: 10:30am-4:30pmCafe: 10:00am-4pm

Your own home grown potatoes!

Our first and second early seed potatoes and main crop potatoes are now in stock and can be planted out from February to May. We advise that first earlies can be planted from March, second earlies a few weeks later to be planted early to mid-April and main crop to be planted mid-to late April.

You can expect your first harvest early summer for first earlies (June/July) and July-September for second earlies. Main crop potatoes are harvested in September/October.

Earlies are small potatoes and are absolutely delicious! We love to parboil them and then saute in butter.

Planting seed potatoes directly into the ground

  1. Preparation for planting – for first and second earlies, it’s always a good idea to chit your seed potatoes first (chit in February), you can do this by placing them in an egg box or tray and placing them ideally in a cool dry place, like a windowsill out of direct sunlight. This doesn’t matter for main crops; you can plant them as they are.
  2.  Plant your potatoes – dig straight trenches 12cm deep and 30cm apart, with 60cm between the rows. Plant with the shooters facing upwards, try and plant them in a sunny and frost-free area. Once your seed potatoes are placed into the trench, cover them back up with enough compost to cover them.
  3. Caring for your potatoes – water your potatoes regularly, especially in dry spells, and keep the soil weed free.
  4.  Earthing Up – green shoots will start to appear, once they are around 20-30cm add some extra soil around the stems halfway up, to avoid light getting to the potatoes that are growing closer to the surface.
  5. Harvesting – leave for 2 to 3 weeks after flowering for the skin to harden (this helps with storage) and then harvest. Once your potatoes are ready to harvest, dig them up with a fork or a spade, being careful not to spear any potatoes.
  6. Enjoy your delicious, home grown potatoes which ever way you please!

Planting potatoes in tubs & bags

  1. Preparation for planting – place about 3/4 inches of soil in the bottom of the tub or bag
  2. Plant your potatoes – plant the potatoes shoot up and make sure they’re equally spaced out
  3. Planting – add about 2/3 inches of soil on top covering the shoots
  4. Earthing up – then the shoots begin to appear at about 2/3 inches in height, add more soil. Repeat this method until you get about half way up the bag. This helps stop the light getting to tubers and stops potatoes going green.
  5. Harvesting – leave for 2 to 3 weeks after flowering for the skin to harden (this helps with storage) and then harvest. Once your potatoes are ready to harvest, dig them up with a fork or a spade, being careful not to spear any potatoes.
  6. Enjoy your delicious, home grown potatoes which ever way you please!

Seed Potato Care

  • Water your potatoes regularly, especially in dry spells
  • Grow in weed free soil
  • Place in a sunny but sheltered spot
  • Chit your seed potatoes as soon as possible as they’ll take a few weeks (January/ February time is ideal)

The ultimate potato guide.

Don’t know your bakers from your roasters? Need non-waxy to mash? Be sure to plant the right spud for your plate!

First Earlies

Variety

Good for

Arran Pilot
Best for boiling and chipping
Casablanca
A chef's dream - chip, bake, boil, mash or roast
Colleen
Perfect for baking and chipping as well as making an excellent new potato
Duke of York
A good all rounder - new, boil, steam, mash, chip, bake or roast
Foremost
Bake them, boil them or add them to a salad!
Maris Bard
Good for boiling and chips
Orla
Good for salads and boiling
Pentland Javelin
Good for salads and make delicious jacket potatoes
Premier
Good for boiling and chips
Red Duke of York
A good all rounder - new, boil, steam, mash, chip, bake or roast
Rocket
Great for boiling and adding to salads
Sharpes Express
Excellent for baking, roasting and making chips

Second Earlies

Variety

Good for

Carlingford
Make great potato wedges and are good for boiling.
Kestrel
Best for baking
Marfona
Best for baking, boiling and mashing
Maris Peer
Go well in salads, make good potato wedges, chips and jacket potatoes and are good for boiling.
Nicola
Good for boiling and roasting and are great in salads
Purple Eyed Seedling
An all rounder
Spunta
Good all rounder and great for potato salads
Wilja
Best for chips, masking, roasting, boiling and jacket potatoes

Main Crop

Variety

Good for

Cara
Make great jacket potatoes, chips and are good for boiling.
Desiree
Good for everything: potato wedges, jacket potatoes, chips, boiling, roasting, gratins
Inca Bella
The ultimate roasting potato
International Kidney
A lovely salad variety
Majestic
Great for chipping
Catriona
Great for roasting
Charlotte
Ideal for salads, gratins, roasting and boiling.
Kerrs Pink
Good for mashing or roasting.
King Edward
Make delicious chips and jacket potatoes and great for roasting and mashing.
Maris Piper
Make great jacket potatoes, potato wedges and chips and are good for boiling, roasting, mashing
Markies
A brilliant chipper!
Mozart
Suitable for all types of cooking but particularly mashing, chipping, baking or roasting
Pentland Dell
Make great jacket potatoes and chips
Pink Fir Apple
Wonderful nutty, earthy flavour and are great boiled, steamed or in salads
Rudolph
Makes the most superb roast potatoes and baked jackets that are light and fluffy inside!
Setanta
Perfect for roasting, baking and chipping
Valor
Great for chips