How to Plant Potatoes

Planting potatoes is straightforward once you understand seed pieces, depth, and spacing. Follow this sequence and you will avoid the most common early mistakes: planting cold wet soil, burying pieces too deep without warming weather, or planting grocery tubers that never wake up.

1. Start with good seed

Use certified seed potatoes. Firm, healthy tubers outperform wilted or heavily sprouted ones. Avoid supermarket potatoes when you can — see Can You Grow Potatoes From Store-Bought Potatoes?.

2. Cut (if needed) and heal

• Whole mini tubers (~1–1¼ inches) can go in uncut
• Larger tubers: cut into ~1½-inch pieces with 1–3 eyes
• Dry pieces a few days (often 3–5) at room temperature until cut faces callus

Details → How to Cut Seed Potatoes

3. Prepare the bed

Choose full sun and loose, well-drained soil. Dig a furrow or shallow trench so hilling later is easier. Work in compost if soil is poor, but do not plant in soggy ground.

Soil guide → Best Soil for Potatoes

4. Plant

Extension guidance for home gardens commonly recommends:

Cover with soil or compost. Water gently to settle soil without flooding.

Timing → When to Plant Potatoes
Depth → How Deep to Plant Potatoes
Spacing → How Far Apart to Plant Potatoes

5. After planting

Keep the bed evenly moist — not swampy. When shoots emerge and stems reach roughly a foot tall, begin hilling and use plant height to judge when to hill again.

If you are planting in a pot, bag, or straw system, the same seed-piece rules apply; only the “soil covering” method changes. See Growing Methods.

Quick checklist

1. Certified seed, firm tubers
2. Cut and dry pieces
3. Wait for workable, ~45°F soil
4. Plant 3–5″ deep, cut side down
5. Space 8–12″ in the row
6. Water evenly; plan to hill

Next: How Much Water Do Potatoes Need?. Later in the season, check when potatoes are ready before following the harvesting method.