Garden How To & FAQs

Organic certification and Seed certification are two entirely different certification programs.   Wood Prairie Family Farm has participated in both programs for over four decades.

In 2002, USDA took over regulation of the organic industry and made Organic certification mandatory for all farms which use the word “Organic” and have sales above $5000 per year.  Since 1976, every crop we have produced since has been organically-grown.  MOFGA (Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Assn) Certification Services (‘MCS’ – fully accredited by the USDA National Organic Program) has been our Organic certifier since 1982 and certifies that our production practices and crops are genuinely Organic.  Like every Organic farmer, we are required to annually update our ‘Organic Farm Plan’ which records in great detail our farming practices and production inputs.  MCS monitors our strict adherence to our Organic Farm Plan, and annually sends out an independent third-party inspector to verify that the activities documented in the Organic Farm Plan are truthful and represent reality.  Under federal law, because we are Certified Organic, we are granted the right to use the word “Organic” in marketing our crops. 

Seed Potato certification is not Organic certification.  The State of Maine’s Seed Potato certification program was established over a century ago.  Our farm annually enters every seed lot of Seed Potatoes we grow for Seed certification by the State of Maine.  Seed Potato certification assures that seed is true-to-type and meets quality and disease tolerances according to regulations established by state law and in alignment with national Seed certification protocols.  Entered seed lots receive field inspection by trained State Inspectors who check for disease content which may impact a future seed crop.  In addition, post-harvest lab testing is performed on representative tuber samples from entered seed lots to verify either complete freedom from Potato virus disease or disease levels within specified low levels.  Maine Seed Potatoes meeting all the Seed Potato certification requirements are eligible for State of Maine ‘Blue Seed Tags,’ which are what we affix to our sacks of Organic Maine Certified Seed Potatoes.

Seed Potato certification is not Organic certification.  The State of Maine’s Seed Potato certification program was established over a century ago.  Our farm annually enters every seed lot of Seed Potatoes we grow for Seed certification by the State of Maine.  Seed Potato certification assures that seed is true-to-type and meets quality and disease tolerances according to regulations established by state law and in alignment with national Seed certification protocols.  Entered seed lots receive field inspection by trained State Inspectors who check for disease content which may impact a future seed crop.  In addition, post-harvest lab testing is performed on representative tuber samples from entered seed lots to verify either complete freedom from Potato virus disease or disease levels within specified low levels.  Maine Seed Potatoes meeting all the Seed Potato certification requirements are eligible for State of Maine ‘Blue Seed Tags,’ which are what we affix to our sacks of Organic Maine Certified Seed Potatoes. 

If the potatoes are all ready to harvest, it sounds like the damage has been done for this year. One consolation is that the potatoes can be trimmed and eaten even if they have grub or wire worm damage. The first defense against insects and disease is rotation. We have found that wire worms (small holes) only happen in ground that has been in grass the year before. We have had grub holes in potatoes, but not a significant enough number to make us do anything about it. So put potatoes in ground that was cultivated the year before, but in our opinion, not had potatoes for 3 years. Trim the little holes out, no-one will be the wiser.

The brown spot at the center is called Hollow Heart. It is caused by the potato growing faster on the outside than on the inside and is only a cosmetic . The potato is fine to eat, just pare out the spot if you need to. It happens more in the Reddale than in other varieties, though it can occur in a lot of different varieties. The way to prevent it is to harvest the potato before it gets so huge, but it IS fun to have huge potatoes!

Potatoes are a cool weather crop. Try to plant at or just before your last frost date, so that when they come up you will be just past the frost. If you do greensprout, a week or two is adequate, even just warming the seed is a real benefit, and be careful to lower the temp to 50 or so after the have broken dormancy, a higher temp will dehydrate them. one of our growers claims that a light misting is beneficial, though we would be careful not to have water dripping off them, as it could spread fungus.

We harvest the new crop of potatoes in late September and we start shipping orders then. However, since the potatoes are just coming out of the ground, they need a dormancy period of 4-8 weeks before they will sprout. The best conditions to sprout potatoes are about 70 degrees and in the dark. So our seed will not reliably sprout before October or November. I have read that keeping the seed potatoes in a plastic bag with a little moisture will speed up the sprouting.

I would think you would have the first little potatoes under the plants now (Mid June). When the plants flower, the tubers are starting to form, (not that the flowers have anything to do with the tubers), and within 2-3 weeks they are big as pingpong balls, ready to eat with your new peas, or with cream sauce if you like. When the plants start to “go back” (i.e. turn from dark green to light green and then yellow green), that is a sign that they are putting all their energy into the tubers and at that point the potatoes will probably be pretty good sized under the ground. The exception is the late varieties esp Butte, which sized all at once at the end of the season. So let the late potato varieties have the full season to size (100-120 days).

If you plant your garden in rows, you need 1 pound of seed for every 10 foot of row. There are a few exceptions: The fingerlings will plant 25 feet of row for each 1 pound of seed. Butte will plant 15 feet of row for each pound of seed.

If you plant in beds, you can plant more densely. A 4 by 8 foot bed will take 2 8 foot rows, or use about 1 and 1/2 pound of seed potatoes.

Yes! Here is a comment from a customer who has grown potatoes in cages successfully: "The Reddales we grew last year were wonderful. We used towers (cages with a mixture of chopped leaves and horse manure) made from chicken wire to be more space efficient. This year we will explore varieties from the three moisture categories. We also are avid organic gardeners.Good stuff. RS Chicago"

If you are going to store seed potatoes, harvest when fully mature, at least 14 days after the vines have withered dead and the potato skins have thickened. Store simply in bins. wood crates or burlap bags. Ideal storage is soil-like: dark, moist, 38-40 degrees F.

A cellar or dedicated refrigerator is best. Dampness is no trouble, but freezing is, so watch out for that