Grow it

One of the best ways to learn about potatoes is actually to grow them! Here you will find growing tips, video clips and instructions and advice from planting to harvesting. The video clips are also available below to be downloaded.

Note: In order to save these video clips for your own use, right click the link and save target as.

Have even more fun learning about potatoes by taking part in the Grow Your Own Potatoes project for schools! All you have to do is register your school and you’ll receive free seed potatoes and a £5 voucher to cover the cost of a container and compost. The project will let you put into practice everything you learn about growing potatoes and you can even compete to grow the heaviest weight of potatoes. Don’t forget, after you’ve weighed the potatoes, there are lots of imaginative recipes to enjoy in the ‘cook it’ section!

Look at how potatoes grow in the field, compared to in a container by downloading the Growing Potatoes PowerPoint presentation .

Here are some interesting ideas for ‘grow it’ lessons:

Experiment with different types of compost. Label each container, so that you can remember which compost is used in each, follow the instructions for growing the potatoes and see which compost has helped grow the heaviest crop.

Curriculum guide: Science. Key Stage 1: Sc1 2a, b, c, d. Sc2 1c. Key Stage 2: Sc1 a, b. Sc2 1b. 3c

Try placing the potato containers in different locations. Place one container in direct sunlight, another container in the shade, move one container into different locations each day and place one container in the dark. Observe and make notes on the health of the plant and eventual crop for each container. Which location was the best for the potato?

Curriculum guide: Science. Key Stage 1: Sc1 2a, b, c, d. Sc2 3a. Key Stage 2: Sc1 a, b. 2a, f, g, h. Sc2 1b. 3a, b, c.

Keep your own ‘Potato Cam’. You can use record the growth of your potatoes using video, photographs, drawings and by keeping a diary

Curriculum guide: Science. Key Stage 1: Sc1 1. 2a, b, c, d, g, h, I, j. Key Stage 2 Sc1 a, b, 2a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h. Sc2 1b. 3a.

Other Activities: