General Information

The potato, or pomme de terre in French, is a staple food in many parts of the world due to its easy cultivation, quick growth and long shelf life. It is a herbaceous plant with an erect stem that belongs to the Solanaceae family, which includes other foods such as tomatoes and aubergines. Potatoes thrive in sunny locations with deep, rich and well-drained soils. Although they can be grown from seeds, it is more common to grow them from tubers. These can be bought from garden centres or online, or even harvested from your own previous crop.

When to Plant

Potatoes can be grown almost anywhere and at most times of the year, although the most common time to plant them is between February and May, after the frosts have passed and the soil has warmed up. In most regions of France, this means planting them sometime between the end of March and mid-April. The exact time depends on the variety of potato and your location – in colder areas, planting should be towards the end of this period whereas warmer areas can start earlier. For example, in Provence, planting takes place as early as February. If you want to grow them earlier than this in colder regions, use a greenhouse or place them under a tunnel of forced air. Similarly, areas with particularly cold winters should delay planting until May or even early June.

There are thousands of potato varieties, which are usually categorised by the length of time they take to grow. Those that take the least time – around 90 days – are known as 'first early' or 'new' potatoes. These are followed by 'second early' and then 'maincrop' varieties, which take up to five months to grow. Each variety has different qualities in terms of taste, texture and appearance and is therefore better suited to different culinary applications. Early varieties are best for salads, boiling or steaming whereas maincrop varieties are ideal for roasting, mashing or frying.

How to Plant

1. Prepare the soil a few weeks before planting by enriching it with compost or manure and breaking it up with a fork to a depth of around 20 cm. Although potatoes prefer slightly acidic soil, if yours is particularly alkaline, dig in some chalk a month or two before planting.
2. Plant the potatoes around 35-40 cm apart, with the rows around 50-70 cm apart. Place each tuber