10 Best Potato Grow Bags 2023 - Reviewed & Buying Guide

The Better Opinion team has put together this grow bag buying guide to help you select the best product for your gardening needs. Our guide covers the main features to consider, the price you can expect to pay, and a helpful FAQ section.

If you're ready to buy some grow bags, the product list at the top of the page shows our favorite options.

Culture bag benefits

Most pots and containers made of ceramic or other hard materials do not provide enough aeration and drainage for the plants. Grow bags offer many benefits over pots.

• Let the roots of the plants breathe

• Provide better drainage

• Using cheaper and denser soil mixes

• They are lighter and more portable; easier to position for maximum sun exposure

• Requires little planning

• Easy to empty and store for the winter

• Excellent for areas with poor quality soils.
  
  

Disadvantages of the culture bag

• Not the fanciest container option

• It is not an aesthetic that every gardener appreciates

• Not as durable as ceramic or other hard materials
  
  

Size

Typical grow bags are between 1 and 30 gallons in size. Small containers are used for growing seedlings and large ones for trees and other large plants. Use only the size you need. Growing a head of lettuce in a container that is too large wastes water and soil.

The root depth of your plants will dictate the size of the growing bag you choose. Depth matters much more than container diameter for plants with complex root systems. A grow bag that is too small can stunt your plant's growth, causing it to get stuck at the root.

• Plants like lettuce have shallow roots and are able to thrive in smaller growth bags.

• Tomatoes and peppers have deeper roots that require a larger, deeper growing bag.

• Trees have very deep root systems and need large bags of growth in order to flourish.
  
  

Material

When choosing a grow bag, opt for one with thick walls. A thicker grow bag will last longer and won't fall apart if you need to move it around your garden.

• Fabric: Sturdy fabric will not crack or break in sun exposure. Many cloths grow bags are made from natural fibers, which some gardeners prefer over synthetic plastic. 

• The fabric is breathable, drains water exceptionally well, and promotes aerial pruning of plant roots. Air pruning prevents tangle and root entanglement that can occur in ceramic and other hard pots and promotes very healthy plant growth.

• Plastic: Inexpensive plastic bags are a good temporary option to start growing plants, but they don't last more than one season. The thin plastic could also easily tear under the weight of the floor. The best plastic grow bags are made of thick, breathable, UV-protected polymers. 
  
  
• They can be reused every year and will not fade or degrade with sun exposure. Compared to fabric bags, these grow bags don't drain as well and aren't always as breathable, but plastic retains heat better.

Handles

Some grow bags have sturdy handles for easy transport. Bags with handles are a good option if you are starting to grow your plants indoors. These bags are easy to move outside once the weather warms up. In areas with spot sunlight exposure, handles allow you to move to grow bags to the sunniest part of your deck or patio as the day progresses.

Colors

Colorful bags are a great way to spice up a balcony garden. Dark-colored containers retain heat better than light-colored ones.

Grow bag prices

In general, the larger the size, the more expensive the grow bag.

• 5 to 10 dollars

Grow bags in this price range are generally meant to last for a single season and need to be thrown away after harvest, but you'll also find some smaller, better quality grow bags at this price point.

• $ 20 and up

At this price, you will find sturdier grow bags that you can reuse year after year.

Tips

One of the most popular vegetables to grow in grow bags is the humble potato. In a garden bed, potato plants can gobble up a lot of precious real estate. Grow bags are a convenient alternative to spawning seed potatoes that can be purchased from a local nursery or seed dealer.

• Choose a grow bag with foldable sides; do not immediately fill it with dirt.

• Choose a sunny area (potatoes need a lot of sunlight).

• For a 12-gallon grow bag, plant three to five seed potatoes; Plant up to ten in a 30-gallon container.

• Add more soil as your potato plants grow.

• Water the plants frequently.

• Do not disturb the soil. (Resist the temptation to see what's going on under the ground as doing so may damage the roots of the plant.)

• When the plant dries up and falls, it's time to dig up the potatoes. Digging up potatoes can be a fun family activity, like an Easter egg hunt in the fall.
  
  

How to grow bagged potatoes

In order to have your mini potato garden in a bag, follow these simple steps:

Bags

The first thing to do is choose the container in which we want to have the potatoes. This can be large raffia or plastic bag from the supermarket, a garbage bag, large Ikea bags are also a good option. If, on the other hand, you want to follow a traditional line, you can also use a deep planter.

The advantage of growing potato in a bag compared to growing it in a planter is that you can handle it much better and it is much cheaper than buying a planter of the necessary dimensions for growing this vegetable. Once we have chosen the container, we must make some small holes in the base, for drainage.

We fold the edges of the bag leaving it about 40 cm high from the ground, then we fill it with a small layer of large stones and above it a layer of about 25-30 cm of the substrate.

Substratum

The substrate is important that it is already mixed with the compost when introducing it. So choose the ecological fertilizer you want and mix it well with the substrate; Depending on which fertilizer is the one you have selected, these will be the proportions to be mixed. 

For example, you can add 40% worm humus and 60% substrate (this can also be mixed with perlite or vermiculite to promote drainage).

Sowing

Once we have this layer, we only have to introduce the potatoes and bury them with the sprouts facing up, if we see that they are not completely buried we can add a little more substrate. The wider the bag, the more potatoes we can introduce, it is advisable for a large bag to use 4 to 5 potatoes about 30 cm apart.

As for the choice of potatoes, those that already have a root are usually used, because the growth process is accelerated a bit. If we do not have the potatoes with roots, they can also be used without problems.

When the plant begins to come out, it will be necessary to add substrate and therefore unroll the edges of the bag. This procedure is called hilling, it basically consists that as the plant grows a layer of soil is added, from the base and that covers the ¾ parts of the stem that it has, its leaves never have to be covered.

Numerous hilling must be carried out throughout the process since depending on the variety, its cycle takes 3 to 6 months to be harvested.

Potato harvest in bag

In the case of growing potato in a bag, it is very easy to know when to harvest and this is when we have the bag completely unrolled, the plant is large and the leaves and stems begin to yellow. 

Once this happens, the plant can be left for a couple more weeks, and we can proceed to harvest. Harvesting is done by pulling or pulling the plant so that it comes out whole with all the potatoes.

Tips for growing bagged potatoes

• Every time the hilling is done, it is recommended not to compact the substrate too much, it is better that it remains somewhat loose, since as we go hilling of the own weight, the lower layers will be compacted. This will also benefit when harvesting, it will be less expensive. Potato harvest on the permanent terrace.
  
  

• It is important to carry out the indications for drainage since the potato is very susceptible to fungi such as mildew if there is a lot of humidity. One tip is to keep the bag moist and never water it.
  
  
• It is highly recommended to do the planning of this crop to have potatoes throughout the year.
• Before consuming the potatoes you have to let them dry for a few days.
  
  
• The potato produces fruits very similar to tomatoes, but they should NOT be consumed, because they are toxic, just like the leaves and stems. You can only take what we know as a potato, which is the tuber.
  
  
• You can place a chive plant nearby because it prevents the potato from diseases and thus you will have two crops.
  
  
• Potato plants prefer sun, so it is convenient to leave them in a very bright place.
  
  
• I hope you are encouraged to grow your potatoes in the garden with this simple method. If so, do not hesitate to put the photos in the comments. Greetings Agrohuerters!