The Wonder in Harvesting Potatoes

*Po-tay-toes!* Boil ’em, mash ’em, stick ’em in a stew… Lovely big golden chips with a nice piece of fried fish. Even you couldn’t say no to that.

Samwise Gamgee, The Fellowship of the Ring

I told myself at the beginning of the year (knowing we were planning on leaving our home) that I wouldn’t plant anything in the garden this year. I’m sure that thought made my husband laugh – he knows me too well.

In my defense, I only planted potatoes this year because we had almost a full 50 lb bag of red potatoes that were forgotten in the garage. They looked like a mass of octopi limbs attached to shriveled nubs.

So really, I was only trying to reduce the waste of all those potatoes!

When life gives you potatoes, grow more potatoes?

Planting

I did a post on different potato growing methods last year (feel free to check out that post!). I kept it super simple this year, since we didn’t know how long we would still be at this house.

All the boys and I did to plant the spuds was:

• Rake back the mulch layer.
• Place the whole, tentacled spud on the ground.
• Cover with over with mulch.
• Forget about them for a few weeks.
• Cover with several inches of old hay.

As the greenery comes up, I like to mound up around them to make sure any of the new potato babies stay out of sunlight. If exposed to too much sun, they begin to produce chlorophyll and turn green. Spuds begin producing solanine when exposed to sunlight. This is a toxin that *usually* results in an unhappy tummy, but can also lead to headaches or worse, depending on each person and amount consumed.

Harvesting

There are several different schools of thought on when to harvest potatoes. I usually wait until the greenery dies off, closer to autumn. Since we’re still at our current property, but are going to be relocating soon, I decided to harvest them this week!

I recruited the help of my 5 year old and almost 3 year old. (They were quite enthusiastic about helping!)

Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought we would have had as much fun as we did. Only a few minutes into our harvest, we were no longer *just* digging up potatoes. We were explorers, digging for treasure. Each beautiful, round ‘tater was prized more than a chunk of gold.

We laughed, made up stories, and worked together towards the same goal.

“Teamwork makes the dreamwork!”

Stirling Shuman, age 5

All too soon, supper was ready and my husband called us in from the garden. I expected the excitement for the harvest to die down overnight, but was tickled when Declan (our almost 3 year old) came in at the first sign of daylight asking, “Mom-mee, can we go dug up more potaters?”

Aside from working together, we found an ant nest and discovered how they care for their young, and a beautiful salamander (who was carefully relocated to a safe location). These exciting finds brought the opportunity for hands on learning about so much more than just potatoes.

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Overall, we harvested about 50lbs. Considering the almost 50lbs we planted would have been tossed otherwise, I’m pretty happy with it!

Naturally, whenever we celebrate the potato harvest, a shepherd’s pie is mandatory!

Why Does it Matter?

I’ll be completely honest. I’ve been struggling to regulate my own emotions with my children. It’s easier, faster, and less stressful to just do things by myself. Not having little hands and feet everywhere makes for a more efficient workday.

That’s the literal mindset I’ve allowed myself to get into. And it’s sad. It’s lonely. And that’s not the type of mother I want to be. I’m so thankful we forgot that bag of potatoes this year. If we hadn’t, I would have missed this opportunity to remind myself what the *real* reason for homesteading and being a stay at home mom.

It’s not home cooked meals.

It’s not saving on daycare.

It’s not reducing waste.

Or Instagram pictures.

Or being able to do projects I enjoy.

My children are the real reason.

Giving them a childhood where their parents take time to guide them, teach them, and enjoy the moment. That is truly what’s important.