To feed a family of four, start off by planting 40 potato plants. This will provide you with a potato based meal 2 to 3 times a week. The 40 plants will provide up to 6 months worth of meals. If you find 40 plants provides you with too many potatoes you can plant less next year. Read on to find out how i arrived at this figure.
If you find you’re running out early, you can either work on improving your yields or if you have the space, you can plant more next year.
How to grow potatoes
If you would like more information about growing your own potatoes, please read my article How to grow your own potatoes. This covers everything you need to know from planting, preparing seed, growing, harvesting and storage and more about this great vegetable.
How many potatoes to plant for a family of four
It can be hard for someone who hasn’t grown potatoes before to know how many potatoes to plant for a family of four – this article will provide you with a definite number.
To begin with you should know how many potato based meals your family usually eats each week – this will help us get to a more accurate figure for the number of potato plants you’ll need to grow.
Potatoes are a very versatile vegetable, popular uses include hash browns for breakfast and mashed potatoes for dinner.
If your family eats potato meals on a regular basis, you’ll want to plant more, and if you only eat them sometimes, you can use that space for other plants.
Below are answers to common questions to help you estimate how many plants your family would need.
Should I try to grow potatoes?
Potatoes are nutritious vegetables that store well. They can be cooked in many different ways and used in lots of dishes.
There are many different kinds, they can be harvested at different times, and they grow in lots of different regions.
Since they are one of the best crops to grow, you should definitely reserve space in your garden for potatoes.
How do I decide how much to plant?
If you will be growing food to cook and eat at home, start by thinking about the dishes that your family likes to eat, and how often.
First, think about how many times per week your family likes to have potatoes.
Next, use the guidelines given here on what to expect from typical potato yields and recipes to estimate the number of plants you would need to produce that many potatoes.
Finally, it’s very important to consider how much space you will need, and how much you have so that you get as much out of each plant as possible.
Is there a specific number of potatoes to plant?
There is no exact number of plants that works for everyone. The amount of potatoes a single plant produces can vary depending on the growing conditions where you live.
How many potatoes do people typically eat?
The average person eats around 75-200 pounds a year.
That means most people are eating potatoes at least once a week. People who like them a lot eat them 4-5 times a week.
How many potatoes does a family of four need for a single meal?
The average adult consumes around a half pound of potatoes per meal. Most recipes also use about half a pound of potatoes per serving per person.
Large potatoes like the ones you would use for a baked potato are also about half a pound. So whether boiling, baking, or roasting them, you probably want around two pounds for one meal for a family of four.
How many potatoes will I get from each plant?
It varies a lot but generally, one potato plant gives around three to five pounds. That is usually between five and ten potatoes.
Most of the time there are three to six bigger and a few smaller potatoes per plant.
How many meals can I get out of each plant?
If your plants grow well, you should get enough potatoes for at least one dish for four from each plant. If growing conditions are really good you might get enough for two meals.
What is a good number of plants to start with if it’s my first time growing potatoes for a family of four?
While there is no exact number that is perfect for everyone, and if you’re not sure how much you will be using in advance, a good number to start with is 40 plants.
This will give you a chance to work on improving your yields. You can explore early and late harvests and find what works best for your conditions and tastes.
How many meals should I expect to get from my harvest?
Since you will get between one and two meals worth of potatoes per plant, you can get a rough idea of how many meals you can have by multiplying the number of plants by 1.5.
So if you plant 40 plants, you can expect to get potatoes for around 60 meals.
How often could my family eat potatoes with this harvest?
If you planted 40 plants and harvested them all at once, then ate them over the next 6 months, you could have 2-3 potato dishes a week.
Here is a table that estimates how many potato dishes a family of four could eat each week:
| Number of plants | Potato supply |
| 30 | 1-2 dishes per week |
| 40 | 2-3 dishes per week |
| 60 | 3-4 dishes per week |
What yield of potatoes can i expect?
There are many different factors that affect how many potatoes each plant will produce.
If it’s your first time growing them, expect to get a little less. You can look forward to improving your yields each time as you get to know how potatoes grow in your specific soil.
If you’re getting less than you expect, make sure that your potatoes are properly spaced before trying to grow more plants.
How many potato plants can I fit in the space I have?
It’s very important to make sure that you have enough space for each plant. Potato plants should be 12 inches apart, in rows separated by 2 to 3 feet.
Crowding too many plants in a small space means they will not grow as well and your harvest will be smaller. Keep this in mind when deciding how many you will plant.
What if I plant too many potatoes?
Potatoes store well. Keep them cool, dry and in the dark during storage. You should never refrigerate potatoes, as this causes their flesh to go black when they are fried.
Potatoes will last up to 6 months when stored properly, so realising you have more than you can use after harvest isn’t really a problem.
If you have the space, planting some extra potatoes will help you have more home-grown food year-round.
Get busy with your garden this year and plant some potatoes!
What is a good variety of potato to plant in the UK?
I would recommend you to have a look at the varieties: Rooster, Kerrs Pink or Maris Piper. These are very popular varieties here in the UK and great eating potatoes.
