How to Grow Your Mystery Potato

A Mystery Potato opens up many doors. Some lead to great stories and conversations, strengthening a relationship and even to learning experiences. Taking the Mystery Potato and growing your own crop of potatoes to enjoy with family and friends is one of the countless ways a personalized gift like this can multiply. The fun of a Mystery Potato is never knowing just what may happen after you have opened up the box.

You thought enough of someone to mail a potato with a unique and personal message on a Mystery Potato. You can imagine the smile on their face as they tried to guess who sent the anonymous surprise. Finally they called you and thanked you for the gift. Here is a way to keep the party going. How about planting the potato and having home grown spuds to share and enjoy? But first, take a selfie or two of the Mystery Potato and you as the potato is in its prime and pristine condition with the potato message prominently displayed ( this makes a good Facebook picture too).

Whether you plant a crop in the backyard garden or in a planter box, the Mystery Potato can become a small crop of delicious and homegrown nutritious potatoes. Here is a plan to “go potato”. 

Let’s say that you have a small garden space in the back yard. Potatoes have some requirements to be successful and here’s how to begin.

1. After you’ve decided to grow a crop from your Mystery Potato and its early spring in your region, let the potato get exposure to the light and warm temperatures of 60 to 70 degrees. In one to two weeks you will see it sprout; these are potato “eyes”. Cut the potato into sections with a minimum of 1-2 “eyes” on each piece. Let the pieces dry so any moisture won’t cause rot in the planted sprouts.
2. You need to prepare the soil. Cultivate the ground to get rid of weeds .Planting the sprouts in rows, at least 6-8” deep, 12-15” apart and the rows 3’ apart will guarantee that these “root-aggressive” tubers grow effectively and don’t compete for water or nutrients. The fill soil should cover the plants at least to level off. Water the plants well and at least 1-2 inches per week will do the job depending on where you live. Remember to plan your watering and don’t overdo it.
3. At the end of the growing season, the foliage will go yellow now it’s time to stop watering. 2-3 weeks after foliage goes yellow its harvest time. New potatoes are special and should be eaten right away. But eating your new potatoes is part of the whole Mystery Potato experience isn’t it? Dig them up carefully and get them inside. Its’ time for dinner.
4. If you have a large first harvest store the potatoes in a cool and dark place and watch out for moisture.

The Mystery Potato is a very personal and thoughtful kind of gift. It’s sent anonymously to add to the fun. The giver and the “getter” both have a great time imagining what the other is thinking and feeling. It can be as a gift for a holiday, a birthday, special occasion or “just because”. It has no calendar or time requirement, it can be sent for any reason, any time to anyone from anywhere. It’s a 24/7/365 kind of gift. One of the many uses of the Mystery Potato can be to grow homegrown potatoes such as we just discussed. This too can be year round if they are grown indoors. We’ll cover that in another article. Until then, think Mystery Potato and have fun.

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