{"id":3900,"date":"2026-09-28T16:05:15","date_gmt":"2026-09-28T16:05:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tomat-pomidor.com\/en\/?p=3900"},"modified":"2026-09-29T15:24:05","modified_gmt":"2026-09-29T15:24:05","slug":"when-to-harvest-new-potatoes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tomat-pomidor.com\/en\/when-to-harvest-new-potatoes\/","title":{"rendered":"When to Harvest &#8220;New&#8221; Potatoes &#038; Should You Tie Up Falling Vines?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n<div class=\"kk-star-ratings kksr-auto kksr-align-left kksr-valign-top\"\n    data-payload='{&quot;align&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;id&quot;:&quot;3900&quot;,&quot;slug&quot;:&quot;default&quot;,&quot;valign&quot;:&quot;top&quot;,&quot;ignore&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;reference&quot;:&quot;auto&quot;,&quot;class&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;count&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;legendonly&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;readonly&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;score&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;starsonly&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;best&quot;:&quot;5&quot;,&quot;gap&quot;:&quot;5&quot;,&quot;greet&quot;:&quot;Rate this&quot;,&quot;legend&quot;:&quot;0\\\/5 - (0 votes)&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;24&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;When to Harvest \\u0026quot;New\\u0026quot; Potatoes \\u0026amp; Should You Tie Up Falling Vines?&quot;,&quot;width&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;_legend&quot;:&quot;{score}\\\/{best} - ({count} {votes})&quot;,&quot;font_factor&quot;:&quot;1.25&quot;}'>\n            \n<div class=\"kksr-stars\">\n    \n<div class=\"kksr-stars-inactive\">\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\" data-star=\"1\" style=\"padding-right: 5px\">\n            \n\n<div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 24px; height: 24px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\" data-star=\"2\" style=\"padding-right: 5px\">\n            \n\n<div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 24px; height: 24px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\" data-star=\"3\" style=\"padding-right: 5px\">\n            \n\n<div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 24px; height: 24px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\" data-star=\"4\" style=\"padding-right: 5px\">\n            \n\n<div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 24px; height: 24px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\" data-star=\"5\" style=\"padding-right: 5px\">\n            \n\n<div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 24px; height: 24px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n    \n<div class=\"kksr-stars-active\" style=\"width: 0px;\">\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\" style=\"padding-right: 5px\">\n            \n\n<div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 24px; height: 24px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\" style=\"padding-right: 5px\">\n            \n\n<div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 24px; height: 24px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\" style=\"padding-right: 5px\">\n            \n\n<div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 24px; height: 24px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\" style=\"padding-right: 5px\">\n            \n\n<div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 24px; height: 24px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\" style=\"padding-right: 5px\">\n            \n\n<div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 24px; height: 24px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n                \n\n<div class=\"kksr-legend\" style=\"font-size: 19.2px;\">\n            <span class=\"kksr-muted\">Rate this<\/span>\n    <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n<p><script type=\"application\/ld+json\">\n{\n  \"@context\": \"https:\/\/schema.org\",\n  \"@type\": \"QAPage\",\n  \"mainEntity\": {\n    \"@type\": \"Question\",\n    \"name\": \"When should I harvest early potatoes, and do I need to tie up falling potato vines?\",\n    \"text\": \"I planted early potatoes from indoor transplants as an experiment. They are currently blooming, but the tall vines are starting to flop over and lay on the ground. Should I tie the vines up to a stake? Also, when exactly do we start digging them up for early 'new' potatoes?\",\n    \"answerCount\": 1,\n    \"datePublished\": \"2021-06-16T19:06:00+03:00\",\n    \"author\": {\n      \"@type\": \"Person\",\n      \"name\": \"Russi\",\n      \"url\": \"https:\/\/www.tomat-pomidor.com\/profile\/56555-russi\/\"\n    },\n    \"acceptedAnswer\": {\n      \"@type\": \"Answer\",\n      \"text\": \"There is a simple formula for determining when to dig early 'new' potatoes: wait exactly 2 weeks from the start of mass flowering. If you are desperate for a taste, you can 'rob' the plant (carefully dig out a few tubers without uprooting the whole bush) about 1 week after they flower. As for the vines flopping over\u2014do not tie them up! Letting the vines naturally fall or even intentionally rolling\/flattening them is an old technique used to force the plant to stop vegetative growth and redirect its energy into sizing up the tubers.\",\n      \"datePublished\": \"2021-06-16T19:30:00+03:00\",\n      \"url\": \"https:\/\/www.tomat-pomidor.com\/en\/when-to-harvest-new-potatoes\/#answer\",\n      \"author\": {\n        \"@type\": \"Person\",\n        \"name\": \"Borisovna\",\n        \"url\": \"https:\/\/www.tomat-pomidor.com\/profile\/56832-%D0%B1%D0%BE%D1%80%D0%B8%D1%81%D0%BE%D0%B2%D0%BD%D0%B0\/\"\n      },\n      \"upvoteCount\": 112\n    }\n  }\n}\n<\/script><\/p>\n<div class=\"tldr-box\" style=\"background: #f4f9f4; padding: 20px; border-left: 5px solid #4CAF50; margin-bottom: 20px; border-radius: 4px;\">\n<h3>\ud83d\udccc Quick Summary (TL;DR): Early Potatoes &amp; Flopping Vines<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>\ud83e\udd54 <strong>The Harvest Formula:<\/strong> To harvest tender, thin-skinned &#8220;new&#8221; potatoes, wait exactly <strong>2 weeks after the plants begin mass flowering<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li>\ud83e\udd2b <strong>&#8220;Bandicooting&#8221; (Robbing):<\/strong> You don&#8217;t have to kill the whole plant to get early potatoes. You can gently dig into the side of the hill with your fingers and steal a few large tubers 1 week after flowering, letting the rest continue to grow.<\/li>\n<li>\ud83d\udcc9 <strong>Do NOT Tie Up Vines:<\/strong> When potato vines get tall and flop over onto the dirt, leave them alone! Tying them up wastes your time. In fact, intentionally rolling or flattening potato vines is an old-school hack to force the plant to stop growing leaves and push all its energy into sizing up the tubers.<\/li>\n<li>\ud83d\udc1b <strong>The Early Bed Danger:<\/strong> If you start potatoes early in warm, heavily composted beds, be warned: soil pests (like Mole Crickets or grubs) will flock to the warmth and can devour the roots.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tp-bridge\" style=\"background: #fffaf0; border-left: 4px solid #ff9800; padding: 15px 20px; margin: 20px 0 30px 0; border-radius: 4px; font-size: 1em; line-height: 1.6; box-shadow: 0 1px 3px rgba(0,0,0,0.05);\">\n<p>\ud83c\udf0d <strong>You&#8217;re reading a translated thread<\/strong> from our Russian-language forum. These growers garden in climates very similar to <strong>Minnesota, Wisconsin, Maine, and Ontario<\/strong> (short summers, late frosts, and cold soil).<\/p>\n<p>Have a different potato harvesting hack in your region? <a style=\"color: #ff9800; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"#wpdcom\">Drop a comment below<\/a>! We&#8217;d love to compare notes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h3 id=\"falling-potato-vines\">My potato vines are falling over\u2014should I tie them up?<\/h3>\n<div class=\"forum-post\">\n<div class=\"author-header\">\n<div class=\"forum-avatar\">R<\/div>\n<div class=\"author-meta\">\n<div class=\"author-name\">Russi (Anna) <span class=\"author-stats\">\u2b50 Pro Grower (1,275 posts)<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"author-geo\">\ud83d\udccd Ramensky District | \ud83d\udcc5 June 16, 2021<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"post-content\">\n<blockquote><p><strong>Aleksan9ra (Ludmila) wrote:<\/strong><br \/>\nBetween the dampness and the heat, I just feel sorry for myself out in the garden.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Oh, that perfectly describes my mood this year regarding the entire garden! \ud83d\ude02<\/p>\n<p>Luda, tell me, when do we actually start digging up early potatoes that were <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tomat-pomidor.com\/en\/starting-early-potatoes-indoors\/\">started indoors as transplants<\/a>? I planted 6 bushes from transplants as an experiment for the first time. They are blooming right now, but the vines are getting so tall that they are flopping over and laying on the ground. Should I be tying them up to stakes?<\/p>\n<p>Here are photos showing the difference between my early transplants and the regular directly-sown potatoes&#8230; it&#8217;s like night and day! \ud83e\udd54\ud83c\udf3f<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.tomat-pomidor.com\/uploads\/monthly_2021_06\/IMG_20210616_183942.jpg.ccde86fbdfab259b571fa120b72d7b8e.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" style=\"max-width: 600px; width: 100%; height: auto;\" src=\"https:\/\/www.tomat-pomidor.com\/uploads\/monthly_2021_06\/IMG_20210616_183942.jpg.ccde86fbdfab259b571fa120b72d7b8e.jpg\" alt=\"Massive potato plants started from transplants\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.tomat-pomidor.com\/uploads\/monthly_2021_06\/IMG_20210616_184204.jpg.5216d0711b0c20e9ada6710f14890487.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" style=\"max-width: 600px; width: 100%; height: auto;\" src=\"https:\/\/www.tomat-pomidor.com\/uploads\/monthly_2021_06\/IMG_20210616_184204.jpg.5216d0711b0c20e9ada6710f14890487.jpg\" alt=\"Smaller potato plants sown directly into the soil\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"forum-post\">\n<div class=\"author-header\">\n<div class=\"forum-avatar\">A<\/div>\n<div class=\"author-meta\">\n<div class=\"author-name\">Aleksan9ra (Ludmila) <span class=\"author-stats\">\u2b50 Pro Grower (15,056 posts)<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"author-geo\">\ud83d\udccd Moscow Region | \ud83d\udcc5 June 17, 2021<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"post-content\">\n<blockquote><p><strong>Russi (Anna) wrote:<\/strong><br \/>\n&#8230;the vines are flopping over&#8230; Should I be tying them up?<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Anya, absolutely do not tie them up! In fact, the opposite is true: to make the potato plant yield larger tubers, many growers intentionally roll or flatten the vines down to the ground.<\/p>\n<p>Both of your beds look absolutely gorgeous! You&#8217;ve inspired me; I need to go dig around in the remnants of my own early potatoes today and see if there is anything left down there. \ud83e\udd54<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"forum-post\">\n<div class=\"author-header\">\n<div class=\"forum-avatar\">A<\/div>\n<div class=\"author-meta\">\n<div class=\"author-name\">Aleksan9ra (Ludmila) <span class=\"author-stats\">\u2b50 Pro Grower (15,056 posts)<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"author-geo\">\ud83d\udccd Moscow Region | \ud83d\udcc5 June 16, 2021<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"post-content\">\n<p>Speaking of early potatoes, Anya, I will likely end up with zero early potatoes this year.<\/p>\n<p>I grew three times as many indoor potato transplants this spring. I prepared three whole beds instead of just one. The seedlings were tall, so I planted them deeply in trenches, they took root perfectly, and took off growing. I fed them, watered them, and hilled them up nicely once.<\/p>\n<p>And what do you think happened? Mole Crickets (Gryllotalpidae) found those three beautiful, warm, loose beds and absolutely decimated them. There is practically not a single untouched bush left. I gave up on them and just planted new seed potatoes nearby. \ud83d\udc1b\ud83d\ude2d<\/p>\n<p>The most interesting\/frustrating part is that the three adjacent beds where I planted regular seed potatoes later in the season are totally fine. The mole crickets only went for the early, warm transplant beds!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"answer\" class=\"forum-post\">\n<div class=\"author-header\">\n<div class=\"forum-avatar\">B<\/div>\n<div class=\"author-meta\">\n<div class=\"author-name\">Borisovna (Natalia) <span class=\"author-stats\">\u2b50 Pro Grower (19,778 posts)<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"author-geo\">\ud83d\udccd Karaganda, Kazakhstan (USDA Zone 3) | \ud83d\udcc5 June 16, 2021<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"post-content\">\n<blockquote><p><strong>Russi (Anna) wrote:<\/strong><br \/>\n&#8230;when do we actually start digging up early potatoes?<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>There is a very simple formula for determining exactly when to dig early &#8220;new&#8221; potatoes: <strong>2 weeks from the beginning of mass flowering<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>If you are really craving fresh young potatoes earlier than that, you can start &#8220;robbing&#8221; the plants (carefully digging into the hill with your hands and extracting individual large tubers without pulling up the whole bush) starting 1 week after flowering. \ud83c\udf38\ud83e\udd54<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"editor-note\" style=\"background: #eef7ff; padding: 15px; border-left: 4px solid #2196F3; margin-top: 25px; font-size: 0.95em; border-radius: 4px;\"><strong>\ud83d\udc68\u200d\ud83c\udf3e Editor&#8217;s Agronomy Note: Potato Transplants?<\/strong><br \/>\nMost gardeners in North America plant &#8220;seed potatoes&#8221; (cut-up pieces of actual potatoes) directly into the cold spring ground. However, in regions with extremely short summers growers often <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tomat-pomidor.com\/en\/starting-early-potatoes-indoors\/\">start their potatoes indoors<\/a> in pots a month early, treating them like tomato seedlings. By transplanting a fully leafy potato plant into the garden after the last frost, they can shave 3-4 weeks off the growing season and harvest &#8220;new potatoes&#8221; incredibly early in the summer. Just watch out for soil pests, who love the heavily composted, pre-warmed beds!<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\ud83d\udccc Quick Summary (TL;DR): Early Potatoes &amp; Flopping Vines \ud83e\udd54 The Harvest Formula: To harvest tender, thin-skinned &#8220;new&#8221; potatoes, wait exactly 2 weeks after the plants begin mass flowering. \ud83e\udd2b &#8220;Bandicooting&#8221; (Robbing): You don&#8217;t have to kill the whole plant to get early potatoes. You can gently dig into the side of the hill with &#8230; <a title=\"When to Harvest &#8220;New&#8221; Potatoes &#038; Should You Tie Up Falling Vines?\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tomat-pomidor.com\/en\/when-to-harvest-new-potatoes\/\" aria-label=\"Read more about When to Harvest &#8220;New&#8221; Potatoes &#038; Should You Tie Up Falling Vines?\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3900,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[758],"tags":[1002,1000,1003,1001],"class_list":["post-3900","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-potato","tag-falling-potato-vines","tag-harvesting-new-potatoes","tag-mole-crickets","tag-potato-transplants"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tomat-pomidor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3900","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tomat-pomidor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tomat-pomidor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tomat-pomidor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tomat-pomidor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3900"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.tomat-pomidor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3900\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3921,"href":"https:\/\/www.tomat-pomidor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3900\/revisions\/3921"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tomat-pomidor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3900"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tomat-pomidor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3900"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tomat-pomidor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3900"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tomat-pomidor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3900"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}