Raising potatoes

A week ago, the potato bin looked like this

Now it looks like this, so time to add another layer.

Both the cats and the dog were showing interest in the bin today. There was a fresh mound of soil at one outside corner. Voles. I briefly thought about dismantling the whole thing, stapling wire across the bottommost layer of the box, then carefully replanting all the potatoes. Briefly. The lack of any suitable wire anywhere about the place relegated the job to the to-do list for the next crop. I will probably regret this, given the damage voles did to our root vegetables last year, but if nothing else it will give an indication of just how much of a crop they’re capable of eating if left to their own devices. Perhaps I’ll end up harvesting a sackful of voles instead of a sackful of potatoes …

I also discovered what an enormous quantity of compost and soil I’m going to need to fill this box. A full barrow-load went in today and if growth rates are maintained, I’ll need the same again in less than a week.