"TimB" wrote in message .. .
As promised early in the season.

The bushel basket method is, basically, get an old bushel basket or laundry
basket (not as picturesque of course) or anything of similar size and
porosity, and put some potting soil in the bottom, then one hill's worth of
seed potatoes (I used 4 halves per basket), and cover with more potting
soil. As the season progresses, add more potting soil before any danger of
taters working their way to the top.

I used a similar method in my garden this year, with decent success.
I had a new garden plot divided into 3' wide beds. I put 30" wire
fence around it, leaving a plot about 3' X 4'. I planted potatoes on
the top of the plot, and covered them with soil. As they grew, I
covered them with alternating layers of leafy compost and cheap
potting soil. By the middle of July, I had covered the plants up to
the top of the wire and the vines were falling to the ground. Harvest
was decent, though not distributed throughout the bin; most of them
were on the bottom. I had enough success to try it again next year.

I think the toughest thing was trying to keep them watered. Even the
heaviest rain could not get through all of that compost and dirt on
top of the vines, and get down to the roots. In the end, I had to dig
some trenches all around the outside of the bed and put water in
there, hoping it would soak underneath the bed. It must have worked,
because as soon as I did that, the vines finally perked up.

IC Gardener
Iowa City, Iowa
Zone 5A