Growing Potatoes In Issan

[chillybilly]

Hi all

I am new on here this is my first post so sorry if its been asked before ,, but I have never been to Issan before , infact allthough I now have a Thai wife I have never been to Thailand , she tells me you cannot when I ask about growing potatoes ,, I find this hard to believe as surely its warm enough ?? does it get really cold at night ? She has a house and land north east of a place called Udern Thani , some little village ( dont ask ) I have only seen the pictures ,, only soon we will be coming back there to live and allthough I do like a little Thai food she cooks for me I really want to eat good old English meat and veg ,any help appreciated thankyou Billy

[FarangBuddha]

Considering that there is regular seasonal flooding in much of the country, including Issan, and that potatoes are a below-ground root vegetable, I don't think they would grow too sell in such water-logged conditions.

[chillybilly]

Considering that there is regular seasonal flooding in much of the country, including Issan, and that potatoes are a below-ground root vegetable, I don't think they would grow too sell in such water-logged conditions.

I dont want to grow to sell Fbuddha I only want to grow for myself thankyou

[gotlost]

Thailand in general is not known for growing potatoes as we know them. To hot and humid. As I say that the Chiang Mai area has some of the best eating potatoes as we should be used to. Over in the Issan area there are local varieties grown that the Thais refer to as potatoes. Mos t are eatable and pretty darn good others you do not want to eat (high cyanide) but is grown for biofuel.

[IsaanAussie]

Considering that there is regular seasonal flooding in much of the country, including Issan, and that potatoes are a below-ground root vegetable, I don't think they would grow too sell in such water-logged conditions.

I dont want to grow to sell Fbuddha I only want to grow for myself thankyou

CB,

I am further south than Ubon and have grown large patches of sweet potatoes but not good chipping spuds, at least not yet. The primary issues are soil and water. I have fine particle clay was is porridge when wet and concrete when dry, that has to be fixed or use raised beds. Water requirements can be an issue but as you are only looking to grow a bag or two no big deal. Normal pests and rodent issues exist as well.

People have tried and failed but I for one will be giving it a go, just need to find some decent seed spuds. As for your Western cuisine needs, all very doable with a few adaptions to the local vegetables. Fear not you will survive!

Isaan Aussie

[IssanCalling]

Chilly Billy,

Whilst I do not live in Thailand yet, I do have a house in Issan about 100Km from Udon nearest large town you will see on map is Sakon Nakon. I have been married to a Thai Lady for 18 years and have been there many times. Although I cant tell you much about growing spuds although I will be trying myself (raised beds being the weapon of choice)what I can tell you is, local fruit and veg such as banana, mango and papaya grow very well and fast, all be it none of theses are root vegies. Whats probably more important is in Sakon which is a smaller town than Udon we have Makro and Tesco (I am sure Udon will have also) So the purchase of farang type foods is not an issue.

All the best,

Issan Calling.

[davee58]

Billy

Somebody moving from Thailand to the UK might plan to grow Bananas and Pineapples in their new garden.

They will soon learn that in the UK these fruit grow best in the local supermarket.

Likewise you will learn that the freezer section of the local supermarket is the best place to find chips in Thailand.

Reading your post I suspect that chips will be the least of your problems

[chillybilly]

Billy

Somebody moving from Thailand to the UK might plan to grow Bananas and Pineapples in their new garden.

They will soon learn that in the UK these fruit grow best in the local supermarket.

Likewise you will learn that the freezer section of the local supermarket is the best place to find chips in Thailand.

Reading your post I suspect that chips will be the least of your problems

Thanks for the tips , but I am more interested in gardening and growing my own than drinking allday

Dont eat chips frozen or otherwise thanks .

Pray enlighten me about my other probs I am gonna encounter ,,,,,, I am all ears

[JurgenG]

Thanks for the tips , but I am more interested in gardening and growing my own than drinking allday

You're off to a good start !.

Pray enlighten me about my other probs I am gonna encounter ,,,,,, I am all ears

Small details, don't worry

[cardholder]

Considering that there is regular seasonal flooding in much of the country, including Issan, and that potatoes are a below-ground root vegetable, I don't think they would grow too sell in such water-logged conditions.

I dont want to grow to sell Fbuddha I only want to grow for myself thankyou

I think that is a typo. The "S" and "W" keys are quite close.

Using the likes of Makro and Big C is the best advice.

If you are keen to do some gardening have a read of the Farming section on ThaiVisa.com.

Might be an idea to get hold of a copy of Thailand Fever by Chris Pirazzi and Vitida Vasant - it will help you with more than your vegetables.

[ozzydom]

North East of Udon Thani was one of the largest potato growing holdings in Thailand, the farm manager was a Kiwi friend of mine who has since returned to NZ .

The potato growing window is quite short ,Plant end of October ,harvest January.

As this is the dry season here they require regular watering (with care),this farm was/is a supplier to Lays Potato Crisp factory.

All the watering was per broad acre travelling overhead sprinkler,the quantity of water is the secret to success he used to tell me, water should be adequate to the needs of the plant but only enough to drain and evaporate within a few hours to prevent rot.

[davee58]

Billy.

You should look upon your move to Thailand as a new opportunity.

Very people in England grow their own potatoes, why do it in Thailand where it is a lot more difficult!

I am more interested in gardening and growing my own than drinking all day

You say you like gardening - with a bit of planning your Thai garden could be full of all sorts of exotic produce.

Don't dig yourself into a hole with home grown potatoes.

Pineapples, Coconuts, exotic Herbs and Spices, forget Geraniums, try Orchids instead!

Good luck Billy.

Dave..

[kokesaat]

Not so many years ago, not much other than rice, mango, banana, and papaya was grown in Isaan. Today, there's a multitude of veggies and fruits successfully grown. If you have well-drained soil and plenty of water, I'd say Udon/vicinity offers an opportunity to experiment with things like potatoes. If you could figure out a way to grow beefsteak tomatoes, you could make a lot of money......the falang community would pay dearly to get their hands on some good-tasting beefsteak tomatoes.

[afarang]

I live in C.Buriram .I have tried for many years to grow spuds. With zero success. I have tried so many different ways, In soil, pots ,garbage bins,in full light, under shade cloth. in soil, compost etc., etc. I get maybe 10 marbles per plant.However, I have NOT been able to get proper seed.Have used spuds, I bought in the local market.

[keo]

plenty of potatoes available in the fresh markets in Chiang Mai, year round as far as I'm aware. Not sure what kind of potatoes they're big and I've used them to make chips, mash and baked potatoes successfully.

And don't listen to these morons. If growing potatoes, or at least trying to grow potatoes, makes you happy, go for it!

It might be an idea to bring a variety of potato seeds from the UK, and experiment with them. I've grown sweet basil and oregano successfully from seeds that I brought over.

Good luck!

[slapout]

Potatoes are being planted in the Fang area and have been for past few weeks. Most are on paddy land, which they row up with a middle buster type plow. As potato is a dry land, cool weather crop its works well this time of year. The big If is having access to water as you cannot expect rainfall during the growing season.

[ColinDow]

Yes potatoes will grow in issan i have grown good quality good sized potatoes in prakonchai. Plant your potatoes in november harvest them in may before the rainy season. My thai wife many other thais told me they not grow in issan when i showed them the results i was asked where you buy. Believe me they will grow you have to give them plenty of water .

[soidog2]

Yes potatoes will grow in issan i have grown good quality good sized potatoes in prakonchai. Plant your potatoes in november harvest them in may before the rainy season. My thai wife many other thais told me they not grow in issan when i showed them the results i was asked where you buy. Believe me they will grow you have to give them plenty of water .

Alternately, if you are only growing for yourself; grow them in elevated barrels, with very well aerated soils. (I mix a lot of dry tamarind leaves to keep the soil loose.)

Pick a sheltered location, they will grow just fine , in the rainy season too.

You will have plenty fine potatoes to eat, in Isaan !

Best

[Gary A]

I have had absolutely no luck growing potatoes. I did considerable surfing and a few sites stated that when the soil temperature is above 27 degrees C, (80 F) potatoes simply stop growing. There are potatoes grown in the coldest parts of Thailand so the soil temperature explanation makes sense to me.

[egg]

l planted some spuds on the 1/1/2011 and dug 1 plant up yesterday to see how they were going ,,, got a bit of a shock ,, 2 the size of a baseball and many small tubers ,,so for me , no problems ,l wish l had as much luck with other vegies ,,, we are 100K's north of Udon and Sakon ,,,

2 years ago l got a few truck loads of rice stalks and let it rot down to nice friable soil , with a little manure mixed in,, the spuds seem to love it,also the small Thai tomatoes and no weeds ,,,,, l imagine in the wet season you would need raised bed with excellent drainage ,,, l would like to know where to get a different variety of spud , although these ones are passable ,, there must be better ones somewhere,,,,,,,, and dont worry about farang food up here ,, if l can find it anyone can

chok dee