Yes, you can grow potatoes in pure organic matter. There are several variations on how to do it. In the garden, dig the usual trench and then cover the seed potatoes with straw, leaves, or compost. Continue to add the organic material as the plant grows. Either red or white varieties of potatoes can be grown this way. However, this is probably not a good method for growing russet varieties. You should be most concerned about fertilizer. Start with a standard garden fertilizer, such as a 10-10-10, and fertilize again several times during the growing season. The problem is that if you use leaves, they require nitrogen to decompose, making it unavailable to the potato plants. Keep your leaves properly moist - not soggy, but not dry. Our experience growing potatoes in leaves went well except for one thing - slugs. The leaves became a gathering place for slugs and they devoured parts of the potatoes before they became large enough to pick.

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