Potato Lovers news

Grow Your Own Potato Day

Worth Farms 15th March 2011

Launched in 2005, Grow Your Own Potatoes (GYOP) was one of the first primary school based growing projects, and is co-ordinated by the Potato Council, a division of the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB). Since then it has become the largest of its kind with almost 1 million children signed up for 2010, and slightly more than that for 2011, learning where potatoes come from, how they grow and that potatoes are a healthy food. Its simplicity and the fact that GYOP is a hands on activity makes it perfect for young pupils.

Schools that registered to take part (in Feb) received a FREE growing kit containing everything they need to grow a successful crop.

The event was held at Worth Farms, part of QV Foods Ltd., based at Holbeach Hurn. QV Foods Ltd. has sponsored some of the potato seed given to schools in our area to plant alongside the seed potatoes supplied by the Potato Council. There is a national prize for the school that manages to grow the heaviest weight of potatoes. This year‘s first prize is an allotment makeover, including design & build and plants to get you started.

For each region there will also be a prize to the school that grows the heaviest weight of potatoes. QV are sponsoring the Central region, which includes Lincolnshire, and will be donating a piece of Marmax eco-friendly outdoor furniture as a prize to the winning school.

Attending today’s planting event were children from Class 7 of Long Sutton Primary School, and the “Eco-Warriors” from a cross-section of the various classes of Holbeach Bank Primary School. Following a brief talk on the life cycle of potatoes, the children got stuck into the main event of the day, the planting of the seed potatoes that both schools had chitted in advance. As you will see from a couple of sample images, the children definitely enjoyed themselves and we have a verbal commitment in place for them to return on Thursday 21st June when they are due to harvest their potatoes. We’ve planted our own bag of seed potatoes at QV Foods Ltd. too to see if the children can beat the “so called experts” at their own game!

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