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Irish Cobbler
New Potato in the US
This is an old heirloom variety, a real classic early potato with a taste that's hard to beat. If you appreciate historical varieties and top-notch flavor, this one's for you.
Sow window for New Potato generally, zone 6.
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How to grow it
Getting your new potatoes started is straightforward business. You'll want to plant your seed potatoes directly outdoors once the danger of the last hard frost has passed for your area. For folks in USDA Zone 9, that could be as early as January or February, heading right up to May for the colder Zone 3 growers. I usually plant mine about 4 to 6 inches deep and space them a good 12 inches apart, giving them plenty of room to grow into decent spuds. They don't need any special treatment indoors, just a good spot outside.
Since we're planting these chaps straight into the ground, there's no messing about with pricking out or hardening off. Once they start to poke their heads up, about 6-8 inches tall, you'll want to hill them up a bit, drawing soil around the stems. This keeps the tubers from turning green and helps protect them from light, you know. They do well in large containers too if you're short on plot space.
More New Potato varieties
Track your New Potato from packet to plate
Sowing reminders and harvest forecasts for your own frost dates, the Seed Tin, Scan Centre for any label or packet, and the Potty Mouth Garden Club. Free to start.
Allotment keeper in the North East of England, the voice behind the Tony C Smith YouTube channel, and the gardener who built GrowMore CookMore. Club numbers on this page update as members log their plots. Last updated 3 September 2026.