"could someone possibly help me by providing names of exactly what I should buy? (Name brands would be even better and hopefully products readily available at a home improvement store) "

I use partly composed grass clipping, leaves, kitchen veggie scraps and about 10% by volume native soil from my yard for potato towers but never tried in the bag. Keep slightly moist and light applications of N when mounding up.

The packaged brands of potting soil are all kinda the same, just a bunch of light peat and perlite, maybe some yard waste "compost" as filler. I wouldn't call any of them great, hard to find good quality real composted stuff in bags.

I got some Pro-mix brand compacted in a cube and will add "organic fertilizer" for my potato bag. Miracle-gro stuff doesn't impress me much, at least their main stuff. All the common bagged potting soil is pretty similar, nothing special about Miracle-gro stuff so I wouldn't pay more for it. I wouldn't worry about dubious easy claims of months of fertilizer. Got some Kellogg brand organic soil this year for a new bed, at least it is different from the usual peat and perlite, but seems to have too many pieces of uncomposted wood.

Can you tell us some more about what you have done in the past and what the results were?

Potatoes are generally rather forgiving when it comes to soil. Yes, you have hit on the primary quality - "well drained". They like soil that is moist, but not wet. That means that you want to avoid potting soils that are designed to retain water. Rather than hold on to water, you want it to wet the soil and for the excess to drain away. This means potatoes in containers will need to be watered every day when it gets warm.

Also, "well draining" applies to the container as well. A fabric pot is ideal. A plastic container with a single hole at the bottom is not so good. Also potatoes grow vertically and like depth in a container. You will start with 6 inchers of soil under the potatoes and then cover them with about 4 inches when you plant. BUT - you want at least another 6 to 12 inches above that for additional soil/compost/mulch. The thick mulch is crucial - it will keep the soil from drying out so fast in the summer, and regulate the soil temperature. It will also encourage the plant to put out more tubers in the mulch.

Thank you all so much!

In the past, I stuck them into bad, rocky, hard dirt in my side lot and forgot about them. I got TONS of potatoes. Last year, I fixed that area up and used grow bags with Miracle Grow. They are plastic grow bags, but I believe have many drainage holes. Perhaps it really wasn't so much the soil is they did get dried out a few times. I plan on remedying that this year by moving the bags close to the hose. They were in a spot that was much harder to get to last year.

I really appreciate all the responses!

Deb

afaik Potatoes prefer FULL sun with well-drained, light, deep, loose (as in sandy or stone free) soil, high in organic matter. Unlike most vegetables, potatoes perform best in acid soil with pH 4.8 - 5.5. Scab is less of a problem at low pH.

Tubers will only grow above the seed piece. To encourage more tubers lots of straw mulch will help. Keeping in mind that sunlight on a tuber will turn it green (toxic) so keep em well covered.

When using containers lots of drain holes are helpful esp. when it rains. Avoid manure as that will encourage scab. Once you have scab you may as well not grow potatoes in there again.

BTW - Nitrogen only enhances foliage at the cost of fewer tubers.

Potato beetles will find your plants.

Hope that helps.