Potatoes
Potatoes are one of the most important foods in the world and have been around for about 10,000 years.
Did you know:
- Potatoes were originated in the High Andes, in Peru, Columbia and Bolivia.
- Potatoes are the easiest of all vegetables to grow, provided they receive sufficient water during the growing season.
- Potatoes only came to the Northern States of America with early Irish Settlers, despite their ancestry.
- Good quality potatoes will be firm, realitivly smooth skin and have bright color.
- Avoid potatoes that are soft, wrinkled, have cuts in the skin or are green tinited.
- Potatoes should be stored in a cool dry place away from light. Potatoes, if stored properly will keep for up to 2 weeks.
- Moisture will encourage potatoes to sprout again.
- Storing potatoes near onions, even though their storing instructions are very similar, will encourage potatoes to spoil.
Heirloom Varieties
- Rose Finn Apple potatoes are medium sized tubers and have rose-beige skin and very deep yellow flesh with red blush. These potatoes are delicious in salads or steamed.
- Mandel/Swedish Peanut Fingerling are a dry golden-fleshed late season variety. They were grown by Swedish settlers in the 1900’s. These crescent shaped potatoes are great baked or roasted.
- Early Ohio potatoes were once the most popular early potato in the Midwest and Ohio. This variety is still grown by older gardeners, but they are dying out these days. This variety is very easy to grow and appears to be pest and disease resistant.
- Bliss Triumph is another early variety. This variety has a light-red thin skin and white flesh. This potato has been around since the 1870’s. Very reliable for high yields and has excellent flavor for steaming or mashing.
- Early Rose is a pretty and tasty variety that has been grown in Vermont for 150 years. This variety produces high yields or long tubers with white flesh streaked with pink.
- Beauty of Hebron potatoes come from Maine and have been popular since 1900. Early cropping potatoes have buff yellow skin and delicious creamy flesh. This is said to be the tastiest of all the early varieties.
