Hi, Super late finding this thread. These are beautiful! I’m hoping to find someone on here that can point me to a possible seed-share source for any of these: Skagit Beet, Negroy Azul, Azul Toro, Toleak, Yellow Haze, Azul Larga, Baby Red, Agria, Crimson King and Crimson Goldfinger. I’ve been looking for quite some time but it’s like finding a potato in a haystack. Happy growing All! =)
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What is everyone ordering this year?
I’ve recently realized that I’m no longer very patient with small potatoes- digging or cooking. I gave my parents the smallest ones and have now used up most of the larger ones. There are still a bunch of small to mediums, which I may also give them, and start buying the big ones from the store.
So, this year I’m making a few changes. I’m specifically buying larger-growing varieties. I’ll also be adjusting how I plant them to hopefully increase the size.
First the variety:
- Magic Molly has produced some very large ones in the past and has been a favorite for years, so I’m going to stick with it.
- Adirondack Red has been at least above average and I think it is the biggest of the red-fleshed potatoes available. Amarosa is very good, but tends to be smaller.
- Desiree and Nicola are both supposed to get pretty big, particularly Desiree, which I saw referenced as one of the largest growing potatoes.
- Natascha and Baltic Rose were good, but they are more medium sized, with plenty of small ones. So I’m skipping them this year.
I’m also going to plant them a bit differently:
- More space- rather than 8", I’m planning to put them at about 1.5’ apart
- Plant a bit deeper, which should also help reduce any sun-damage from exposed potatoes.
- Not going to worry about splitting large potatoes into smaller pieces. I’ve noticed that smaller ones don’t grow as well. Though maybe I will split one if I get sent a 2lb monster
In order to accomplish #1 and #2, I think I will change the mechanism I use to plant. In the past, I’ve used a hoe to dig a shallow trench, then put a bunch of potatoes in it and then mounded it up.
Now, if I want further apart, but deeper holes, I am leaning toward using a hand drill with an auger attachment:
The widest one from this kit on Amazon has a 3.5" and 16" long.
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I am going to grow:
Magic Molly
Baltic Rose
Amarosa
Carola
German Butterball
French Fingerling
Russian Banana
and one called Fingerling Salad from Shumway
(Midseason) A small, yellow-fleshed heirloom, far superior to others for salads. Originally brought to this country by early German settlers. Tubers are long and finger-shaped, measuring about 1 in. in diameter and 2 to 4 in. in length. Yellow skin and flesh are uniquely flavored and delicious.
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Our largest potatoes are Magic Molly, Desiree, Strawberry Paw, and Purple Viking.
We like Carola and German Butterball for their yellow flesh, and even though they are similar, we grow both. We prefer them over Yukon Gold.
We’ve tried several different fingerlings over the years, and have settled on Amarosa, Ozette, La Ratte, and Rose Finn.
For more than a decade we’ve kept our own Romanz going. After Potato Garden was merged, the variety disappeared.
A number of years ago Papa Cacho was a popular novelty potato for its extra long tubers. We only grew it one year, but my wife would like to try it again. Now we can’t find it anywhere except Cultivariable, and they sell potato seeds, not seed potatoes. Anyone know another source? It is in the Kenosha Potato Project, but it is my understanding that you have to become a member to acquire spuds from them.
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I ordered in Feb and I’m still waiting! it’ll be too late to put in taters for a good crop soon, they need to be getting ready to be done before we get our heat wave here. gaaah
Received my order Saturday. 22lb box was very heavy for its size… excellent seed potatoes.
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I planted some leftovers a bit over a month ago, but just got my MPL order yesterday.
My 40 lb box didn’t look that big, but I was very careful in picking it up.
A long time ago I got it from MPL. But I don’t blame them for not carrying it anymore. While the plants are supermen, the potatoes are turds. That may be a bit harsh, as they are still edible. But they are very noticeably worse than all the other potatoes I harvested (though Prince Hairy wasn’t impressive either). Quite dry and I don’t recall any special/impressive flavor. Often, I mix up potatoes when cooking, but I could always tell which ones were the PC. Of course, if you are expecting a cataclysm like a nuclear war or a super-volcano and need a potato that is study and grows well, then I can see why you would want the Papa Chacao.
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When we sold Papa Cacho potatoes at farmers market, I think we described their flavor as earthy.
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I got my order and will be planting out this weekend.
I wanted indeterminate but I think the kennebec might not be? will have to see. also got some kind of russet that I’ll be putting in ground this year, I usually bag grow but figure I should start a “patch”.