Irish Potato

1. Irish Potato

2. Key concepts • Tuber versus root versus bulb • Potato domestication and spread • Potato use • Seed pieces • Hilling & mulching • Harvesting • Potato & GMOs

3. Tubers, roots, and bulbs • Tubers • Swollen underground _______ modified to store nutrients • Different from bulbs and roots • Tubers have buds called _____ that can sprout new plants • Tuber formation is accelerated by ______ days

4. Tubers, Bulbs, and Roots • Roots • ______ that enlarges and grows straight _______ into the soil • Examples: beets, carrots, radish • Enlarged _____ roots that are branched and spread _______ underground • Example: sweet potato

5. Bulbs Consist of fleshy _______ leaves called ______ attached to a very short ________ plate Swollen base of the leaves are usually eaten Difference from tuber and root Stem does not ______ in size, but the base of the leaves swell Require high temperatures and _________ days for bulb formation Tubers, Bulbs, and Roots Basal plate

6. Tuber-bearing species occur throughout the _________ areas of North and South America There is no _______ ancestor of Irish Potato Wild species are very diverse Around Lake Titicaca and Lake Poopo in _____ and _______ cultivated potatoes are still extremely variable Potato Origins

7. Domestication • Remains of cultivated potatoes have been found in deposits south of Lima, Peru, dating back to ________ B.C. • Potato widely cultivated in Inca times (______ A.D.)

8. European adoption • First reported by Europeans exploring S. America in ________ • First report of use in Europe was in _______ • ______ in Spain • Introduced to Ireland around 1590 • Irish Potato ________ • 1845-1848 1 million died, 1.5 million emigrated

9. What slowed the adoption of by Europeans? • Original potatoes were adapted to forming tubers in response to ______ days • Why is this a problem? • Leaves, fruits, and ______ skin of tubers are poisonous

10. Be Careful… • Fruit and leaves are poisonous • Contain the alkaloid _________ • Parts of tuber which turn _________ after exposure to light are also poisonous

11. Potato Use • High-_______ potatoes • Good for baking, mashing, and deep frying • e.g. white russets • Low- _______ or _______ potatoes • Hold shape after cooking for boiling, potato salads, or scalloped potatoes • e.g. red-skinned or fingerling

12. Soil requirements • Potatoes do best in soils that are: • ___________ • Fertile • Well-___________ • High in _______ matter • Improves drainage for uniform moisture • Reduces compaction

13. Seed pieces • May be small whole potatoes or potatoes cut into 1 ½ to 2 oz. pieces • If cut pieces: • Make sure they have at least one ________ • Let sit out for 1-3 days to form ______ over cut area

14. Hilling potatoes • Gradually build up a loose ______ of soil around the plants • Helps to cover the potato tubers • Prevents tubers from turning green with a buildup of ________ and ____________ • Also kills weeds

15. Can apply ________ mulch over potatoes rather than soil Advantages Improves _______ and helps maintain even moisture Keeps weeds down Keeps soil _________ lower Tubers have good shape Easy to harvest! Mulching potatoes

16. Harvesting potatoes • “New” potatoes • Dig early in summer when tubers are 1 ½ to 2 inches in diameters • Plants are still ________ • Main crop • Crop harvested after plants ______ and ______ • Tubers are stored • Must be careful to avoid damaging potatoes when digging • Or innovate…

17. Insect Problems • ________ potato beetle • Control • Bt, synthetic insecticides, pick off

18. Genetic Solution? • ________ Potatoes • Developed by Monsanto • Contain a gene to produce their own Bt • Also resistant to leaf roll _______ • Shunned by growers after ________ stopped buying them to avoid controversy Monsanto advertisement