Post by andyb on Feb 9, 2015 21:21:33 GMT -8
I've been lurking for a while, but thought that I would share the results of my first TPS growout.
I bought some Yelm Whispers TPS from Tom Wagner last winter and he kindly tossed in a packet of Huagalina seeds. Thanks Tom! I also planted some seed tubers of Rose Finn Apple, largely to get some practice growing potatoes in Seattle, WA.
Since I knew I'd be moving before the end of the season, I used containers on my back deck for the TPS plants. It got pretty hot in the summer and I had trouble maintaining even watering. There was also the Great Aphid Blight of '14, which caused some fatalities.
In the end, I grew 12 plants from TPS, got a few seeds from a Huagalina sib cross, and got a couple hundred selfed seeds from the Rose Finn Apples. None of the crosses I made between varieties were successful.
In general, the Yelm Whispers plants were compact and quite early. The best potato was a pink fingerling with nice flavor and texture. Others were pale yellow or white. All had white or pale yellow flesh.
The Huagalina plants put out many stolons, most of which poked up through the surface of the 1-gallon pots and made secondary stems. I think some might have been heat sprouts. The plants were very late and some were still growing in November, when I flailed the tops and harvested. They had white flesh and variations on white with pink or purple mottling. The prettiest one was also the tastiest. With all of them, the skin slipped off easily after boiling.
There was one plant that had distinctly fuzzy leaves. It wasn't very productive, with two small irregularly shaped white tubers. I accidentally mixed some seeds of the two varieties, so I'm not sure which one this was.
I'm saving tubers in the fridge from the best three: the pink fingerling, the pretty Huagalina, and the fuzzy-leafed one. They'll go in a prime spot in my garden this spring.
Great fun! Digging up the potatoes, not having the slightest clue what they'll look or taste like, is like unwrapping a big pile of gifts. I'll be growing out another batch of TPS this year.
I bought some Yelm Whispers TPS from Tom Wagner last winter and he kindly tossed in a packet of Huagalina seeds. Thanks Tom! I also planted some seed tubers of Rose Finn Apple, largely to get some practice growing potatoes in Seattle, WA.
Since I knew I'd be moving before the end of the season, I used containers on my back deck for the TPS plants. It got pretty hot in the summer and I had trouble maintaining even watering. There was also the Great Aphid Blight of '14, which caused some fatalities.
In the end, I grew 12 plants from TPS, got a few seeds from a Huagalina sib cross, and got a couple hundred selfed seeds from the Rose Finn Apples. None of the crosses I made between varieties were successful.
In general, the Yelm Whispers plants were compact and quite early. The best potato was a pink fingerling with nice flavor and texture. Others were pale yellow or white. All had white or pale yellow flesh.
The Huagalina plants put out many stolons, most of which poked up through the surface of the 1-gallon pots and made secondary stems. I think some might have been heat sprouts. The plants were very late and some were still growing in November, when I flailed the tops and harvested. They had white flesh and variations on white with pink or purple mottling. The prettiest one was also the tastiest. With all of them, the skin slipped off easily after boiling.
There was one plant that had distinctly fuzzy leaves. It wasn't very productive, with two small irregularly shaped white tubers. I accidentally mixed some seeds of the two varieties, so I'm not sure which one this was.
I'm saving tubers in the fridge from the best three: the pink fingerling, the pretty Huagalina, and the fuzzy-leafed one. They'll go in a prime spot in my garden this spring.
Great fun! Digging up the potatoes, not having the slightest clue what they'll look or taste like, is like unwrapping a big pile of gifts. I'll be growing out another batch of TPS this year.
