Finding Potato Tubers

[doublehelix]

Does anyone have a good source for hard to find or oddball potato tubers? I would like to plant an assortment of colors, sizes, and shapes this year.

Should I post in the "wanted" forum? I would be willing to do a trade if there are no commercial sources.

Thanks.

S.

[Redbaron]

Originally Posted by doublehelix

Does anyone have a good source for hard to find or oddball potato tubers? I would like to plant an assortment of colors, sizes, and shapes this year.

Should I post in the "wanted" forum? I would be willing to do a trade if there are no commercial sources.

Thanks.

S.

Pretty sure Tom Wagner has several TPS "oddballs".

[doublehelix]

Originally Posted by Redbaron

Pretty sure Tom Wagner has several TPS "oddballs".

Thanks, but I don't want seed, I want tubers.

[Redbaron]

Originally Posted by doublehelix

Thanks, but I don't want seed, I want tubers.

Right, but here is how Tom recommends it. Grow TPS and choose the best from year 1 for your tubers for year 2.

I know it is longer. But you do get a crop the first year and an even better crop year two!

[Granite26]

OK this got me to thinking about the limited choices here and I too started looking around. Shipping could be a real issue.
Anyone done business with mainepotatolady or MooseTubers?

[kath]

Originally Posted by Granite26

OK this got me to thinking about the limited choices here and I too started looking around. Shipping could be a real issue.
Anyone done business with mainepotatolady or MooseTubers?

I've used Ronniger's both before and after it was sold and had very good experiences with the company. Last year I tried MooseTubers and service was satisfactory but they ship VERY late for my area (didn't arrive until about the 3rd week in May) so the tubers didn't have time to get very big before the inevitable leaf diseases took them down. I saved most of the tubers for seed and will try planting them this year. The shipping was a bit earlier from Ronniger's but still later than I can get the common varieties of seed potato at the local Agway. The other thing that's good about shopping locally is that you can choose the size of the tubers- most of the ones I got from MooseTubers were too large to plant whole and I also have better result if I don't cut them. Also ordered from Johnny's to get Adirondack Red and A. Blue one year. The shipping makes it a really $$$ experiment.

[doublehelix]

Originally Posted by kath

I've used Ronniger's both before and after it was sold and had very good experiences with the company.

Can you make any variety recommendations?

[baileyj]

I have only planted potatoes for 2 years. Last year I ordered mine from Peaceful Valley (www.groworganic,com) ...the timing worked out for my zone 7. I had great results....not sure if they have the unusual varieties you may be looking for as I am new to Potatoes !

[kath]

Originally Posted by doublehelix

Can you make any variety recommendations?

I think it depends on what you're looking for but most of all on your soil and climate. The varieties that have worked the best for me here, for the most part, are some of the ones that are available locally (duh- guess that's why they stock them): Red Norland, Yukon Gold, Kennebec, and All Red. Others that grew ok and that I loved for flavor are: Desiree and Carola but I have to order seed potato for those and it's really pricey. Augusta and Elba from Moose Tubers did the best of the seven or so that I ordered from them last year but it'll take another year of growing before I know if they're keepers. Desiree and Carola are very "pretty" potatoes, maybe important if you are selling at a market but they also taste heavenly. Augusta and Elba grew quite large compared to the others that were planted so late last year- not so pretty but the taste is very good.

Although I've been growing potatoes since 1986, with some new varieties I still have trouble with scab and what always takes the plants out are the leaf diseases which I think are spread by the cucumber beetles and leafhoppers which I find impossible to control and helped by our always wet and humid conditions. My best tubers are in by early April at the latest and nearly dead by mid to end July. Then again, since they're mostly early to mid season varieties, they're still a good size. Storage is a problem because when I harvest it's still nearly 3 months away from my basement being cold, but usually we're still able to eat potatoes until March or so.

Other varieties that I've tried but that haven't done very well here for one reason or another include:

Adirondack Red
Adirondack Blue
Adora
Alby's Gold
All Blue
Anoka
Austrian Crescent
Bintje
Bison
Buffalo
Butte
Caribe
Charlotte
Chiefton
Dark Red Norland
Early Ohio
German Butterball
Gold Rush
Green Mountain (grew well but too lumpy for me)
Irish Cobbler
Katahdin
Krantz
Nicola
Norgold Russet
Purple Viking
Red Bliss
Red Chiefton
Red Cloud
Red Companion
Red Gold
Red Pontiac
Reddale
Red Ruby
Russet Burbank
Russet Norkotah
Russian Banana
Sangre
Satina
Shepody
Superior

I don't want to discourage anyone from trying any of these potatoes but am just sharing what has and hasn't worked for me in my garden in my little corner because you asked for recommendations- which I really can't give. Hopefully someone who lives closer to you can help you out with what's suited to your soil/climate.

I'm going to try a couple TPS varieties this year to see what happens.

kath

[baileyj]

Wow, i have a lot to learn about growing potatoes ! I had no idea there were this many varieties !

[Granite26]

Thank-You. No question locally is best but I only get about 6 variety choices around here.
Thanks for the Ronniger's lead.

[doublehelix]

The shipping dates won't work for me for sure. I would need something by about mid March.

I would even consider mini tubers if someone has some TPS growouts. I have some cool stuff I can trade.

[Doug9345]

I remember a National Geographic Article from the 70's or early 80's that said there where thousands of varieties.

[Granite26]

Ummmm......thats quite a list!

[Fusion_power]

In the end, it gets down to climate and preference. You can grow quite a few commercial varieties. I would suggest picking categories as well as colors.

La Ratte - Waxy type, typically productive, flavor is excellent

Kennebec - ubiquitous, typical white, very high production, good for fries.

Yukon Gold - not the best gold you can grow, but it is most available.

Azul Toro - So far, this is the best blue I've grown.

Purple Majesty - a widely available purple, decent production, not as versatile as Azul Toro.

I saw more diversity in Tom Wagner's plantings last fall than I had ever seen before. I brought back half a dozen samples to grow in my garden including a purple skin white flesh line and a sandy skin white flesh potato that looked better than most I've grown.

DarJones