Identifying store bought red potatoes

Indyartist · May 30, 2011

I planted some sprouted potatoes of store bought reds and was wondering if anyone would know what variety specifically they might be. They are Dole brand name and are labeled "premium red potatoes". The sprouted tubers were planted at the end of April and the plants are enormous and I have them hilled with soil first and I am now hilling them with some hay that has been getting all organic and moldy since early Spring. I hope to get potatoes but I'd like to refer to them as a particular variety. Any guesses on Dole's Premium Red Potatoes?

**Tom Wagner** · May 31, 2011

That was simple. The variety is Red Norland. Produced in North Dakota and marketed by Wada Farms Marketing acting as the agent of and handles the marketing and sales of Dole-label potatoes.

Red Norland is still the default variety packed during the late storage season coming out of North Dakota. It is a long keeper under their conditions. If you bought these potatoes within the last 8 weeks, I am sure it was Red Norland.

If you show a picture of the vine and the tubers...I can affirm my notions. Red Norland grows rather fast and is early...and has been for me when I lived in the Mid West,,,,a winner for the crazy weather of Kansas. I turned my 92 yr. old Aunt Miriam onto this variety many years ago back in the 60's.

Not that I know anything about potatoes.....

Indyartist · May 31, 2011

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tom Wagner

That was simple. The variety is Red Norland. Produced in North Dakota and marketed by Wada Farms Marketing acting as the agent of and handles the marketing and sales of Dole-label potatoes.

Red Norland is still the default variety packed during the late storage season coming out of North Dakota. It is a long keeper under their conditions. If you bought these potatoes within the last 8 weeks, I am sure it was Red Norland.

If you show a picture of the vine and the tubers...I can affirm my notions. Red Norland grows rather fast and is early...and has been for me when I lived in the Mid West,,,,a winner for the crazy weather of Kansas. I turned my 92 yr. old Aunt Miriam onto this variety many years ago back in the 60's.

Not that I know anything about potatoes.....

Thanks Tom, I'll post photos soon. Hopefully this week-end. The week I planted your 1lb sampler of seventeen varieties my wife had some sprouted store bought reds (now known as Red Norland) and I added 3 them with yours to give me two rows of ten. I'm virtually brand new to potato growing having only grown them once over ten years ago from some "Irish Cobbler" pieces sold from one of the major seed catalog companies.
I can say now, both with the TPS and tubers that I have from you and the few others that I have also started that I am amazed how aggressive / vigorous potato plants are. I am hilling in one fashion or another and it seems the next day the plants are a foot above what I added! I hope there are potatoes hiding under all this growth when the plants have run their course.

Indyartist · June 27, 2011

Big excitement for me tonight. My Red Norland, store bought potatoes planted and growing have small berries on them. Will they hold on? I do not know but I was excited to see my first berries on a potato plant. Many of my plants have been flowering with the blossoms falling off and leaving a bouquet of sticks. Tonight though I have small pea size berries and I'll hope the little fellows hold on. I have many , many more potatoes that are growing and might produce berries but Red Norland will go down in history as at least my first berry produced. I'll hold my breath for 5 or 6 weeks now to see if it can be harvested. Pictures will probably coming as soon as I get a day off.

**Tom Wagner** · June 28, 2011

Norland has been a great progenitor of many varieties of red potatoes. It goes back about 9 or 10 generations in my breeding work. I picked up the variety in the late 1950's or at least when I was in high school a bit later.

From OP seed, I was never able to get a good clone from it. Hybrids....yes! I remember the first TPS population and had these near white potatoes with pink eyes. I grew it for a few years but never got it to produce berries.

In order to get a potato as good as Norland, one would have to grow about 100 plants out to find one as good as Norland in my opinion.

Thanks go to IrishEyes for this picture....

May 30, 2011	#1
Indyartist Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Indiana Posts: 229	Identifying store bought red potatoes I planted some sprouted potatoes of store bought reds and was wondering if anyone would know what variety specifically they might be. They are Dole brand name and are labeled "premium red potatoes". The sprouted tubers were planted at the end of April and the plants are enormous and I have them hilled with soil first and I am now hilling them with some hay that has been getting all organic and moldy since early Spring. I hope to get potatoes but I'd like to refer to them as a particular variety. Any guesses on Dole's Premium Red Potatoes? __________________ Indyartist Zone 5b, NE Indiana -------------------------- “Men should stop fighting among themselves and start fighting insects” Luther Burbank

June 27, 2011	#4
Indyartist Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Indiana Posts: 229	Big excitement for me tonight. My Red Norland, store bought potatoes planted and growing have small berries on them. Will they hold on? I do not know but I was excited to see my first berries on a potato plant. Many of my plants have been flowering with the blossoms falling off and leaving a bouquet of sticks. Tonight though I have small pea size berries and I'll hope the little fellows hold on. I have many , many more potatoes that are growing and might produce berries but Red Norland will go down in history as at least my first berry produced. I'll hold my breath for 5 or 6 weeks now to see if it can be harvested. Pictures will probably coming as soon as I get a day off. __________________ Indyartist Zone 5b, NE Indiana -------------------------- “Men should stop fighting among themselves and start fighting insects” Luther Burbank

May 31, 2011	#2
Tom Wagner Crosstalk™ Forum Moderator Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: 8407 18th Ave West 7-203 Everett, Washington 98204 Posts: 1,157	That was simple. The variety is Red Norland. Produced in North Dakota and marketed by Wada Farms Marketing acting as the agent of and handles the marketing and sales of Dole-label potatoes. Red Norland is still the default variety packed during the late storage season coming out of North Dakota. It is a long keeper under their conditions. If you bought these potatoes within the last 8 weeks, I am sure it was Red Norland. If you show a picture of the vine and the tubers...I can affirm my notions. Red Norland grows rather fast and is early...and has been for me when I lived in the Mid West,,,,a winner for the crazy weather of Kansas. I turned my 92 yr. old Aunt Miriam onto this variety many years ago back in the 60's. Not that I know anything about potatoes.....

June 28, 2011	#5
Tom Wagner Crosstalk™ Forum Moderator Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: 8407 18th Ave West 7-203 Everett, Washington 98204 Posts: 1,157	Norland has been a great progenitor of many varieties of red potatoes. It goes back about 9 or 10 generations in my breeding work. I picked up the variety in the late 1950's or at least when I was in high school a bit later. From OP seed, I was never able to get a good clone from it. Hybrids....yes! I remember the first TPS population and had these near white potatoes with pink eyes. I grew it for a few years but never got it to produce berries. In order to get a potato as good as Norland, one would have to grow about 100 plants out to find one as good as Norland in my opinion. Thanks go to IrishEyes for this picture....