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Annual Biennial

Solanum tuberosum

potato

Potatoes are hugely versatile and a staple ingredient of many meals in one form or another – boiled, mashed, chipped or baked. Potatoes are classified as being either earlies or maincrops. Early varieties are ready to harvest much sooner than maincrops and are what we call ‘new potatoes’. Maincrop varieties are in the ground a lot longer and produce a larger harvest and bigger potatoes. There is a huge variety of cultivars to choose from. The potato plant is a tuberous perennial grown as annual up to 60cm tall, with compound, green leaves and white, pink or purple, star-shaped flowers. The underground stems named stolons will form few to many tubers of different size and colour. The tuber bear small buds, from which all potaotes are vegetatively propagated

Other common names

Irish potato
underground onion
see morewhite potato

Synonyms

Solanum tuberosum var. vulgare

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Ultimate height

0.5–1 metres

Time to ultimate height

1 year

Ultimate spread

0.1–0.5 metres

Clay

Loam

Sand

Moisture

Moist but well–drained, Well–drained

pH

Acid, Alkaline, Neutral

	Stem	Flower	Foliage	Fruit
Spring
Summer
Autumn
Winter

Full shade
Partial shade

Aspect

South–facing or West–facing

Exposure

Sheltered

Hardiness
Hardiness ratings
All ratings refer to the UK growing conditions unless otherwise stated. Minimum temperature ranges (in degrees C) are shown in brackets
H1a: under glass all year (>15C)
H1b: can be grown outside in the summer (10 - 15)
H1c: can be grown outside in the summer (5 - 10)
H2: tolerant of low temperatures, but not surviving being frozen (1 to 5)
H3: hardy in coastal and relatively mild parts of the UK (-5 to 1)
H4: hardy through most of the UK (-10 to -5)
H5: hardy in most places throughout the UK even in severe winters (-15 to -10)
H6: hardy in all of UK and northern Europe (-20 to -15)
H7: hardy in the severest European continental climates (< -20)

Botanical details

Family: Solanaceae
Native to GB / Ireland: No
Foliage: Deciduous
Habit: Bushy, Clump forming
Potentially harmful: Harmful if eaten, except potato crop. Wear gloves and other protective equipment when handling. Pets (dogs): Harmful if eaten, except potato crop - for further information and contact numbers regarding pets, see the HTA guide to potentially harmful plants
Genus: Solanum can be annuals, perennials, evergreen or deciduous shrubs or twining climbers, with simple or pinnnately lobed leaves and star- or bowl-shaped, 5-lobed flowers with prominent stamens, followed by fleshy fruits
Name status: Correct

How to grow

Cultivation

Grow in an open, frost-free site with deep, fertile, moisture-retentive soil for high quality and heavy yields. Improve soil by adding organic matter, such as well-rotted manure, in the autumn. Draw earth up around the stems as they emerge, to exclude light and prevent the potatoes from becoming green. Water well in dry periods. Potatoes can also be grown in large containers or potato gro-bags. See potato cultivation for further advice

Propagation

Propagate by chitting tubers or 'seed potatoes'. This is done by standing the tubers 'rose-end' up (the end with the most eyes) in egg boxes or trays in a cool, light place. After two to three weeks the shoots will begin to sprout. Plant out after frosts have passed, from about mid March to mid April

Suggested planting locations and garden types

Patio and container plants
Cottage and informal garden

Pruning

No pruning required

Pests

May be susceptible to cutworms, slugs, wireworms, leaf and bud eelworm and potato cyst nematodes

Diseases

May be susceptible to honey fungus (rarely), Potato scab, Potato blight, Potato rot, Potato blackleg and stem canker

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