Potato
Solanum tuberosum

Family: Solanaceae

What it is like

A branched annual plant up to 50 cm high. The stems are soft and 4 angled with compound leaves. The leaves are irregular shape and have 6-8 pairs of leaflets as well as small irregular leaflets between the others. It has swollen stem tubers under the ground. The tubers can vary in colour from white to red and purple. The tuber shape can also vary greatly. The flowers are white pink or purple. The fruit is a berry. It is smooth, round and green but often striped.

There are about 1400 Solanum species. A C3 crop so will produce better with higher CO2 with climate change.

Where it is found

It is a temperate plant. In the tropics they mostly grow at high altitude above 1500 m, but plants are grown between 900 and 2800 m. Tubers form best when soil temperatures are 15.5°C. Tuber formation stops with a soil temperature of 30°C and decreases with temperatures above 20°C. Potatoes should have a mean temperature below 18°C. They are damaged by frost but slightly more frost tolerant than sweet potato. Short daylength helps tuber production. They can grow with a pH of 5.2-6.6. In the Himalayas it grows up to 4,400 m altitude as a summer crop. In the Andes it grows between 1,000-3,900 m above sea level. It suits hardiness zones 7-11.

Countries/locations it is found in

Africa, Albania, Algeria, Andes, Andorra, Angola, Argentina, Asia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Balkans, Bangladesh, Belarus, Belgium, Bolivia, Bougainville, Brazil, Britain, British Indian Ocean Terr., BIOT, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Caucasus, Central Africa, Central America, Central Asia, Chile, China, Colombia, Congo, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Côte d'Ivoire, Cuba, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, East Africa, East Timor, Ecuador, Egypt, Estonia, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Europe, Falklands, Fiji, Finland, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Guam, Guatemala, Haiti, Hawaii, Himalayas, Iceland, India, Indochina, Indonesia, Inner Mongolia, Ireland, Italy, Ivory Coast, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Korea, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Macedonia, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Mali, Malta, Mediterranean, Mexico, Moldova, Montenegro, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nepal, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, North Africa, North America, Northeastern India, Pacific, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Philippines, Sao Tome and Principe, Scandinavia, SE Asia, Serbia, Sierra Leone, Sikkim, Slovenia, Somalia, South Africa, Southern Africa, South America, Spain, Sri Lanka, Swaziland, Switzerland, Tajikistan, Tasmania, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Uganda, Ukraine, Uruguay, USA, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Vietnam, West Africa, West Indies, Zambia, Zimbabwe

How it is used for food

The tubers are cooked and eaten. They are also fried, canned and made into starch. The tubers are boiled, baked, roasted, mashed and used in soups, stews, dumplings, pancakes and potato salads. Potatoes are also use for alcoholic drinks. Caution: Alcohol is a cause of cancer. The tender leaves are also occasionally eaten. They are used in soup. The leaves are used for sarma in Turkey. They are rolled around a filling of rice or minced meat. CAUTION The green tubers and leaves are poisonous. They contain a poisonous alkaloid solanine. Tubers need to be cooked.

It is a commercially cultivated vegetable. In Papua New Guinea it is gaining acceptance as a subsistence food crop above about 1900 m altitude. More than 330 million tons are grown worldwide. It has been grown outside the Andes since 1532 AD.

Edible parts

Tubers, root, (leaves), vegetable, caution

How it is grown

Plants are grown from tubers. Due to virus diseases it is necessary to get fresh seed tubers each few years. Large tubers can be cut to include a bud or "eye". A seed piece of 40-50 g is suitable. It is best to inter-crop as this stops bacterial wilt spreading. The plant is surrounded by dirt when 20-25 cm tall. Later the tubers need to be kept covered with dirt. Providing extra light (4-5 hours) allows plants to form flowers and true seed to be collected.

The time to maturity is between 17 and 24 weeks. Yields of 5 to 12 tons/ha can be expected. Higher yields can be obtained with good care.

Its other names

Local names

Aalu, Aalu ko saag, Aartappel, Ah-lu, Ahr-lu, Alu-gidde, Alu, Ar-loo, Aspos, Aspus, Aswis, Atepote, Bangaladumpa, Batata, Batate, Buteta, Gamja, Huwi kumeli, Jagaimo, Kagow, Kartofel, Kentang, Krompir, Mudabula, Ovy, Owi kentang, Papa, Papas, Ubi kantang, Ubi kentang, Ubi kumandur, Uralagadda, Uralakilangu, Urulan kizhangu, Vateta, Wallaraikilangu, Yang yu

Synonyms

Solanum molinae Juz.; Solanum tuberosum var. guaytecarum (Bitter) Hawkes;