Violetta tps

[jayb]

Mini tubers grown in small modules. The plan was to plant them out in the plot but I never got around to it!
Chuffed they have have nearly all produced, despite the harsh growing conditions, or perhaps they produced because of them?

Tray module pretty much all died back




Mini tubers that were squished inside, love the length on some of these.

[Galina]

Oh wow. So pleased they thrived on this sort of unintentional neglect They are showing some green where they must have been pushing out of their growing spaces. A huge difference in tuber numbers and sizes. I wonder whether this will correlate with yield figures in the future? Will you follow this up? What a range of colours too. Thank you for showing us.

[Galina]

You hoped that there would be a fair chance of fingerling potatoes from Violetta tps. Well that was certainly the case Congratulations again!

[jayb]

It's interesting isn't it. My watering got more neglectful towards the end, the more prolific might represent the ones that are earlier to tuberise? But early is good for me, I won't be able to grow them all, I've selected the ones I like most, either colour or length/shape or both and if they keep ok I'd like to have room for them next year. Only one red with quite good colour but a couple of other reds seem to have a nice combination of pink and yellow. I think I'll have to cut the purples back a bit more, some look a bit samey, though taste might be quite different.

[Galina]

What about the potatoes in #7? There are just so many. They are not large, but could be a fab new variety with that sort of yield potential?

Second question for the experts. Do you keep small tubers in the box or in pots in nearly dry compost over winter to prevent drying out? I guess it is a good idea to plant them up indoors in a little pot before they go outside with cloche protection, just to give them a head start. Or would you grow them in something like a 5 litre pot in the poly/greenhouse?

[jayb]

Yes #7 has produced a lot of mini tubers. I hadn't thought of it as one to carry forward, I guess I was mainly looking at the red and deep purple ones. Inside it has a ring of lilac/purple and pale flesh which has the very slightest hint of orangey apricot.

Experts would be fab
I usually keep mine much as I would any seed potato, just in a scaled down containers. Then usually placed in the spare bedroom close to the window to keep any sprouts short. I think keeping them in little pots of compost would work very well, pre labeled they would be ready for watering come the spring.

[jayb]

Cont....
This year I started my mini tubers in 2x2" or 3x3" pots before transplanting out, I didn't start them very early as most were for the Late Blight challenge and I wanted them growing a little later than the main lot. But for next year the violetta mini's could be started inside so they are then ready to be planted about the time of the last frost although a bit before wouldn't matter as long as they were earthed up well.

[Galina]

The display in the box got me thinking - are there definite potato colours? Like tomatoes? Or do they just meld into different shades from the palest to the darkest. You said there was only one good coloured red, which one? Does pink and yellow make red? Is this a case of colours overlaying each other? I have read lots about tomato colours, but nothing about potato colours. Are there any green or olive green potatoes? Are there any with striping? Knowing little about the subject, I was surprised about Pink Belle, which seems to have several bands of pink along the tuber. Not organised stripes, but the closest I have seen. And as we certainly 'do' colourful on this forum, I'd say that extends to potatoes too therefore I hope you don't mind all these questions.

[jayb]

In short, I don't know, there seems to be a fair amount of variation and possibilities with potatoes. I think tomatoes are much easier to work with in that outcomes are much more predictable, potatoes are more all over the shop, I have much to learn. I've not seen any green or olive green potatoes other than those exposed to sunlight, but I guess if there are they are likely to be rejected. I don't think there are stipes as such, just the different combinations of colour around the eyes that can be of different size banding.

[Galina]

Are tomatoes diploid?
I noticed from your and Robert's pictures that yellow potatoes produce yellows from tps and tps from purple have a whole lot of colours. Coincidence or is that a rule?

[Galina]

Thank you for the storage and early growing advice above.

[jayb]

Regular potatoes 'whites' come in so many different shades, with tone differences for both skin and flesh and can be combinations of white, cream, off white, ivory, yellow, deep yellow etc. I've been digging around looking at colour as I'm not sure if a selfed white fleshed variety can throw a coloured off spring. Plus skin can be red or purple black while the flesh is 'white'. I think to throw colour it will have it somewhere in the background. The violetta tps I grew had good range with most represented. I'm sure I read Tom Wagner saying some of his best blues have come from a red.

[jayb]

Some of the reds and blues I like the best.

[Galina]

2 and 10 from left are the prettiest, nice yellow flesh colour in 4 too. Presumably they will scab over no problem and you can still plant the tubers.

The red and purple inside presumably is anthocyanin and presumably as all purple veg very good for health. How much of its antioxidant qualities are left after boiling potatoes?

[jayb]

Here's the inside of one of the little Number 7's, the inside ring of colour is quite similar tone to the skin colour.

[Galina]

ahhh - lovely! Wonder whether the inside colour is still there after cooking?