Learn more about Seed Saver Exchange

To ensure survival of genetic diversity and cultural heritage, potatoes need to be planted and harvested every year!! You cannot just grow seed and deep-freeze it, because that seed will give you a NEW variety - there is no way to know if the features of the new variety (the true seed that can be frozen) will be similar to the mother variety. Many organizations worldwide keep the potato varieties clones alive as in-vitro cultures but unfurtunately many plants are not available to the general public as tubers to grow and eat.

There are about 9,000 varieties of potato - perhaps more because new varieties are developed worldwide every year. We have thousands of varieties grown in the USA, but about 1000 have a name (vs. a code number) and heritage data.

• The Kenosha Potato Project is an attempt to double the efforts of Seed Saver Exchange and duplicate the collection of potato varieties here in South Eastern Wisconsin (a living tuber germplasm collection).
• Determine which varieties work best in local home gardens, with special attention to rare varieties [especially colored, not white developed for chip and fry].
• New Focus for 2014 and ongoing - varieties which yield larger crops grown in gardeners.com Growing Bags. More specifically it is our intention to keep growing the whole collection in containers [more info here] ... with following changes: it is obvious that growing vines in bags is challenged by higher soil temps, thus the opportunity to observe and monitor which varieties develop well at higher soil temps. Seems an interesting topic in light of rising Global Temperature?
• Create a catalog of all potato varieties grown locally (except for commercial) including the features of each variety and their best use in the kitchen (recipes).

1) Become a member of Seed Savers Exchange

Please call 563-382-5990 to enroll or click here - Yearly membership fee is $40 or $25 for fix income:

http://www.seedsavers.org/onlinestore/memberships/

2) Join me on Facebook to network with Potato Gardeners all over the world.

3) Select varieties which are "close to your heart" ... which varieties do you care for, why are these important for you?

4) If you are growing a variety which should be added to this catalog, please send me an email message.

Each participant will be credited on the catalog web pages with a code that protects your identity. Only the first grower for each variety is listed, as long as the variety is grown - so that records can be kept of who is responsible for the source seed. [Unfortunately I don't have time to keep up with web page updates > if you wish to be given credit on my web pages, please email me a note. Thanks, Curzio]

Also, we are interested to perfect the catalog listing with your feedback to correct mistakes. To keep the listing simple, we only divide the catalog in 2 categories per feature:

Water - Starch Content: Waxy varieties contain less starch and work best in some kitchen applications. Starchy varieties contain less water and work best for baking, for instance. Details will be disclosed in the Recipe listing linked to each variety.

[Waxy vs. Starchy determination: We don't have access to Lab Instruments therefore my "non-scientific test" is done by boiling potato for my breakfast with skins on, then pressing with a fork against the skinned potato piece. Waxy varieties resist the pressure, while starchy collapse to mash].

Round - Long Shape: Fingerlings grow long, and the preferred feature for baking and French fries is found in the Long Shape. Again Round or Long is an indication that finds benefit in the use in the kitchen.

Early - Late: Traditionally potato varieties are divided in early - mid - late season, this not a "traditional listing!!!" We flag as "Early" any potato that is "done" by the end of August (done = vines are dry) as we believe that tubers develop greater storage strength by drawing all energy from the vines. The features of very early or very late varieties will be disclosed in the cultivar description of the catalog. XX = Very Late or Exceptionally Early.

Any historic data that adds value to any variety will be published in the catalog, while in the list below, to highlight the older varieties, find in the first column after the name, either LR for Landrace or the year of hybrid release (old = approx 100 or older).

You get credit for your contribution with your first name. Your identity is protected by KPP, unless you become a listed Seed Savers Exchange member, as your name and address is published in the SEE Yearbook. [Again, unfortunately I don't have time to keep up with web page updates > if you wish to be given credit on my web pages, please email me a note. Thanks, Curzio]

To find any potato variety, just scroll down the catalog page or click on the variety name listed below.

This web page is linked to my web page KenoshaPotato.com

For the pleasure of the Potato Gardeners, the main objective of these web pages is to help selecting varieties which are:

• Great tasting cooked in specific recipes
• Grow well in small garden plots and/or in gardeners.com Potato Growing Bags
• We believe that varieties grown in containers will produce higher yields if they feature long stolons, and set tubers higher above the original seed piece.

The third column - marked HS or SC - shows which varieties we have found to set tubers higher above the original seed piece [HS], or a variety which loves to be grown in a crowded container - the code SC marks varieties that are being tested for Seed Crowding. Perhaps these are the features which will increase the crop yield.

Other important features are:

• Tolerance to higher soil temperatures
• Tolerance to light frost - perhaps the combination of these two features may lead to find varieties which perform better with erratic weather patterns
• Tolerance to irregular container soil mixture moisture
• Tuber setting and bulking at higher soil mixture temperature in containers