Can collecting TPS from your own plants be dangerous?

[svalli]

I need help to find out, if this is a myth or has some truth in it. Someone in a Finnish gardening site is warning people about collecting seeds from potato berries and growing them. She insists that potatoes grown from TPS will be bitter and may contain dangerous levels of solanine.

Is there any truth behind this claim? I know that most of the potatoes grown from collected TPS will be different than the original and still OK to eat, but can there be offspring which has higher levels of solanine in the tubers than the 'mother' plant had.


Sari

[Tom Wagner]

I need help to find out, if this is a myth or has some truth in it. Someone in a Finnish gardening site is warning people about collecting seeds from potato berries and growing them. She insists that potatoes grown from TPS will be bitter and may contain dangerous levels of solanine.

Is there any truth behind this claim? I know that most of the potatoes grown from collected TPS will be different than the original and still OK to eat, but can there be offspring which has higher levels of solanine in the tubers than the 'mother' plant had.

Sari,
Well, if something gets repeated enough it can almost become a myth. If one reads it often enough there's gotta be some truth in it, right?

For years, folks would warn me about growing potatoes from true seed (TPS) as if I didn't already know about glycoalkaloids. If those folks warning others not to grow potatoes from true seed had only done the work themselves..they would not be so concerned to make such blanket statements or assertions. Let's take another look at that statement ;
She insists that potatoes grown from TPS will be bitter and may contain dangerous levels of solanine.
Will be bitter? The state should read may be bitter and may contain solanine (TGA).

One of the more classic examples of high glycoalkaloids in potatoes is the variety Lenape. It had used in breeding for years to produce chipping varieties. I was involved in evaluation experimental numbered lines from the USDA when I was a cooperator back in the 60's through the 90's. Ray Webb had crossed Wauseon to Lenape so many times, it was fast becoming a gold mine of sorts. B6987 was one cross that was made multiple times to produce lots of TPS in 1969. That is why the 69 was in the B6987 notation. I had grown many of the advanced numbered seedlings from that group. B6987-29 was my favorite around 1972-75 and it was named in 1978 as Belchip. Atlantic was named in 1976 and it is to this day one of the major chipping varieties.

I remember some of the seedlings had a bitter taste in the back of the mouth which puts you jaw in action, a ratcheting motion that looks ridiculous to others.
The parent Lenape was taken off the variety listing because of the bitterness, soon after. So yes, some potatoes grown from true seed can be bitter, but not all of them. Even low levels of glycoalkaloids is necessary for a good potato flavor.

Here is a composite of important Lenape crosses. Note that the cross was re-done in 1997 with the series B9792.

ATLANTIC WAUSEON x LENAPE USA 1976 USDA B 6987-56

BELCHIP WAUSEON x LENAPE USA 1978 USDA B 6987-29

CHIPBELLE WAUSEON x LENAPE USA 1981 USDA B 6987-184
COASTAL CHIP WAUSEON x LENAPE USA 1990 USDA B 9792-157

SUNCRISP WAUSEON x LENAPE USA 1993 USDA B 9792-8B
AMEY USDA B 6987-145 x USDA B 7805-1 USA 1999 USDA B 9922-11



One of my favorite potato varieties is Negro y Azul, a Lenape cross. And yes, I discarded sibs from that cross due to the bitterness.

One of the things I always do is to taste at least one tuber out of a seedling hill to detect flavor and for bitterness. It can be done with raw or cooked potatoes.

There are some great resources to read about bitter potatoes and if i could find the one where some of the Nordic landraces of potatoes have naturally high levels of alkaloids, I would link to it. Meanwhile to study the problem a good read is: http://www.redepapa.org/glycoalkaloids.pdf


Bottom line, don't let a few alarmists discourage you from growing potatoes from true seed. It is a fun experience.

Tom Wagner

[svalli]

Thanks Tom,

I am not worried about the TPS potatoes, but needed some facts for writing an educated answer against the claims about TPS potatoes. Did I understand correctly that if any new variety is so bitter that I can not eat them, they probably have so much glycoalkaloids that the potatoes should not be consumed.

I have to think carefully how to answer her; I do not feel like starting a fight about the issue, but I do not like that she keeps repeating her claims every time someone on the gardening forum is writing about the potato berries they have found in their gardens.

[Robert Brenchley]

All potato varieties originated from TPS at some point. If you want to respond to her, start with that!