Bolivian Potato Varieties

[Tom Wagner]

Variety: 90-245-21
Origin: Bolivia
Attributes: Frost resistant, late blight resistant
Special trait: Very upright and tall.
Location: Skagit County, WA
Hybrid cluster with string tag...Angus Bull potato variety pollen
TPS objective: Huge plants with huge yields. Angus Bull has Negro y Azul as a parent and it can grow 10 wide in the row...Lamont, CA.
Agronomic design: Using trellis to optimize solar penetration...and get yields of 10 lbs. + per hill.

I used sweeps on a Troy Built to furrow out the middle of the row and build up the hill by several inches right after photo was taken.

[meadowyck]

Gosh I never knew a potato would have such beautiful foliage and flowers. Thanks for sharing.

[Tom Wagner]

I watched the cartoon short about FERDINAND THE BULL when I was a kid and identified with the bull who loved to smell the flowers. I was increasing enamored with potato flower scent as early as the early to mid 50's and like roses, not all potato flowers had the intoxicating volatiles that drew me near them. Today, I look at potato flowers for quality construction... lack of early abscission, flowers held high above the foliage, and long term blooming spans. I have potato clones that will bloom over a continuous 5 month cycle. With many of my varieties carrying wild germplasm from diploids...these potatoes bloom as if they are obligate outcrossers...blooming as it their very lives depended on it. And their very lives did depend on it...I seldom save varieties that don't bloom AND set berries.

I am still learning if insect pollinators are attracted to flower colors or ones with more powerful aromatics. Are anther colors important? Yellow, reddish-orange, black? For years....I have felt that thrips played an important role in self pollination...as I have seen thrips crawling all over the anthers and stigmas of potato flowers that had outstanding berry production.....and their bodies would be covered in pollen. Thrips were rarely in closed unopened potato flower buds, but were present in more mature flowers...how did they get there? And when?

Tall plants like the one in the previous picture hold their flowers high...does that attract insect pollinators from afar? Does it make the insect return again and again with other another plant's pollen. Does the height of the plant make it more likely to be a pollen parent? Insect pollinators can be various types of bees, beetles, moths, flies, etc.....which are more like to visit a particular color?

[meadowyck]

Tom, what a researcher's mind you have, which accounts for your incredible creations.

Thanks

[wmontanez]

From my observations in my garden I see a lot of bumblebees going from flower to flower. It seems that they are not particular about the color of the potato flowers. When they visit they go from the strawberries, raspberries to the onion and even go to the tomato patch but they spend a lot of time in the potatoes. It does seems to me like the tall flowers are favorite but they look around and find the others. It could be the scent...I have to go around smelling potato flowers

[bboomer]

Where did you get the potato seeds? I would love to grow a row or two of Bolivian varieties.

[Tom Wagner]

I have quite a few potato clones/varieties from Bolivia but I am not sure if I will find the time and energy to send out tubers....however, I will certainly try to offer TPS of the one pictured and others. I made crosses today and a couple of days ago to this one and will likely use it as a pollen parent if I can quickly determine if the selfings work to produce berries. I am taking pictures with my cell phone as I cross...mainly to have a pictorial database. I have Muru, Perricholi, Capiro, Plenty More, Cascade, Blue Magic, Black Famine, Purple Majesty, Skagit Valley Gold, Magic Viola, Troll, German Butterball, etc., in today's crosses. I had to stop mid-day to plant more tubers ..about 20 internationally derived varieties.

[wingnut]

I went fishing at Westport and got a nice 5# lingcod, and a 5# cabazon.......mmmmmmm