Hidden in the ground

The potato was first found high in the Andes Mountains of Peru in South America over 6,000 years ago.  There are many stories about how the potato came to this country.  The most popular belief is that the plant was taken from South America to Spain by explorers during the 16^th century; it was then brought back to England by Sir Walter Raleigh.

Potatoes are sometimes called spuds.  A spud is really a small narrow flat spade that was used for digging up items like potatoes and that is how the nickname stuck.

The potato is planted in the ground and there are three seasons for planting them, they are called; first earlies; second earlies; and main crop.  Earlies are planted from January to March and are harvested (dug up) in April in the warmest parts of the country.  They are usually known as new potatoes.  The main crop potatoes are planted in April and harvested in September and October.  The second earlies are grown between the two other seasons.

Potatoes are a popular part of the UK diet and on average an adult eats 105 kg of potatoes per person, per year.  During the 1^st and 2^nd World Wars potatoes were very important as food was in short supply, especially fresh food.  The potato provides a balance of carbohydrates, protein and vitamins.

Millions of extra tonnes of potatoes were grown in gardens and allotments.  It was part of the famous "Dig for Victory" campaign.  The aim of this was to grow vegetables in gardens and parklands rather than bring food into the country by ship.  Doing this was difficult in the war as the ships were often attacked by enemy boats and planes.

You may hear potatoes described as waxy or floury.  Waxy potatoes are good for keeping their shape and are used in frying while floury potatoes break up and are ideal for boiling and mashing.  The most important areas for growing potatoes are Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and East Anglia.  The biggest potato was grown in Germany in 1977 and weighed 3.2kg.

There are hundreds of different types of potatoes and the table below shows some of them with the best ways of cooking them.

Potatoes are great for growing as the first crop on a new piece of land.  The ground needs to be dug well and fertilised so this helps make the ground perfect for growing.   After the ground has been well dug, a trench is made and the seed potatoes put in, then the trench is filled in and the earth built up, this protects them from frost. 

To make seed potatoes place small potatoes in an egg box and place them in sunlight at about 10°F for six weeks.  This process is known as chitting and the potatoes sprout small green shoots.  These shoots eventually grow into potatoes when in the ground.  When the potatoes are ready they are carefully dug up so the potatoes are not damaged.  They are ready when the plants above ground flower on the early varieties.  With the main crop you should wait until the leaves dies down and then wait ten days.  If you are digging up the potatoes up with a fork you need to use one with wide, flat prongs so the potatoes are not damaged.

Potatoes are full of starch which helps fill you up and gives you energy so you can work and play.  However, they are low in calories, about 60 - 70 calories for a portion of new potatoes.  This makes them an excellent food, especially as there are so many ways to eat them.  And if you have them with the skin on, such as a jacket potato, this will increase the fibre content.  This helps your body take in and process food.

Date

10/10/2007