The Main Plant entry for Potatoes (Solanum tuberosum)

"Potatoes contain toxic compounds known as glycoalkaloids, of which the most prevalent are solanine and chaconine. Solanine is also found in other plants in the family Solanaceae, which includes such plants as the deadly nightshade (Atropa belladonna), henbane (Hyoscyamus niger) and tobacco (Nicotiana) as well as the potato, eggplant, and tomato. This toxin affects the nervous system, causing weakness and confusion.

These compounds, which protect the plant from its predators, are, in general, concentrated in its leaves, stems, sprouts, and fruits. Exposure to light, physical damage, and age increase glycoalkaloid content within the tuber; the highest concentrations occur just underneath the skin. Cooking at high temperatures —over 340 °F— partly destroys these. The concentration of glycoalkaloid in wild potatoes suffices to produce toxic effects in humans. Glycoalkaloids may cause headaches, diarrhea, cramps, and in severe cases coma and death; however, poisoning from potatoes occurs very rarely. Light exposure causes greening from chlorophyll synthesis, thus giving a visual clue as to areas of the tuber that may have become more toxic; however, this does not provide a definitive guide, as greening and glycoalkaloid accumulation can occur independently of each other. Some varieties of potato contain greater glycoalkaloid concentrations than others; breeders developing new varieties test for this, and sometimes have to discard an otherwise promising cultivar.

Potatoes are generally grown from seed potatoes – these are tubers specifically grown to be disease free and provide consistent and healthy plants. To be disease free, the areas where seed potatoes are grown are selected with care. In the USA this restricts production of seed potatoes to only 15 states out of the 50 states that grow potatoes. These locations are selected for their cold hard winters that kill pests and long sunshine hours in the summer for optimum growth."

Taken from wikipedia's page at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P...

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It's estimated there's 5000 varieties worldwide, of which 3000 are found in the So. Am. Andes Genetic testing indicates original traced to southern Peru and extreme northwest Bolivia.
4000 different varieties are generally divided into the following groups: russets, reds, whites, yellows (Yukons), and purples. There are also wild species throughout the Americas. In the last 20 years genetically modified varieties have appeared.
Potatoes were domesticated 7000 to 10000 years ago
China and India account for nearly a third of the world harvest.
Potatoes are the world's 4th largest food crop (behind rice, wheat, and maize).
Propagation can be achieved by dividing tubers into pieces with an eye, seed, or cuttings.
Some interesting facts: a) if stored w/ pears near, potatoes absorb odors of pears.
b) it's possible to graft a tomato onto a potato plant that will produce edible tomatoes and potatoes. These creations are referred to as Chimeras.
c) Mr. Potato Head was invented in America in 1949.
d) Humans can survive and be healthy on a diet of potatoes supplemented only with milk or butter (which have the 2 vitamins not provided by potatoes.

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