Potato Variety Performance, Alaska 1997

Abstract

A yield trial comparing 45 cultivars of potatoes (Solanum tuberosum L.) was conducted during the 1997 growing season at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station’s (AFES) Palmer Research Center, Matanuska Farm, located six miles west of Palmer, Alaska. Varieties with a history of commercial production in the Matanuska Valley (Alaska 114, Bake-King, Green Mountain, and Superior) were included to serve as a comparative base for newly developed varieties or older named varieties that have not been tested at this location. Russet Burbank, the variety most widely grown in the United States, also was included to broaden the base of comparison although past trials have demonstrated its unsuitability for this area. Varieties that compare favorably with the above listed local standards may warrant consideration by commercial growers. Nonirrigated trials have been conducted annually since 1982 whereas irrigated trials were initiated in 1985. Results of these trials were published in AFES Circulars and are available at AFES offices.