A well-known tuber-producing plant and staple crop throughout temperate regions of the world; an erect to somewhat sprawling perennial; pinnate leaves; clusters of drooping, white or purple flowers, with a 5-lobed corolla and five yellow stamens forming a prominent cone. The fruit is a berry similar in appearance to that of the tomato (a relative), but usually greenish, and unlike the tomato it is poisonous. The value of the potato as a vegetable lies in the stem tubers which are produced in abundance at the ends of stolons and which are rich in starch, vitamin C, and proteins. The tubers vary greatly in size, shape, colour, keeping and cooking qualities, and taste. The skins can be white, yellow to brown, pink, red, or purplish-black, and the flesh white to yellow, pink, or purple. The eyes on a potato are dormant buds, which in favourable conditions give rise to new stems. Plants grown from tubers are clones of the parent; this is commercially useful, as any desired characters are conserved. There are thousands of varieties, all regarded as belonging to a single species, Solanum tuberosum. There are also some 160 wild species, not all closely related.
The potato is native to South America, where it has a long history as a cultivated plant, primitive varieties being a staple crop from at least AD 200. Prior to the Spanish conquest, it was confined to the high Andes from Colombia to N Argentina and to Chile. Exactly when and how it was introduced to Europe is still a matter for conjecture, but despite various legends it probably first arrived in Spain from Colombia or Peru c.1565, and separately in England towards the end of the 16th-c (though not, as legend would have it, brought by Sir Walter Raleigh). Whatever its exact origin, 90% of the world's production now comes from the Old World, mainly E Europe, and as a crop it is rivalled only by wheat and rice. Potatoes are susceptible to a number of diseases, including viruses and potato blight (Phytophthora infestans). Production of better quality, higher-yielding, and especially of disease-resistant strains is a priority for crop breeders. Wild species and primitive strains, many of which are disease-resistant and have other desirable traits, are nowadays recognized as being very important as a gene pool for improving modern strains. (Family: Solanaceae.)
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Solanum tuberosum L. Potatoes are the world's most widely grown tuber crop, and the fourth largest crop in terms of fresh produce (after rice, wheat, and maize), but this ranking is inflated due to the high water content of fresh potatoes relative to that of other crops. After potato plants flower, some varieties will produce small green fruit that look similar to green cherry-tomatoes. However, some horticulturists sell chimeras made by grafting a tomato plant onto a potato plant, which can produce both edible tomatoes and potatoes. 
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19 g | |||||||||||||||
| - Starch 15 g | ||||||||||||||||
| - Dietary fiber 2.2 g | ||||||||||||||||
| Fat | 0.1 g | |||||||||||||||
| Protein | 2 g | |||||||||||||||
| Water | 75 g | |||||||||||||||
| Thiamin (Vit. | 6% | |||||||||||||||
| Riboflavin (Vit. | 2% | |||||||||||||||
| Niacin (Vit. | 7% | |||||||||||||||
| Vitamin B6 0.25 mg | 19% | |||||||||||||||
| Vitamin C 20 mg | 33% | |||||||||||||||
| Calcium 12 mg | 1% | |||||||||||||||
| Iron 1.8 mg | 14% | |||||||||||||||
| Magnesium 23 mg | 6% | |||||||||||||||
| Phosphorus 57 mg | 8% | |||||||||||||||
| Potassium 421 mg | 9% | |||||||||||||||
| Sodium 6 mg | 0% |
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Percentages are relative to US RDI values for adults. |
Potatoes have a high carbohydrate content and include protein, minerals (particularly potassium), and vitamins, including vitamin C. Freshly harvested potatoes retain more vitamin C than stored potatoes.
Potatoes (particularly mashed potatoes) are known to have a high Glycemic index, a disqualifying factor in many diets. Most potato dishes are served hot, but some are first cooked then served cold, notably potato salad and potato chips/crisps. Potatoes, unlike many foods, can also be easily cooked in a microwave oven and still retain nearly all of their nutritional value, provided that they are covered in ventilated plastic wrap to prevent moisture from escaping—this method produces a meal very similar to a baked potato. Potatoes form one of the main ingredients in many soups such as the pseudo-French vichyssoise and Albanian potato and cabbage soup. One popular favorite involves a baked potato with cheddar cheese (or sour cream and chives) on top, and in New England "smashed potatoes" (a chunkier variation on mashed potatoes, retaining the peel) have great popularity.
Toxic compounds in potatoes
Potatoes contain glycoalkaloids, toxic compounds, of which the most prevalent are solanine and chaconine. This dose would require eating 1 average-sized spoiled potato or 4 to 9 good potatoes (over 3 pounds or 1.4 kg) at one time.
See also List of poisonous plants
Cultivation
Potatoes are generally grown from the eyes of another potato and not from seed.
At harvest time, gardeners generally dig up potatoes with a three-prong "grape" (or "graip") or spading fork, but in larger plots, the plough can serve as the most expeditious implement for unearthing potatoes. The result is then usually run past workers who continue to sort out plant material, stones, and rotten potatoes before the potatoes are continuously delivered to a wagon or truck.
It is important to harvest potatoes before heavy frosts begin, since field frost damages potatoes in the ground, and even cold weather makes potatoes more susceptible to bruising and possibly later rotting which can quickly ruin a large stored crop.
Seed potato crops are 'rogued' in some countries to eliminate diseased plants or those of a different variety from the seed crop.
Pests
A major pest of potato plants is the Colorado potato beetle.
The potato root nematode is a microscopic worm that thrives on the roots, thus causing the potato plants to wilt.
New potatoes
Potatoes are generally cured after harvest to thicken the skin.
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