'Dottie Todd' Rare Heirloom Potatoes

After months of waiting and wondering what was growing underneath the soil, the time finally arrived to dig in and see! Michelle and I unearthed a hoard of beautiful white-skinned potatoes with rosy red 'eyes'. We boiled up all the small ones right away and found them to be quite delicious with a flaky, tender texture!

This rare variety is known as 'Dottie Todd'. I started with a few spuds given to me by heirloom gardener Cal Vanoni of Sonoma County, California. An unusual feature of this variety is its 'indeterminate' habit, which allows it to keep growing practically perpetually (if it doesn't freeze).  The vines are incredibly disease resistant, so home gardeners in mild climates could essentially have a permanent potato patch with no fuss! The disadvantage of this habit is that it is difficult to tell when to harvest...in fact, it seems to be best suited for ongoing harvests of small 'new' potatoes over a long season. 

Dottie Todd Potatoes

Most of today's popular potato varieties have more of a 'determinate' habit. They predictably set their tubers after flowering and the plants die back for harvest of a more concentrated yield of larger potatoes. This is a big advantage for farmers and home gardeners who live in places with cold winters. However, enthusiastic heirloom gardeners in these regions may want to give Dottie Todd a try anyway to see how the yield is affected by the first killing frost. Potatoes can be stored through the winter in a root cellar at about 40 degrees Fahrenheit.