Desiree (Red)

Parentage – Urgenta x Depesche^1,2

Breeder – Bred by HZPC Seed Company^2,3, Leeuwarden, Netherlands in 1951; registered in Canada in 1994²

Maturity – Intermediate to late^1,2

Usage – Fresh market; good for boiling, frying and chipping^1,2,3

Plant – Medium size with semi-erect foliage^1,2,3; thick, unbranched stems that are bent at the nodes; red purple nodes and internodes; large, straight, pigmented wings²

Leaves – Open, moderately long, rigid, gray green with midribs and petioles that are red purple on upper side and green on lower side; oval, long tipped primary leaflets; few, heart-shaped secondary leaflets²

Flowers – Numerous, star shape, pink to violet with white tips; distinctive small green star surrounds bright orange anthers; stems are reddish colored²; high berry production³

Tubers – Long to oval, uniform, medium to large size, semi-smooth red skin with shallow to medium deep eyes; cream to light yellow flesh^1,2,3; short to medium tuber dormancy period; medium specific gravity^1,2

Strengths – Produce moderate to high yields with potential to harvest early; moderately resistant to external damage, internal bruising, secondary growth, growth cracks, hollow heart, late blight, potato viruses A, X, Y and M; high resistance to drought stress, Fusarium dry rot^1,2 and blackleg¹

Weaknesses – Irregular tuber shape can occur when grown in heavy soil with high moisture content^2,3; susceptible to common scab, potato leafroll virus^1,2, powdery scab, tobacco rattle virus¹ and potato cyst nematode^1,3

References: ¹http://www.europotato.org/varieties/view/Desiree-E ²http://www.inspection.gc.ca/plants/potatoes/potato-varieties/desiree/eng/1312587385699/1312587385700 ³http://varieties.ahdb.org.uk/varieties/view/Desiree

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Last Revised: 5/8/19

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