Fall surprises include the discovery of juicy delights when digging up the garden. Julia selected several varieties of potatoes to plant last spring and now the results are in!

This is the “repurposed” harvest from a single plant. Julia filled one of our garden beds with just potatoes, planting the best eyes. She filled the bed and was left with a half dozen cut pieces that didn’t show any promising “eyes”- the part on the potato that sprouts and produces the crop. Instead of just throwing these pieces in the compost pile, I repurposed them out by the alley. I had cleaned the chicken coop and had a pile of straw and wood shavings behind the coop. I decided to “plant” the potatoes in the straw pile and see what would happen. About half of the pieces never sprouted but a few did and the results are delicious! Lesson: never throw anything away (at least not right away).

From the seed catalog: Viking Purple- “Unique taste and smooth texture make this variety a favorite for many. Slightly sweet flavor gets sweeter with longer storage. Snow white flesh is perfect for mashing, but is also excellent for any preparation. Beautiful purple skin with red-pink marbling. Average tubers are 3½-4” in diameter, with potential for larger tubers. Excellent storage qualities. 80-100 days.”