Warmer weather means planting! The Cornell Program uses a two row planter to get thousands of different clones into the soil each year. #scicomm #potato #potatoscicomm #potatobreeding #plantbreeding #photography #planting

Rainy day work during planting #scicomm #potato #potatoscicomm #potatobreeding #plantbreeding #photography #berries #truepotatoseed

Walking around campus giving away Cornell cultivar buttons #InternationalDayOfPotato #scicomm #potato #potatoscicomm #potatobreeding #plantbreeding

Pests, pheromones, viruses, breeding and more! Cornell’s first potato field day in over a decade was a success! #scicomm #potato #potatoscicomm #potatobreeding #plantbreeding #photography #fieldday #cornell

Listening to the needs, opinions, and struggles of stakeholders is an important part of the breeding process. #scicomm #potato #potatoscicomm #potatobreeding #plantbreeding #photography #cornell

Our breeding program participated in the Cornell Vegetable Variety Showcase & Pathology Twilight Meeting yesterday. In attendance were home gardeners and local small scale growers, so we highlighted some of our favorite tablestock cultivars for them.

The Methods of Plant Breeding class joined us at our common scab fields. We had great discussions about what it takes to be a breeder, the different traits for each market class, and how the Cornell program breeds potatoes which includes assessing resistance to common scab.

Last week, we selected clones in our 2x50 plots. We assessed clones on tuber traits, resistance gene markers, fry color, and vine maturity. Some choices were easy, like the overly green clone Matt and Walter passed by, while others required more thought on trait importance.

The Cornell Potato Breeding Program mainly focuses on developing round white potatoes for chipping. But occasionally, the program makes purple potato crosses. One of the main criteria for selection: does it look cool?

Yesterday was a perfect day to harvest our county trial at Mahany Farms. Not only do we collect yield and tuber quality data, but local chipping plants receive samples to test in their production systems. The data from these trials help us find the next potential cultivar.

Finished harvesting the breeding program's fields just as the hills start to turn to fall colors! Today, we collected 200 clones in my Globodera pallida resistance gene stacking population. Check out the timelapse of the process.

The National Chip Program (NCP) brings together US potato breeders, growers, processors, and Potatoes USA to find new chipping cultivars. Notes are taken during grading to help the breeder give each clone an overall merit score. Learn more about NPC below potatoesusa.com/production-res…

Harvesting our tablestock clones in the beautiful fall colors at Williams Farm! It is important to evaluate in the same conditions as the growers to get an accurate assessment of the performance of the clones. Learn more about planting the muck trial: potatonematodes.org/selecting-for-…

While harvesting this season, we noticed an unusual-looking seed piece. Upon closer inspection, we realized it was likely a blind seed piece. Even without an eye to sprout from, it still tried REALLY hard to grow. #scicomm #potato #potatoscicomm #potatobreeding #plantbreeding

This past week I traveled across Belgium & the Netherlands with my dad (a Wisconsin minituber and FY1 grower) and other U.S. seed growers, thanks to a trip organized by Agristo. From fry plants to breeders like Meijer & HZPC, every stop was informative and an amazing experience.

Potato chips were made this week, but not every clone had a paper-white fry color due to the accumulation of sugars during the months spent in cold storage. That’s why one of the program’s goals is to breed for clones that can make exceptional chips long after harvest.

What do you get when you cross a white potato with a purple potato?  The answer: Yes! Each tuber in the picture is a unique clone from the cross in question. This type of population is a great demonstration of the variation created by a cross. Happy International Day of Potato!🥔

The Commonwealth Potato Collection (CPC) preserves a range of wild potato species. These plants are utilized by breeders to bring in traits of interest like disease resistance, tolerance to environmental stresses, and improved processing quality into their new varieties