Research card canon
Beate
- From
- Ås (Norges landbrukshøgskole, Institutt for plantekultur), Norway
- When
- Bred 1966; grown since the late 1960s
- Bred or kept by
- A. P. Lunden, NLH
- Parents
- Carnea × Doon Star x Åspotet
- How sure
- origin verified
- Shape
- long-oval, somewhat flattened
- Proportion
- not measured
- Size
- unknown
- Bend
- none
- Knobs
- none
- Skin
- red; eyes and sprout buds more strongly coloured than the rest, smooth
- Flesh
- white to cream
- Eyes
- shallow, deeper red than the skin
- Dormancy
- medium
- Flesh type
- all-round
- Health
- Resistant to wart; weak against late blight on the foliage but fairly resistant on the tubers; very strong against common scab (NIBIO). ECPD adds frequent internal rust spot and medium resistance to potato virus Y.
- The name
- unknown. Beate is a common Norwegian woman's name; why it was chosen is not documented.
The colour swatches are the flat colours the drawings use, read from photos and lifted to even daylight; the card says how.
What it looks like. A long-oval, somewhat flattened tuber with smooth red skin and white to cream flesh. The eyes are shallow and coloured more strongly than the skin around them, so they read as darker dots. No usable photo was found; the red (#B4483F) is chosen from the description to sit clearly between Kerr's Pink's light pink and Pimpernel's dark red.
Place in Norway. For decades the most used potato in Norway, a practical, all-purpose table potato that holds together when boiled, with middling eating quality (NIBIO). Now being overtaken by newer varieties.
Family. Bred by A. P. Lunden at the agricultural college at Ås in 1966 from Carnea crossed with (Doon Star x Åspotet). It is a grandchild of Åspotet and a parent of Hårek (Pimpernel x Beate, 1985), which ties it to Pimpernel. A. P. Lunden is a historical public figure (a plant breeder); told as a fact, not portrayed.
Body facts that carry story. Very strong against scab, the skin disease; weak against blight on its leaves but tough in the tuber. Flowers sparsely and rarely sets berries.
In the cellar
Where sources disagree
flesh colour
NIBIO: white
ECPD: cream
How we settled it: White to cream; card uses an off-white #F2EAD2, a hair warmer than Kerr's Pink so the two can share a page without matching.
dormancy
ECPD: short to medium
no other source
How we settled it: Recorded as medium, the upper end of the only range found; the short end is just as defensible. If a character needs it, say 'wakes a little early'.
parents
NIBIO: Don Star
ECPD: Doon Star
How we settled it: Same variety; Doon Star is the usual spelling (NIBIO's Laila entry also writes Doon Star).
Still unknown
- No licensed photo found. Proportions null and hex values from the description only (a clear mid red, lighter than Pimpernel). Needs real tubers photographed; Beate is still sold in Norway.
- Name meaning.
- Cooking type: NIBIO says it does not fall apart, which is why it is recorded as all-round; no source uses the word.
Sources
- kvann.no: NIBIO: for decades the most used variety in Norway, now being overtaken; bred at NLH, grown since the late 1960s; Carnea x (Don Star x Åspotet), A. P. Lunden, Institutt for plantekultur, NLH, Ås, 1966; many uses, does not fall apart when boiled, middling eating quality; long-oval, somewhat flattened, shallow eyes; red skin, white flesh; eyes and sprout buds more strongly coloured; half-late, medium yield; medium-tall upright plant; red-violet flowers, sparse flowering, rarely berries; wart resistant, weak against foliage blight, fairly resistant on tubers, very strong against common scab
- europotato.org: ECPD: Carnea x (Doon Star x Aspotet 737); Norway; skin red; flesh cream; oval; eyes shallow to medium; dormancy short to medium; internal rust spot frequent to very frequent; tuber blight resistance high; common scab very high