Tuffelrud

Research card canon

Russet Burbank

Also Netted Gem, Idaho potato

From
Massachusetts (Burbank's Seedling); russet sport found later in the western US, United States
When
Burbank's Seedling selected 1873; russet form released 1902 as Netted Gem
Bred or kept by
Luther Burbank (Burbank's Seedling); russet sport released by L. L. May and Co. (ECPD names L. Sweet)
Parents
Burbank's Seedling (russet sport of it) × Early Rose (parent of Burbank's Seedling)
How sure
origin partly
Shape
large, long, cylindrical or slightly flattened, blunt ends
Proportion
1.75 times as long as wide, measured from photos
Size
about 11.5 by 6.6 cm
Bend
none
Knobs
slight
Skin
light brown, netted russet, russet
Flesh
white, dry and mealy
Eyes
medium, same as skin
Dormancy
long
Flesh type
floury
Health
High resistance to blackleg and common scab; susceptible to late blight on foliage and tubers, fusarium, mild mosaic virus, leaf roll virus and internal rust spot; misshapen tubers under drought stress; high secondary growth (Wikipedia, AHDB, ECPD).
The name
After Luther Burbank, who selected the parent seedling, and its russet (rough, reddish-brown, corky) skin.
Protected names
Idaho potato. Told here as facts; never used as a character's name.

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. The big plain one: a large, long, blunt-ended tuber about 1.75 times as long as wide, with a rough, netted, light brown russet skin and dry white flesh. The public-domain photo gives 11.5 by about 6.6 cm.

History. Luther Burbank selected Burbank's Seedling in Massachusetts in 1873 from seed of Early Rose. A russet-skinned sport of it was released in 1902 as Netted Gem. Burbank could not patent it, because tuber-propagated plants were not patentable in the US then. By the 2010s it supplied about 70 percent of the North American processed-potato market, chiefly fries (Wikipedia). Luther Burbank is a historical public figure; told as fact, not portrayed.

Body facts that carry story. A mutation of another variety, not a cross. Long dormancy: stores for months at 7 C without sprout inhibitors. Gets misshapen when it is short of water. Its lineage runs back to Rough Purple Chili through Garnet Chili and Early Rose (atlas), the one family tree in this set that leads back to South America by name.

In the cellar

Where sources disagree

skin colour

Wikipedia: brown

AHDB: cream; ECPD: white to yellow

How we settled it: Both. The descriptor class is the unpigmented skin underneath; the corky russet layer on top makes it look light brown. Card draws the russet: the PD photo samples #C69D61 and #DAB47D on a white studio background, card #BF975F.

eye depth

Atlas: few, shallow; Wikipedia says both 'relatively few eyes' and 'numerous eyes'

AHDB: deep; ECPD: shallow to deep

How we settled it: Medium, the middle of a spread that seems to depend on growing conditions; the PD photo shows a few medium eyes.

Still unknown

  • The only public-domain photo is captioned 'russet potato cultivar', not named as Russet Burbank. Proportions match the descriptions, but the variety is not confirmed; replace with a named photo or our own when possible. size_cm comes from that photo's stated length (11.5 cm) and its pixel ratio.
  • Who found the russet sport: Wikipedia names L. L. May and Co. as releaser; ECPD lists L. Sweet; often credited to Lou Sweet of Colorado (not checked).
  • 'Idaho potato' is listed as protected because 'Idaho' on potatoes is a certification mark of the Idaho Potato Commission (from general knowledge; not checked this pass).

Sources

  • en.wikipedia.org: mutation of Burbank's Seedling selected by Luther Burbank in 1873; released 1902 by L. L. May and Co. as Netted Gem; brown skin; white, dry, mealy flesh; large, long, cylindrical or slightly flat; stores at 7 C up to five months without sprout inhibitors; blackleg resistance, blight susceptibility; about 70 percent of the North American processed market in the 2010s; not patentable as a tuber-propagated plant
  • potatoes.agricrops.org: AHDB/SASA: seedling of Early Rose (Burbank USA); long; skin class cream; flesh white; eyes deep; maincrop; tall; white flowers; disease list; good fry colour
  • europotato.org: ECPD: mutant of Burbank; skin white to yellow with russet to rough texture; flesh white; long to oval; eye depth from shallow to deep across sources; large; dormancy long to very long; storage good to very good
  • researchgate.net: history paper on the russet sport (from the atlas; not re-read in this pass)

Reference photos

Used to read proportion and colour, credited here, and never traced or copied into the drawings.