Alaska 114 was formally released
to the Alaska Certified Seed G rowers
Association in 1954 although it
had been field tested by a few members
during the preceding year. The
selection was made from seedlings
derived from a cross of Cobbler x
Minnesota 13-1.Cooperating with the Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agricultur

Dearborn, C.H.

English

ScholarWorks@UA

CIRCULAR 22 SEPTEMBER 1959ALASKA 114a ta u ffli-s h in n e d  m a in  c/io-p, fLO-tataC. H. DEARBORN, HorticulturistUniversity of AlaskaALASKA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATIONl  / fC o o p e r a t i n g  w i t h  th eA G R I C U L T U R A L  R E S E A R C H  S E R V I C E ,  U .  S. D E P A R T M E N T  O F  A G R I C U L T U R EALASKA 114, A TOUGH-SKINNED MAIN CROP POTATOAlaska 114 was formally released to the Alaska Certified Seed G row ­ers Association in 1954 although it had been field tested by a few mem­bers during the preceding year. The selection was made from  seedlings derived from a cross o f Cobbler x  Minnesota 13-1.Several thousand seedling tubers from this cross were obtained from Minnesota in 1942*. They were evaluated in the field at the College Experiment Station Farm for the first time in 1944. Numerous selec­tions from this group were subse­quently tested at Matanuska. Final selection of Alaska 114 was made in 1954 after field trials on cooperat­ing farms. It was evaluated under pedigree number 114.42-3-44. Theparentage of Alaska 114 is :I Russet Burbank,13-1 (Alaska 114 | \66-l Katahdini f (selfed)CobblerTubers of Alaska 114 are uni­form in size and shape. A  field run average of 100 tubers shows that they are 2.7 inches long by 2.3 in­ches wide and 1.8 inches deep. The)' are short and oblong in ap­pearance. Their skin is smooth to slightly scurfy, white, and highly resistant to feathering. Eye dentil is medium to shallow. Eyebrows are short, and inconspicuous. Flesh* D r .  Z o l a  M . F i n e m a n  c o n d u c t e d  t h e  f i r s t  phases of se le ct io n  a n d  e v a l u a t i o n .color is white with very little con­trast between the center of the tuber and its outer layer.The leaf arrangement of Alaska 1.14 provides uniform ground pro­tection when successive night freez­ing frequently injures tubers of more open leaf type plants.Leaves are dark green and rela­tively smooth. Stems are medium thick and prominently angled. Some reddish purple color occurs along the upper internodes. This color is usually not continuous on all surfaces of the internodes.Flower buds are oblong and darkened with reddish purple pig­ment. The showy corolla is of me­dium size and lavender in color with creamy tips. Flower clusters are abundant and rise 3 to 4 inches above the foliage. Pollen is abun­dant and of good quality. Seed balls are common.CHARACTERISTICSAlaska 114 is a medium vine type plant apparently not susceptible to leaf necrosis attributed to potash deficiency, which is relatively com ­mon to the foliage of Green M oun­tain (com m only called Arctic Seedling in Alaska) in the m ajor potato areas of the State. The medi­um thickness of stems makes for easy vine removal with a mechani­cal beater.A  random  selection of green-sprouted Alaska 114 tubers, show ing bud and stolon ends, and relative width, length and thicknessTubers are protected by an ex­ceptionally tough skin at medium to late stage of maturity. This tough skin and uniformity of appearance prompted the release of Alaska 114. The variety produces (> to 8 tubers per hill. In seasons of moderate rainfall it yields as much as Kenne­bec, Green Mountain or Ontario. In dry seasons, or when grown at low fertility levels, many tubers remain small at harvest. Eye dis­tribution is excellent for hand or machine cutting of seed.The flesh is uniformly white. Hollow-heart has been troublesome in some seasons. A  few fields have yielded hollow tubers of all sizes.The variety resists sprouting in storage and development of sprout- tubers when planted in cold soils.Alaska 114 appears somewhat more resistant to storage rots than other varieties grown in Alaska. It is susceptible to common scab. Nothing is known regarding its reaction to early or late blight be­cause these diseases have not been reported in Alaska where 114 has been grown.The variety has a very pleasant distinctive flavor similar to its Cob­bler parent. Excessive after-cooking darkening has not been observed in Alaska 114. It remains wyhite, incontrast to many other common varieties which turn dark and are therefore not fully accepted by many housewives. It has been judged as equal to Green Mountain for eating qualities, especially when baked. A  considerable tonnage has been used for commercial chipping and French frying, further evidence of its value as a commercial variety.harvest. Losses in tonnage at har­vest due to bruising were materially less from Alaska 114 than from Green Mountain (A rctic  Seedling) as shown in Table 2.A t the end of a 6-month storage period, the grade-out from Alaska 114 equalled that removed from Green Mountain at harvest to get the same sample appearance. TheTABLE 1.— Average yields of US No. 1 lubers and total solids o f Alaska 114 com pared with G ieen  M ountain (A rctic Seedling) and K ennebec in Alaska's Matanuska and Tanana Valleys, for the six years from  1953 through 1958.VarietyYields Matanuska TananaTotal solids M atanuska TananaAlaska 114 G reen M ountain K ennebecCwt per acre307 144308 172 305 193Per cent22.3 21.323.4 21.9 22.6 21.3Alaska 114 has been compared in replicated trials with the highest yielding, best quality varieties grown in the State. It compares favorably with Green Mountain and Kenne­bec in yield and total solids as is shown in Table 1.L ow  yields in the Tanana Valley for all varieties are attributed to drier growing conditions at that location.Under normal harvest conditions in Alaska the skin of most potato varieties “ feathers”  badly. Immediately following har­vest tubers are stored direct­ly in cold, damp storages where the temperatures (3 8 ° to 45° F ) are too low for rapid healing of bruises.The tough skin of Alaska 114 affords the tubers a significant amount of pro­tection from feathering atgrade-out from Green Mountain six months after storage was three times that for Alaska 114.W hen bruising is not carefully controlled the market value per acre o f Alaska 114 is obviously greater than for Green Mountain. W hen losses due to mechanical damage are low, as in this new variety, the consumer buys more undamaged tubers in his bag of U S No. 1 grade potatoes.Table 2.— Losses caused by  m echanical damage during harvest in 1956 and 1957. expressed as per cent of 900-pound samples, of Alaska 114 and Green M ountain (A rcli Seedling).Time of lossAlaska114GreenM ounlai:October (at harvest) 1.1 10.6D ecem ber (from  storage) 5.1 21.1March (from  storage) 10.0 33.1Average loss 5.4 21.6

Circular 22

https://scholarworks.alaska.edu/bitstream/11122/2373/1/C22.pdf

Circular 22

Abstract

Similar works

Full text

Available Versions

ScholarWorks@UA