WHAT FOR BREAKFAST
POTATOES
The potato plant is one of the most eaten vegetables in the world. Potatoes contain
vitamins, fibre and starch. They give us energy. They can be grown all over the world.
There are many different kinds of potatoes. However, there are three types mostly grown.
Russet potatoes have rough and brown skin. This type of potatoes are usually baked or
processed to make french fries. White Round potatoes are oblong in shape. They have
smooth and creamed coloured skin. They are used in the production of potato chips. Red
potatoes are mostly round in shape. They have very thin, smooth and red skin. They are
used in potato salad.
Potatoes grow on plants. Most plants grow from seeds but potato plant grow from
another potato. However, better results occur by growing from pieces of tuber. Planting a
successful potato crop begins with selecting the proper seed potatoes. It is important to
plant only selected seed potatoes. This to make sure that the potatoes will be true to their
clone. It is also to avoid them from carrying diseases.
A seed piece is a piece of tuber with an eye. Seed potatoes should be cut so that
two eyes are included on the surface of each piece. The pieces are planted with the eyes
facing upward. After a few weeks, one of the shoots grows towards the light and bursts
through the soil under the ground. The plant grows into roots and stems. The fields are
soon full of low bushy potato plants. Under the ground, tiny swelling called tubers grow
of the stems. These become the potatoes that we eat.
In spring, farmers plant rows and rows of potatoes. They water the plants and
spray them with chemicals to protect them from pests and disease. The potatoes grow
underground in the dark. If any light gets on the potatoes, they will turn green and be bad
to eat. In autumn, the leaves on the plants wither on the ground. The potatoes are now...