Cultivation

Potatoes are generally grown from the eyes of another potato and not from seed. Home gardeners often plant a piece of potato with two or three eyes in a hill of mounded soil. Commercial growers plant potatoes as a row crop using seed tubers, young plants or microtubers and may mound the entire row.

At harvest time, gardeners generally dig up potatoes with a long-handled, three-prong "grape" (or graip), i.e. a spading fork, or a potato hook which is similar to the graip, except the tines are at a 90 degree angle to the handle as is the blade of a hoe. In larger plots, the plow can serve as the most expeditious implement for unearthing potatoes. Commercial harvesting is typically done with large potato harvesters which scoop up the plant and the surrounding earth. This is transported up an apron chain consisting of steel links several feet wide, which separates some of the dirt. The chain deposits into an area where further separation occurs. Different designs employ different systems at this point. The most complex designs use vine choppers and shakers, along with a blower system or "Flying Willard" to separate the potatoes from the plant. The result is then usually run past workers who continue to sort out plant material, stones, and rotten potatoes before the potatoes are continuously delivered to a wagon or truck. Further inspection and separation occurs when the potatoes are unloaded from the field vehicles and put into storage.

Correct potato husbandry is an arduous task in the best of circumstances. Good ground preparation, harrowing, plowing, and rolling are always needed, along with a little grace from the weather and a good source of water. Three successive plowings, with associated harrowing and rolling, are desirable before planting. Eliminating all root-weeds is desirable in potato cultivation. Potatoes are the most fruitful of the root crops, but much care and consideration is needed to keep them satisfied and fruitful.

It is important to harvest potatoes before heavy frosts begin, since field frost damages potatoes in the ground, and even cold weather makes potatoes more susceptible to bruising and possibly later rotting which can quickly ruin a large stored crop.

Seed potato crops are 'rogued' in some countries to eliminate diseased plants or those of a different variety from the seed crop.

Storage facilities need to be carefully designed to keep the potatoes alive and slow the natural process of decomposition, which involves the breakdown of starch. It is crucial that the storage area is dark, well ventilated and for long-term storage maintained at temperatures near 40°F (4°C). For short-term storage prior to cooking, temperatures of about 45-50°F (7-10°C) are preferred. Temperatures below 40°F (4°C) convert potatoes' starch into sugar, which alters their taste and cooking qualities and leads to higher acrylamide levels in the cooked product, especially in deep-fried dishes.

Under optimum conditions possible in commercial warehouses, potatoes can be stored for up to six months, but several weeks is the normal shelf life in homes. If potatoes develop green areas or start to sprout, these areas should be trimmed before using.

FAO reports that the world production of potatoes in 2005 was 319 million tonnes. The largest producer, China, accounted for one-fourth of the global output followed by Russia and India.

Carrot:

The western carrot emerged in the Netherlands in the 15th or 16th century, its orange colour making it popular in those countries as an emblem of the House of Orange and the struggle for Dutch independence - Food enthusiasts and researchers have developed other varieties of carrots through traditional breeding methods. - In 2005, China was the largest producer of carrots and turnips, according to the FAO - This is a list of diseases of carrots (Daucus carota subsp. sativus).
Bacterial diseases, Bacterial leaf blight, Xanthomonas campestris, Bacterial soft rot Erwinia chrysanthemi
- Fungal diseases, Alternaria leaf blight Alternaria dauci, Black root rot, Thielaviopsis basicola