Hasse:
Potatoes originated in the Andes Mountains in what is now Peru. The native peoples have hundreds of different varieties. Each village has it own group of potato varieties that they grow. These landrace potatoes come in a wide variety of colors and shapes, which includes different colored flowers.
We here in the "Western" world are interested in high yields and concentrated agriculture, and we have specifically bred our potatoes for their high productivity. In the native villages in the mountains, survival is a much more important aspect of everyday life. Each village grows many varieties to insure that they can get a crop no matter what nature throws at them. Different potato varieties have different levels of disease resistance, drought tolerance, cold tolerance, etc.
Whenever potato researchers want a new source of germplasm for developing new varieties, they go to Peru and collect samples of these old landrace potatoes. The University that I graduated from is constantly developing new varieties of potatoes. Washington State here in the US is a major producer of potatoes.
Similarly, researchers go to Kazakhstan in the former Soviet Union regularly to collect Apple germplasm. Kazakhstan is the place of origin for apples. Washington State is also a major producer of apples.
Agricultural trivia quiz:
1.) Apples are from the family Rosaceae, name at least two close relatives that are major commercial crops.
2.) Commercial potato production in the US produces vast tonnages of spuds. What is considered an acceptable yield per acre? (or hectare, I can convert). Hectare is = 2.5 acres, 1,000 Kg =2,204 pounds or one "long" ton. 2,000 pounds is a "short" or Engilsh ton.
Wes H.