Cultivar Corner: Galena Russet is a high-yielding, french fry processing variety
Overview
Parentage: A98083-9 x Premier Russet
Developer: Northwest Potato Variety Development Program (PVMI)
Plant Variety Protection: Applied for in 2020.
Strengths: Galena Russet is a cold-sweetening resistant, high-yielding french fry processor.
Morphological Characteristics
Plant: Galena Russet has an erect, medium vine with medium-late maturity.
Tubers: Oblong-long, medium-russeted tubers have higher protein content than those of the standard potato varieties.
Agronomic Characteristics
Maturity: Medium to late maturing
Tubers: Galena Russet produces oblong-long tubers with tan, russet skin. Tubers have a high number of eyes that are shallow in depth and are evenly distributed. Tuber set is medium to low, and average tuber size is large.
Yield Potential: High
Specific Gravity: Average specific gravity and percent solids for Galena Russet were higher than Ranger Russet, Russet Burbank and Russet Norkotah.
Culinary Quality: Excellent
Diseases/Physiological Disorders: Galena Russet is more resistant to the viruses PVY, PLRV, and tuber net necrosis (associated with tuber PLRV infection) than Russet Burbank and Ranger Russet but is slightly more susceptible to foliar early blight.
Incentives for Production: Galena Russet is a medium- to late-maturing variety that is notable for having both high early- and full-season yields. It has higher protein content than standard potato varieties Ranger Russet, Russet Burbank and Russet Norkotah and has vitamin C content similar to Ranger Russet, a variety which is known for having higher Vitamin C content. Galena Russet exhibits cold-sweetening resistance and maintains acceptable reducing sugar concentrations (<0.10% fresh weight) and fry color (<USDA 1) when stored at 42-48℉ for six months. It also displays good internal and external fry texture following cold storage. In variety trials in the Pacific Northwest, fry color, uniformity of color along the fry, and postharvest processing merit for Galena Russet were consistently superior to Ranger Russet and Russet Burbank. Additionally, it displays a similar incidence of shatter bruise to Ranger Russet and tends to be less susceptible to blackspot bruise compared to standard varieties.
Management
Fertility: Galena Russet has a moderate nitrogen requirement, but it performs best when half is available prior to row closure and the rest applied throughout the season finishing at least 30 days prior to harvest.
Planting: Cut seed to 2- to 2.5-ounce size. Optimal plant spacing for commercial production on 36-inch rows in southeast Idaho is 10 to 12 inches. Plant 6 to 8 inches deep and provide a broad shallow hill to minimize greening.
Storage: Dormancy length of Galena Russet is approximately 20 days shorter than Russet Burbank, with Russet Burbank identified as a variety having long tuber dormancy.
Seed Production and Availability: Seed availability is currently limited; check www.pvmi.org for a full list of seed growers.
