Allotments 4 All

Help...I'm onto my main crop spuds and have found that almost all of them have a green tinge to the skins.. I understand that green spuds are poinonous, which does'nt do much for my allotment cred in the house!  So where have I gone wrong?  They've been earthed up really well, when lifted they were put straight nto the shed under some blackout lining to harden, before going into bags.   ???
Any enlightenment gratefully received.  Thanks

Green is normally exposure to light.Maybe they were green when they went into storage???

I wouldn't worry about poisons. So long as the green peels off, I see no problem.

The green has nothing to do with the production of the poison solanine it only indicates it could be present. The green is chlorophyll which the tuber produces once exposed to light as the tuber is formed on a stolon which can either produce tubers if it grows into the soil or stems and leaves if it grows into the light. Cutting the green off only removes chlorophyll which is harmless not solanine which isn't.

Different varieties can produce different amounts of solanine and it's colourless so you can't tell how much is there. As little as 3mg is enough to kill and again some people may be more susceptible than others.

Plant breeders discard quite good tasting new varieties now when they find it also produces high levels of solanine (well at least in this country who knows whether they do elsewhere). Older varieties therefore may be more likely to be a problem. Trouble is you don't know until it's too late.

The light can penetrate into the soil so a few centimetres may be not be enough coverage. Maybe your blackout lining lets to much light in you need something that blocks light completely.

Are you saying we run a risk of croaking with all potatoes?

Or that solanine is also produced by exposure to light, how much being dependant on the variety?

I love people with strong opinions, and one of my favourtie historical figures for having outspoken opinions on everything was William Cobbett... here is him on the subject of spuds:

He called it the root of 'slovenliness, filth, misery, and slavery'' whose rise had naturally attended the ''increase of the paupers.'' The potato was social and spiritual death, and its proponents must be either blind or wicked.

He went on to describe Raleigh as ''one of the greatest villains upon earth,'' but fittingly, ''He was hanged at last!'' From there, Cobbett found it only logical to declare that he would rather see English laborers hanged too, ''and be hanged along with them,'' than see them live on the ''lazy root.''

Yes

I have no idea how often it happens. I suspect low level poisoning is more common.....causes vomiting, diarrhoea bit like food poisoning so you wouldn't necessarily attribute it to eating potato. It is, after all, a member of the deadly nightshade family...Solanaceae. 

well, my lazy roots did okay this year , love that name  ;D
kept some green ones and planted them end of august inside in a container , not sure if you can keep them for seed potatoes, no doubt someone will be along to tell us

http://www.smso.net/Solanine
Not sure this site isn't just another wikipedia 'type' site

They are fine for seed potatoes.

So then to get back to the first question then... if they are green  we can still eat them, and it doesn't make any difference if we peel deep.

I have been using a batch with a green tinge that were left in the light, and I have been peeling deep,we have eaten them for abour 6 meals so far..should we stop?

Interesting post.

XX Jeannine

I should send this to my local supermarkets.

"Solanine Poisoning from Supermarket Potatoes

While death from potato poisoning is rare, eight ounces of a green potato can contain high enough levels of solanine to affect a 50 pound person, and 16 ounces could impact a 100 pound person. Symptoms of glycoalkaloid poisoning include gastrointestinal upset, headache, fever, convulsions, drowsiness, rapid breathing, delirium, and coma. Three to six milligrams of solanine per kilogram of body mass can be fatal.

Green potatoes often taste bitter, which is caused by the presence of solanine. However, toxic potatoes may not taste bitter, and bitter potatoes may not be toxic.

Boiling or steaming toxic potatoes prevents more solanine from forming but it only removes 30-40% of the toxin that has already formed. Solanine poisoning can be avoided by cutting off all green sections of the potato before cooking it. For people who tend to have allergic reactions, the entire potato should be discarded. "



Jeannine what i'm trying to say is peeling off the green doesn't remove the poison. The poison forms when the tuber is exposed to light and it's colourless and distrubuted throughout the tuber.
The green is only an indicator that the tuber is exposed to light it doesn't tell you if poison has formed or where it is or how much.

Thank you Kea..  a bit scary isn't it XX Jeannine

Yes you really don't know what to do when you need one more have one left but it's tinged green. I have to admit that it goes either way for me at one potato. I wouldn't eat a whole pot full.....for two reasons ;D

However i have to be careful because one teenage son loves mashed potato and will eat twice as much as everyone else.

I think you need to work out how light got to them, and how you can stop it happening again. I've eaten odd green potatoes many times, but I'd hesitate at a plateful. Not that I ever eat many anyway.

Apologies for being off-centre.

Carelessly, I have never worried about green. And didn't know that green was not the culprit.

I wouldn't worry Tim...you've obviously made it this far no problem. No one can know everything. I only know detailed stuff on potatoes because I spent 3 years on a research project on potato and did plant physiology at Uni, potatoes are such an odd plant that we spent quite a bit of time on them...and our lecturer was Irish!

That's why Forums are so great - they touch the spots that........??

I know people have tried/are trying to link Schizophrenia to potatoes, based on I expect - solanine causes mental disturbance - the Irish have the greatest incidence of schizophrenia - the Irish eat a lot of potatoes QED most certainly not

It shows that the Wisdom of Peter Kay was right - you're never sure if it's OK to eat a green crisp

What an amazing and interesting thread. :o