Expand your range of potatoes this year to include some of Ireland's finest heritage varieties, now making something of a comeback in ordinary gardens.
You can take a look at the mind-boggling range of spuds for yourself if you can get to the Organic Centre in Co. Leitrim next month for its annual Potato Day, a joyous celebration of all things spud-related. And Sonairte, the National Ecology Centre in Co. Meath, is also holding its potato fair on March 22nd with Ireland's largest private potato collection including potatoes from the Famine Days and many varieties from South America.
If you aren't familiar with the wonderful range of home-bred spuds Ireland has to offer, here are our top five favourites – on sale in our garden centre right now:
Cara: bred at Oak Park, Co. Carlow, and still one of the best blight-resistant maincrop spuds there is
Rooster: red skin, fluffy yellow flesh and rich, earthy flavour – among the most popular in Ireland
Setanta: a pink skin, lovely flavour and good roastie credentials: it's very blight resistant, too
Dunluce: beautifully-flavoured Ulster-bred heritage first early with creamy white skin and firm texture
Carlingford: often found as 'second cropping' tubers to grow in autumn for spuds on Christmas Day
