Featuring smooth skin, pink eyes, deep yellow flesh, and rich taste, the Yukon Gold continues to experience a steady increase and popularity domestically and internationally. Potato breeders pursue the standard that Yukon Gold has set for developing improved yellow-fleshed varieties.
Botanical Features
- Plants: medium large, upright with little tendency to spread; lower three-quarters of stems purplish with the upper quarter faintly purple.
- Leaves: open, moderately shiny, olive green, stiffly pubescent; nodes not swollen.
- Terminal leaflets: obovate, gradually tapered to the base; tip slightly acuminate.
- Primary leaflets: ovate; tip acute to slightly acuminate; four pairs.
- Secondary leaflets: broadly ovate, varying from two on the lower leaves to six or eight on the upper leaves.
- Tertiary leaflets: small, varying from none on the lower leaves to twenty on the mid and upper leaves.
- Flowers: light violet; star yellow-green at the base becoming light violet towards the edges; buds light green to purplish green.
- Tubers: oval, slightly flattened; finely flaked yellowish-white skin; shallow pink eyes; light yellow flesh.
- Sprouts: reddish-purple.
Agricultural Features
- Medium to high yielding variety of attractive appearance. Large tubers are slightly susceptible to hollow heart. Excellent storability; long dormancy period. High specific gravity.
- Remark: often sold under its variety name.
- Utilization: very good for boiling, baking, and French frying; unsuitable for chipping; retains its yellow flesh color when cooked.
- Chief Markets: fresh market and seed export potential.
Reaction to diseases
- Highly resistant: PVA
- Moderately resistant: leaf roll.
- Susceptible: common scab, PVY, air pollution.
