April 2019 - 9

T
he perfect potato breed
is many things: reliable,
resistant, high-yielding
and, of course, marketable.
Also add elusive.
Like
his
potato-growing
colleagues, Don Kitchen has yet
to find the perfect potato, but that's not
for a lack of trying. Kitchen Farms near
Elmira, Michigan, in the state's northern
lower peninsula, grows anywhere from
18 to 28 varieties in a given year. While
yet to find the flawless cultivar, Kitchen
and his ancestors have done pretty darn
well with what's available.
" The reason we grow so many
varieties is because we're always looking
for a better one, or the best one, "
Don Kitchen said. " A lot of these new
varieties that we try are small plots,
maybe a half acre or maybe two acres. If
we find a plot that we think has enough
potential, then we'll plant 15 or 20 acres
the next year.
" We're always looking for something
better. "
LOGGER-TURNED-FARMER
Robert Kitchen started the operation
on 80 acres back in 1910. Today, Kitchen
Farms is more than 5,000 acres, which
includes the original 80. Don, the
fourth generation of the family to lead
the farm, worked closely with his dad,
Bill, until the latter's sudden death in
late 2017.
" My great-grandfather was a logger, "
Don Kitchen said. " He bought 80 and,
to the best of my understanding, it
started off like anything back then.
They had cows, chickens and just kind
of lived and raised and did their thing.
The '60s
turned
to
growing more
potatoes. ... Then in the '80s is when it
really took off. "
The 1980s is also when Kitchen
Farms began expanding the varieties
in its fields. Until the latter half of the
decade, they grew almost exclusively
Superior whites. Today, the farm grows
reds, whites, russets and a growing
number of yellows.
" The late '80s, early '90s is we started
doing russets, " Kitchen said. " The
yellows are a pretty new thing to us. I
guess relatively overall, there are a lot of
new yellow varieties today. "
Pets are prevalent in the office at Kitchen Farms in Elmira, Michigan, including this German
shepherd named Spud. See the tag on his collar. Photos: Zeke Jennings
Spudman * April 2019
9

April 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of April 2019

April 2019 - 1
April 2019 - 2
April 2019 - 3
April 2019 - 4
April 2019 - 5
April 2019 - 6
April 2019 - 7
April 2019 - 8
April 2019 - 9
April 2019 - 10
April 2019 - 11
April 2019 - 12
April 2019 - 13
April 2019 - 14
April 2019 - 15
April 2019 - 16
April 2019 - 17
April 2019 - 18
April 2019 - 19
April 2019 - 20
April 2019 - 21
April 2019 - 22
April 2019 - 23
April 2019 - 24
April 2019 - 25
April 2019 - 26
April 2019 - 27
April 2019 - 28
April 2019 - 29
April 2019 - 30
April 2019 - 31
April 2019 - 32
April 2019 - 33
April 2019 - 34
April 2019 - 35
April 2019 - 36
April 2019 - 37
April 2019 - 38
April 2019 - 39
April 2019 - 40
April 2019 - 41
April 2019 - 42
April 2019 - 43
April 2019 - 44
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/april-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/march-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/february-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/spudman-january-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/spudman-november-december-2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/spudman-september-october-2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/spudman-july-august-2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/spudman-may-june-2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/spudman-april-2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/spudman-march-2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/spudman-february-2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/spudman-january-2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/spudman-november-december-2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/spudman-september-october-2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/spudman-july-august-2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/may-june-2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/april-2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/march-2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/february-2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/january-2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/november-december-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/september-october-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/july-august-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/may-june-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/april-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/march-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/february-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/january-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/november-december-2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/september-october-2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/july-august-2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/may-june-2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/april-2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/march-2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/february-2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/january-2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/november-december-2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/september-october-2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/july-august-2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/may-june-2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/april-2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/march-2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/february-2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/basf-2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/january-2019
https://www.nxtbookmedia.com