In the time honored tradition of Long Island Potato farming, farmer Tony Guarnaschelli and farmer Kerry Connolly demonstrated last Saturday how potatoes were planted with an authentic vintage tractor(1953) and the very old potato planting attachment.
Thanks to farmer Tony, the aging farm equipment is in tip top working order.
These are the bushels of seed potatoes. We needed a lot due to the popularity of "digging potatoes" at the annual pickle festival each September.
They are pre-treated to inhibit mold.
It was a perfect May morning and the planter was hitched up to the tractor.
Farmers Tony and Kerry use some twine to mark the first row.
Farmer William helps to secure the other end, and
gets the first ride
digging up the first row.
The seed potatoes are loaded into the truck,
along with the fertilizer bags.
The width of the rows is taken.
This is the guts of the planter. The "arms" pick each potato from the hopper, and drop them into the soil while
the cultivating wheels down below, cover the seed potatoes with soil.
Fertilizer is poured into its hopper,
and seed potatoes into their hopper.
A few potatoes are thrown into the planter to get it started.
Planting Long Island potatoes, Yukon Gold.
These rows of seed potatoes will grow into fine potatoes which the children at the pickle festival will thrill to pick out of the farm's soil and bring home for dinner that night.
Our director, Deanne Rathke, gets a ride too.
Click there to see Tony using the potato digging machine at the annual Greenlawn-Centerport Pickle Festival.
Yukon Gold, delicious!
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