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Tuesday 29 October 2019

Harvest

It’s harvest time. The potato trucks head to fields or warehouses. Tractors cause Prince Edward Island’s version of traffic jams. Tractors work with diggers





and harvesters in the fields and in tandem with trucks which carry off the starchy tubers.





Field by field, ingathering is underway. The island grows 25% of the potatoes consumed in Canada every year.


Trucks take the product to the warehouses where crews remove any remaining soil and rock from among the vegetables.




Potatoes are stored until they are shipped for processing or to market.





On the fields, feathered friends enjoy the remains of the summer’s efforts. Canada geese enjoy their time in the fields after the harvest but for grasses not potatoes.





Gulls enjoy the newly harvested fields as well for the juicy insects unearthed when the fields are dug.


The last photo shows a field of pumpkins in the distance. There are less pumpkins there than a few weeks ago.


Happy Hallowe’en.










23 comments:

Debra She Who Seeks said...

I was craving a nice potato just the other day when I was in the grocery store and saw some nice bakers all wrapped in foil for purchase.

Anvilcloud said...

A scene well set and a story well told.

Shammickite said...

Growing up, we had potatoes with our dinner every day, but I don't cook them very often now. But I have a bag of fresh spuds in the cupboard, so after reading your post, I am inspired to have potatoes with dinner today!

DJan said...

I also just got a hankering for potatoes and might pick up a dish with them in it at the deli. Thanks for the reminder and I love finding out how potatoes are harvested. :-)

The Padre said...

I Would Venture To Say That I See Creamy Clam Chowder Soup With Potatoes In My Future. Thanx For The Local Culture Update. Very Cool

Cheers

PerthDailyPhoto said...

Gosh 25% that's a lot of potatoes Marie. It must be a hive of activity during planting and as you show here, during harvesting.

Tabor said...

What a wonderful time of the year.

John "By Stargoose And Hanglands" said...

That's a lot of spuds for a small island. A lovely picture of the geese in the field. So the island was named after Queen Victoria's father while the King Edward potato was named after her son.

Angela said...

It looks like quite a process to get those potatoes before they get to the grocery store. How absolutely lovely to see the Canada Geese so close. They are beautiful creatures.

At Home In New Zealand said...

Love the idea of Tractor Traffic James! Your photos are awesome and I enjoyed following the potato harvest. What a lot of Canada Geese, and your pumpkins look good too.

Elephant's Child said...

We have small areas which grow most of the nation's crop in particular fruits and vegies too.
Loved this post - pictures and words.

Natalia said...

I love it too☺

Ruth Hiebert said...

The potato harvesting looks very familiar. We have a lot of potatoes grown around here as well.

Bill said...

Potatoes, I love them. We once had a cat who loved eating raw potatoes. Every time we were preparing them, he would come over a beg for a piece. When this first started, we had three other cats who were interested in what he was getting so we gave them a piece too but after smelling it, they just walked away and our potato lover cat had more pieces for himself.

Debbie said...

potatoes are my number one favorite, cooked any way, i love them. i tried to grow them but did not have any luck. i'll bet they are even better fresh picked!!

William Kendall said...

Terrific shots!

It's a busy time of year for all farmers.

JudithK said...

Enjoyed this post. Here in Texas, the potatoes from the store often have a layer of green under the skin. Someone dug them too early so they were exposed to sun. Don't know where they're grown, but the farmers seem to be having more and more trouble letting them stay in the dark....I'm betting these are delicious, and I do love potatoes. Too bad Nova Scotia potatoes don't make it down here. That's just one of many items I wish we could import from Canada....health care insurance for example.

Catarina said...

Great post, Marie!!

Love potatoes!

Over 100 varieties of potatoes are grown in Prince Edward Island... or so I read.

Rosie said...

I like your photos and story of your potatoes. They are one of favourite vegetables, people here even have diet of only potatoes and have lost weight! My husband would have potatoes with every meal if I would cook them, but we do have them in different ways for many of our meals. As a child I used to eat the raw pieces as my mum peeled them for dinner, I still like to eat a piece of raw potato when I peel them. Old habits stay although my kids won't eat them raw and think I'm a bit weird! Maybe I am. Thanks for sharing.

eileeninmd said...

Hello,

My hubby would love some of those potatoes, his favorite! I like the field of geese and the pumpkins. Happy Halloween! Enjoy your day, wishing you a happy weekend ahead.

Rose said...

I have wondered how potatoes were dug...now I know. We have to watch for huge machinery here, too. But there is not enough traffic for it to cause problems. Not in my area anyway.

That looks like a huge field of pumpkins!

Barbara said...

25% is quite a big chunk for the little island to produce. I know those trucks are a pain but aren't the tractors and digging implements just amazing. My ex-husband's grandfather invented a dragline bucket for digging out the Red River in Louisiana. I always think it so amazing the things people invent

jenny_o said...

I love potatoes any way they're served, and PEI potatoes are excellent! That's what I have in my pantry right now :)