Tubers

Question

I have been looking for an explanation for a strange phenomena in my garden, but I can’t find anything about it on the web.

I just picked some rose fingerling potatoes from my garden. The fingerlings that grew closest to the neighboring Jerusalem artichokes are shaped exactly like the Jerusalem artichokes. The fingerlings that are growing further away look normal. This is the second year now in a row that this has happened. I have a picture of the rose fingerlings that look like Jerusalem artichokes but obviously I can’t attach it here. In a way this is sort of entertaining. Are vegetables influenced by the company they keep? If you know what is causing this, please, let me know.

Answer 1

The only thing I can think of is the texture of the soil. If your soil is hard and rocky, neither tuber will develop in shape like they would in looser, more friable soil. Just an idea…