Impala Potato: Variety Characteristics, Reviews, Photos

Breeding is constantly evolving, as scientists strive to develop the best vegetable and fruit varieties that are climate-resistant, disease-resistant, attractive, and satisfying even the most discerning palates. The Impala potato, with its variety description, photos, and reviews, is one of the results of extensive research and crossbreeding.

Main parameters

Studying the characteristics of the Impala potato variety, it's clear that this variety ripens early, which pleases both large growers and ordinary gardeners. This saves time, allowing for better distribution of efforts. It also has high resistance to various diseases, which, unfortunately, even vegetables can suffer from. Impala is considered a versatile variety, adaptable and ripening well in a variety of climates and soils, while maintaining an attractive appearance and excellent flavor.

• The skin is quite dense, but smooth, without any roughness. It has a distinct yellow tint.
• Eyes – medium or small, rare and superficial, extremely easy to remove.
• Flesh – shades from yellow to delicate cream.
• Shape – tubers are usually oval, sometimes round, or somewhere in between.
• Starch – from 10 to 14.7%, average values.
• Average weight – most tubers are 90 to 160 g.

Impala is considered a table variety, first developed in Holland (specifically, the Netherlands). Yes, potatoes are also widely grown and loved abroad, for their flavor and unique qualities. After all, the vegetable can easily be added to soups, as a side dish, and even in sweet dishes. Recently, Impala has been gaining popularity in Russia; apparently, local gardeners, vegetable growers, and large producers have discovered the variety and appreciated its qualities. Cultivation is most common in either the central or southern regions.

What makes the Impala variety special?

Early maturity: With proper care, the first harvest can be collected as early as 45 days after planting, before germination, which is considered early maturity. Full maturity occurs by 60-75 days, depending on the climate, summer, and soil conditions. Fertilizing potatoes is often used to achieve a higher yield, but it's important to determine the most suitable fertilizer.

Yield – growers and ordinary gardeners value and love Impala for its consistently high yield. One plant produces about 15 tubers, medium or large, with small ones rarely being produced. However, with careful maintenance, this number increases to 17-21, meaning one hectare of potato land will yield 37-60 tons. Southern regions sometimes harvest as many as two crops, with long summers, early springs, and plenty of sunny days.

Drought resistance – potatoes are truly adaptable; they don't mind dry, hot, or even muggy summers. They also tolerate high humidity well. However, care is still important.

What kind of soils are needed for growing vegetables Impala prefers open ground, but can grow anywhere. Even sandy, clayey, overly wet, or overly dry soils will produce a consistently high yield. This also contributes to Impala's popularity, especially among gardeners. After all, it's difficult for ordinary people to change the soil composition of their gardens. It's expensive and labor-intensive. It's easier to find suitable varieties of vegetables or fruits, since any soil is good. Large-scale producers, however, prioritize yield and adaptability, which reduces costs.

Purpose – easily tolerates long-term storage and transportation. Surprisingly, the tubers remain almost 100% safe even after extremely long storage! You can safely stock up on Impala for the winter, even in northern climates, where it lasts more than three months.

Taste – the taste of different potato varieties is usually assessed by a special jury. The tubers undergo the same processing and are then tasted. Impala, on a standard five-point scale, would receive a 4.9. Moreover, if we look at the appearance after heat treatment, even a long one, the variety would also receive a 4.9. The tubers retain their shape well, remain pleasantly firm, have a pleasing color, and are not crumbly.

Mechanical damage – yes, it's worth checking, because potatoes aren't transported like crystal, padded with newspaper or cotton balls. Sometimes, the sacks are simply thrown into the back of a truck, then shaken for a long time along the way or frozen in dark freight cars. Resistance to long, harsh journeys is crucial. The fewer potatoes damaged or spoiled, the more potatoes you can sell. The Impala performs exceptionally well. Potatoes typically retain up to 98% of their appearance, no matter how long or difficult the journey.

Diseases – unfortunately, everyone gets sick – humans, animals, and even plants. Potatoes as a species have a number of diseases that every gardener, vegetable grower, and large-scale producer must monitor, otherwise, their yield will decline. Impala is resistant to potato cancer, viruses A and A, and nematodes. It exhibits moderate resistance to common scab and late blight.

What do the shoots look like?

The bushes reach a height of approximately 70-75 cm, stand tall and upright, with 4-5 stems emerging, making the bush not only tall but also moderately dense. When in bloom, beautiful, snow-white flowers with yellow centers are visible. The leaves are a pleasant, rich emerald color, medium-sized and smooth, with only a slight ripple at the edges.

It is worth fighting various pests as usual.

Prepare before planting

Preparatory work usually begins in the spring. The ground is still cold, and gardeners are just clearing their plots, monitoring the snowmelt, and preparing their planting materials. They plan how and where to plant vegetables. These sites have usually been occupied for years.

After selecting tubers for germination, carefully monitor the temperature for several days. For successful germination, the temperature should be between 18 and 25 degrees Celsius, and so on until planting, when you should lower the temperature to 12 to 14 degrees Celsius, increasing the amount of light available to the tubers.

If you want to increase the number of eyes (small dots on the tubers), you need to make a ring - a transverse round even cut, in the area closer to the top of the tuber.

When choosing a planting area, it is best to choose places where legumes or winter crops, as well as perennial grasses, were previously grown.

Treating all seedlings just before planting has become a trend, often using powerful chemical pesticides. Many believe this guarantees a high yield, as it makes potatoes much more resistant to potential diseases. But for the best possible (and even safer) results, use less harmful compounds. For example, treat with potassium permanganate or wood ash, or even boric acid.

We recommend:Proper potato planting for a good harvest

You can soak the entire box containing the sprouted tubers in a prepared solution of potassium permanganate (1 g of potassium permanganate per bucket of water). Leave it there for 30 or 40 minutes, then dust it with wood ash. This will really increase the potato's resistance to disease.

Important: Adding ash to each planting hole when you plant your potatoes in the spring will pay off. If you arrange the planting rows in the following directions: north-south, north-west, south-east, they will receive uniform sunlight, which will increase the yield and starch content of the tubers.

How to grow

Potatoes also don't like to be confined to a single spot. They also shouldn't be planted in areas previously occupied by nightshades, especially peppers, tomatoes, and eggplants. Practice crop rotation.

Important: Plant impala shallowly in warm soil. This will help it root faster and produce strong tubers. After planting, hoe all the beds to create a 7-10 cm high ridge of soil.

Wait a week after planting, and carefully harrow the soil, especially if it rained beforehand. Harrowing is best done with a rake, working the ridges. This will kill any threadlike weeds that have sprouted and break up the soil crust that interferes with aeration. You can apply fertilizer, such as humus, cow manure, or bird droppings, by hoeing them directly into the soil, but it's best to apply it after rain or a good watering.

Irrigate infrequently but generously, and don't skimp on water. Either a good rain or artificial irrigation is essential; the main thing is to thoroughly soak the soil, reaching a depth of 40 cm. If the rain isn't enough, water it afterward. This will require approximately 400-500 liters of water per 10 square meters. Watering intervals of 10 days equates to three times throughout the growing season.

Once harvested, Impala is preserved extremely well and will be one of the last to germinate.

Increasing crop yields

Here are some tips from seasoned gardeners and vegetable growers who've been growing Impala potatoes for many years. Potatoes are considered versatile and can grow in any soil, but they prefer well-fertilized, loose, and well-moistened soil. It's also essential to enrich the soil with humus and ensure a deep topsoil.

Seedlings emerge most quickly when temperatures are between 18 and 25°C, while potatoes flower and form tubers at 17 to 20°C. If irrigation relies solely on natural precipitation, the maximum yield is achieved with 50-300 mm of total summer precipitation. It is important to ensure that the soil is evenly and abundantly moist.

To get two harvests, you should first harvest the first early crop on cloudy days, picking the tubers, then plant each bush a second time, watering the holes generously. This trick will allow the Impala to develop more tubers by the time of the second, main harvest.

Although Impala was only introduced in 1995, it has already gained widespread popularity and favor, especially among gardeners who appreciate early-ripening varieties. Cultivated in their gardens, people enjoy an extremely early, abundant harvest of root vegetables, delighting with their beautiful appearance.

The Impala is even considered a sprinter, as it gains weight well and will givea good potato harvest, no matter what the summer turns out to be.

Regular consumers love the Impala for its beautiful appearance, easy peeling, and excellent taste. Its potatoes stay fresh even after prolonged cooking, making it a favorite among professional chefs.