Royal links of humble spuds

There’ll be music aplenty, probably a nice cake with candles on it, even a bit of a procession and a few presents, but will there be potatoes?

Spuds (along with rice, wheat and maize) are one of the staple foods of the world, and just like rock, pop and opera stars, they come in a variety of shapes, sizes and tastes. Many also have royal connections – if only by name.

So, if Her Majesty’s loyal subjects want to help her celebrate a momentous occasion, and they can’t get along to Buckingham Palace in person, they could plant potatoes as an appropriate thank-you for those 60 years on the throne.

Everyone knows that Her Majesty is fond of her Scottish holiday home, so try ‘Balmoral’, a high-yielding variety with cream flesh and distinct pink eyes.

Then there’s ‘British Queen’, bred by Scot Archibald Finlay, in Lincolnshire, and first marketed in 1894. This variety, with white skin, oval tubers and a white, floury flesh, is still popular in Ireland where it is sold as ‘Queens’. ‘Elisabeth’ (sorry about the spelling, Ma’am) is a first/second early with good yields of uniform tubers.

Also in the royal family is ‘King Edward’, a late maincrop with good cooking quality, flavour and frying colour, while ‘Lionheart’ is a maincrop variety particularly suitable for French fries.

‘Majestic’ is an early maincrop variety first marketed in 1911, which produces high yields of long oval, white-skinned tubers with a white, waxy flesh.

And then there’s ‘Purple Majesty’, an early maincrop variety suitable for salads.

Of course, it needn’t be the humble potato that’s grown for the party; other ‘royal’ vegetables include ‘Monarch’ celeriac and ‘Balmoral’ and ‘Celebration’ peas.

And for anyone wanting flowers not food, there’s the old favourite, ‘Queen Elizabeth’, one of the most popular roses over the last few decades.

It’s a grandiflora whose flowers come singly on one stem, similar to hybrid tea roses.

Grow it next to ‘Diamond Jubilee’, a hybrid tea rose with warm yellow, abundant blooms and a lovely fragrance – truly a flower fit for a queen.