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Sitka Tribe, Forest Service plant Tlingit potato garden for community SITKA, Alaska, April 10, 2018
– The Sitka Ranger District and Sitka Tribe of Alaska will join forces again on April 20, 2018, to create an educational opportunity and traditional food source for community members.
Forest Service staff and the tribe will share how to grow Tlingit (sometimes called
Maria’s) potatoes, and share the biology, history, and cultural aspects of these interesting potatoes.
Since 2017, the Sitka RD has provided a sunny plot of land to serve as the shared potato garden and provided the seed potatoes to plant the garden. The Sitka Tribe’s Traditional Foods Program
and the gardening class from Pacific High School assisted on the project, and will again this year. But community involvement is also needed. Volunteers are asked to bring boots, gardening gloves, and shovels. Five gallon buckets of kelp to incorporate into
the soil would be beneficial as well. Members of the community who help tend the shared garden may receive more than gratitude as their reward.
“Last fall we shared the harvest among those helping out and through the Sitka Tribe’s Traditional Foods Program. We’ve been growing and naturally enhancing our soil this spring, so this
year we hope the crop is even larger,” said District Ranger Perry Edwards. “This project teaches people how to grow and sustain a traditional food, while supporting the need for food security among Sitka Families. It’s also a fun and very sustainable way to
celebrate Earth Day.” Tlingit potatoes have been present in Tlingit gardens for over 200 years. The potatoes originate from Mexico or Chile* and were a trade item in Southeast Alaska in the early
1800’s. The first work day and educational opportunity will be April 20 at the Sitka Ranger District office, located at 2108 Halibut Point Road, from 9:30 to 11:30 am. For more information, contact
Michelle Putz at 907-747-2708 or mputz@xxxxxxxxx. For interviews and information to be used for publication, contact the Tongass Public Affairs Officer at 907-228-6201. Gunalchéesh *Zhang, Linhai with Charles R. Brown, David Culley, Barbara Baker, Elizabeth Kunibe, Hazel Denney, Cassandra Smith, Neuee Ward, Tia Beavert, Julie Coburn, J. J. Pavek, Nora
Dauenhauer and Richard Dauenhauer. Inferred origin of several Native American potatoes from the Pacific Northwest and Southeast Alaska using SSR markers. Euphytica 174:15-29 -end- This electronic message contains information generated by the USDA solely for the intended recipients. Any unauthorized interception of this message or the use or disclosure of the information it contains may violate the law and subject the violator to civil or criminal penalties. If you believe you have received this message in error, please notify the sender and delete the email immediately. To manage your subscription visit http://www.fs.fed.us/news/subscription.shtml |
