Farmer’s free potato field harvested in under a week

A half-hectare potato field in Jalasjärvi, South Ostrobothnia, was harvested in less than a week after dairy farmer Seppo Korpi invited people to dig up potatoes for their own kitchens, Yle reported.

Korpi, 41, said he had planted more potatoes than usual as a goodwill gesture. He planted them with his four-year-old son, Urho, who also helped care for the crop during the summer.

“I was completely surprised. I was already wondering whether I should even announce the potatoes, and whether anyone would come to collect them,” Korpi said.

Korpi runs a dairy farm in Larvakylä, Jalasjärvi. He planted the community potato field near the town centre on land he rents from the city of Kurikka.

“There are open-drain fields and a lot of housing nearby, so these fields are not very practical to farm intensively,” he said.

The rented fields have previously been used for flowers and peas. Sunflowers are also growing there this year, and Korpi said people might be able to collect them if they bloom.

Potatoes brought joy to children and older people

Digging potatoes became a family activity for many visitors. Korpi said one grandmother called to say that her grandchild had dug up potatoes for the first time. The child soon became more interested in finding earthworms than in the potatoes.

Iloniemi care home also responded to Korpi’s announcement. Practical nurse Sanna Kujala went with her young daughter to collect new potatoes for the residents.

“The idea came from our residents. They always say that new potatoes with herring are their favourite summer treat. When the potatoes were offered, we had to go and get them,” Kujala said.

The freshly harvested potatoes added variety to meals at the care home, where food is normally delivered from a central kitchen. Kujala also organised an activity around the potatoes, with residents washing them together.

“They enjoy being able to do the kinds of tasks they have been used to doing throughout their lives,” she said.

Korpi said he has always enjoyed helping other people. He has also spent about 20 years working with the volunteer fire brigade.

He expects the remaining potatoes to be dug up after the next sufficiently dry day.