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If there's a way, nature finds it. So when Donna Porée (@donna9p) locked up her apartment to quarantine with her husband, the sack of potatoes she left behind refused to give up and just rot. No, no... The potatoes had searched for sources of life throughout the whole 3 months of Donna's absence.

When the woman came back home, she couldn't believe the progress the vegetables have made. "It's very surprising but the potatoes have punctured through the joints of my kitchen," Donna told Bored Panda.

Image credits: donna9p

While cleaning up, Donna decided against eating the potatoes or throwing them away. After all, their tremendous will to live demanded something a little more respectful. "I carefully removed them from my apartment and replanted them in a vegetable patch outside," Donna explained.

In the process of doing so, there was one more thing that needed to be taken care of. "When I was relocating the potatoes, I couldn't help myself and measured their sprouts. To my amazement, some were almost 1 meter (3.3 feet) long!"

After seeing Donna's pics, people started sharing their own photos of accidental potato sprouts.

#1

And Now We Know Where Pringles Come From

And Now We Know Where Pringles Come From

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N G
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

"Good day to you sir, please plant me on the battle field outside", spoken in stiff upper class British accent

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Sprouted potatoes contain higher levels of glycoalkaloids, which can be toxic to humans when eaten in big amounts. Even though discarding the sprouts, eyes, green skin, and bruised parts of a potato, as well as frying it, may help reduce glycoalkaloid levels, more research is needed to know for sure whether or not we can safely eat sprouted potatoes. Until then, the safest thing to do is to discard them and get new ones.

#2

Potatoes Were Hiding In My Pantry. They Look Like Some Sort Of Sea Creature

Potatoes Were Hiding In My Pantry. They Look Like Some Sort Of Sea Creature

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One of the best ways to reduce sprouting in potatoes is to buy them in moderation. Try to avoid stockpiling these vegetables and only buy them when you have plans to use them.

Also, if you spot any damaged potatoes, it's probably best that you get rid of them and make sure that the remaining ones are stored in a cool, dry, and dark place.

Some funny reports suggest that we should avoid keeping potatoes with onions as putting the two together may accelerate sprouting. However, that's just folklore; there's no scientific evidence to support this.

#3

This Bag Of Potatoes In My Basement

This Bag Of Potatoes In My Basement

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#4

A Potato I Found Under My Kitchen Counter Looks Like Some Sort Of Alien Forest

A Potato I Found Under My Kitchen Counter Looks Like Some Sort Of Alien Forest

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#5

Sweet Potato Sprouting

Sweet Potato Sprouting

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Daria B
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Sounds almost like an exclamation, like "Sweet potato sprouting, what is that?"

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#6

The Microwavable Potatoes I Left Over Winter Break Sprouted

The Microwavable Potatoes I Left Over Winter Break Sprouted

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Scagsy
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If you turned it upside down you could use it as a very small table.

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#7

Apparently If You Rotate A Sprouting Potato Every Few Days, They Get Confused.

Apparently If You Rotate A Sprouting Potato Every Few Days, They Get Confused.

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Dynein
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Of course they get confused... imagine what a plant would look like if it couldn't sense it's environment! It'd be a random mess of roots, leafs and stems - nonsense, it needs to get some idea about the best direction for the specific purpose. Roots: Downwards, follow the surface, follow the moisture, follow the nutrients. Stems: Upwards (sideways if you're a sufficient size already), to the light. "To the light" is a really major factor here, but (some, I don't know if all) plants really can sense where "down" is! They have little weights in the cell that sink to the bottom. (further info on "plant sense" in reply to this comment)

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#8

Yesterday I Turned This Potato Upside Down, And Today I Got A Practical Lesson In Gravitropism, The Tendency Of Plants To Alter Their Growth With Respect To Gravity. Bonus: It Turned Into A Lobster

Yesterday I Turned This Potato Upside Down, And Today I Got A Practical Lesson In Gravitropism, The Tendency Of Plants To Alter Their Growth With Respect To Gravity. Bonus: It Turned Into A Lobster

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#10

Won’t Be Photographing Any Mountains Or Foreign Destinations In The Foreseeable Future So I Decided To Take Some Shots Closer To Home

Won’t Be Photographing Any Mountains Or Foreign Destinations In The Foreseeable Future So I Decided To Take Some Shots Closer To Home

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#11

Box Of Potatoes That Has Been Left Unopened For About A Year

Box Of Potatoes That Has Been Left Unopened For About A Year

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#12

When You Left Somewhere 5 Months Ago, Come Back And Didn’t Realise You’d Left Some Potatoes In A Cupboard

When You Left Somewhere 5 Months Ago, Come Back And Didn’t Realise You’d Left Some Potatoes In A Cupboard

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#13

I See Your Tomato, And I Offer You A Bucket Of Seedy Potatoes And One Kitty

I See Your Tomato, And I Offer You A Bucket Of Seedy Potatoes And One Kitty

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#14

This Potato Has Been Growing For 3 Weeks

This Potato Has Been Growing For 3 Weeks

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#15

Delicate Sweet Potato Sprouts Look Unearthly And Beautiful, Like Martian Coral

Delicate Sweet Potato Sprouts Look Unearthly And Beautiful, Like Martian Coral

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Raine Soo
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The purple tendrils look like little hands. The colour is quite pretty.

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#16

My Dad Found A Horror Potato Sprouting In The Back Of Our Pantry Drawer

My Dad Found A Horror Potato Sprouting In The Back Of Our Pantry Drawer

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#17

My Potato Is Ripe I Think

My Potato Is Ripe I Think

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Osgood_7
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Potatoes and onions release gasses that make the other go bad more quickly. If you want them to last longer, keep potatoes and onions apart

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#19

This Sprouted Sweet Potato I Forgot In My Pantry Looks Weirdly Pretty

This Sprouted Sweet Potato I Forgot In My Pantry Looks Weirdly Pretty

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#20

This Is What Happens When You Leave A Bag Of Potatoes In A Closet For Almost A Year

This Is What Happens When You Leave A Bag Of Potatoes In A Closet For Almost A Year

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ebony1k124 touch
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Must not go in the pantry often. I would hate to see what other things have mutated in there.

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#21

Old Potatoes Planted This Morning

Old Potatoes Planted This Morning

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#22

I Forgot About The Last Of The Potatoes

I Forgot About The Last Of The Potatoes

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#23

Found A Sprouted Potato At Work...

Found A Sprouted Potato At Work...

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#25

My Friend Forgot About A Bag Of Potatoes She Bought Six Months Ago.

My Friend Forgot About A Bag Of Potatoes She Bought Six Months Ago.

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#26

What Happens When You Leave Potatoes In The Cellar For 6 Months

What Happens When You Leave Potatoes In The Cellar For 6 Months

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#27

Left A Sprouting Sweet Potato In My Cupboard For A Little Over A Year. Here Are The Results.

Left A Sprouting Sweet Potato In My Cupboard For A Little Over A Year. Here Are The Results.

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Marlowe Fitzpatrik
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Why not put it in soil when you've already gone so far with the sprouting? This is just sad.

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#28

We Forgot About Our Bag Of Potatoes And They Sprouted...a Lot

We Forgot About Our Bag Of Potatoes And They Sprouted...a Lot

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#29

I Found This Sprouted Potato Today, Which Was Hiding In A Cupboard For Along Time. The Roots Tell The Whole Story That The Plant Cant Tell. .seems Like A Familiar Story? Welcome To The Lazy Gardeners Club

I Found This Sprouted Potato Today, Which Was Hiding In A Cupboard For Along Time. The Roots Tell The Whole Story That The Plant Cant Tell. .seems Like A Familiar Story? Welcome To The Lazy Gardeners Club

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Daria B
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I see a tired humanoid creature that's walking and carrying a heavy backpack.

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#30

I Started Cleaning Out My Nest. I Began In The Kitchen, Here Are Some Potatoes That I Left In The Cupboard For Almost A Year.

I Started Cleaning Out My Nest. I Began In The Kitchen, Here Are Some Potatoes That I Left In The Cupboard For Almost A Year.

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#31

Found A Old Bag Of Potatoes Behind The Washing Machine...gone Alien With 3ft Roots

Found A Old Bag Of Potatoes Behind The Washing Machine...gone Alien With 3ft Roots

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#32

Found A Monster In The Cabinet Sprouted Potato Grew Through The Funnel

Found A Monster In The Cabinet Sprouted Potato Grew Through The Funnel

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#33

This Tiny Potato Has A Very Long Sprout

This Tiny Potato Has A Very Long Sprout

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#34

This Box Of Potatoes That I Left In The Cupboard For 3 Months

This Box Of Potatoes That I Left In The Cupboard For 3 Months

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#35

The Way This Potato Sprouted

The Way This Potato Sprouted

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#37

Have You Ever Reached Into A Dark Pantry And Scared The Living S**t Outta Yourself With A Potato? No? Me Either

Have You Ever Reached Into A Dark Pantry And Scared The Living S**t Outta Yourself With A Potato? No? Me Either

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#38

This Sprouting Potato

This Sprouting Potato

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#39

This Potato Fell Under A Display Table Months Ago, And Now Look What It's Turned Into

This Potato Fell Under A Display Table Months Ago, And Now Look What It's Turned Into

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#40

Sprouting-Potatoes

Sprouting-Potatoes

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#41

My Housemate Left This Potato In Her Cupboard For So Long That It Started Growing An Entirely New Plant

My Housemate Left This Potato In Her Cupboard For So Long That It Started Growing An Entirely New Plant

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#42

What Once Happened To Some Potatoes I Bought After Being Forgotten For 1,5 Months.

What Once Happened To Some Potatoes I Bought After Being Forgotten For 1,5 Months.

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#43

Left These Potatoes In A Dark Cupboard.

Left These Potatoes In A Dark Cupboard.

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#44

I Forgot About My Potatoes For A Couple Months

I Forgot About My Potatoes For A Couple Months

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#45

Sooo I Forgot I Had Potatoes

Sooo I Forgot I Had Potatoes

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#47

I Told Rakesh He Was Getting These Sprouting Potatoes For Dinner...he Wasn’t Amused!

I Told Rakesh He Was Getting These Sprouting Potatoes For Dinner...he Wasn’t Amused!

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#49

I Forgot This Potato At The Bottom Of My Fridge For 2 Months

I Forgot This Potato At The Bottom Of My Fridge For 2 Months

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#50

I Guess I Forgot About A Potato I Had. Found This At The Bottom Of A Bucket When I Went To Make Dinner.

I Guess I Forgot About A Potato I Had. Found This At The Bottom Of A Bucket When I Went To Make Dinner.

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#51

Sprouting Potatoes Breaking Through The Plastic Bag They're Trapped In

Sprouting Potatoes Breaking Through The Plastic Bag They're Trapped In

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#52

I Think Today's The Day These Spuds Will Go In The Ground!

I Think Today's The Day These Spuds Will Go In The Ground!

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#53

Found These Aliens In My Kitchen Cupboard

Found These Aliens In My Kitchen Cupboard

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#54

Looks Like I'll Be Planting Some Potatoes Today

Looks Like I'll Be Planting Some Potatoes Today

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#55

A Forgotten Sweet Potato Turned Into A Sprouting Beauty. I Had It For Dinner But Really I Just Wanted To Leave It And Watch It Grow

A Forgotten Sweet Potato Turned Into A Sprouting Beauty. I Had It For Dinner But Really I Just Wanted To Leave It And Watch It Grow

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#56

Ooops! Best Get Planting!!! These Are Well And Truly Chitted

Ooops! Best Get Planting!!! These Are Well And Truly Chitted

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#57

Sprouting Potatoes, Stuff Of Nightmares.

Sprouting Potatoes, Stuff Of Nightmares.

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#58

Sooo I Forgot I Had Potatoes...

Sooo I Forgot I Had Potatoes...

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#59

This Bag Of Potatoes I Forgot About Have Grown Quite A Bit

This Bag Of Potatoes I Forgot About Have Grown Quite A Bit

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#60

This Potato

This Potato

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#61

I Left A Potato In My Kitchen Cabinet For 3 Months And Then I Found It Like This.

I Left A Potato In My Kitchen Cabinet For 3 Months And Then I Found It Like This.

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#62

Some Potatoes I Forgot About In My Cabinet Started Sprouting

Some Potatoes I Forgot About In My Cabinet Started Sprouting

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#63

Potatoes Are Sprouting Inside My Cabinet.

Potatoes Are Sprouting Inside My Cabinet.

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#64

Me: "Mum, Do You Have Any Potatoes?"Mum: "Yes, Plenty In The Cupboard!"*opens Cupboard & Shrieks*🥔: "Feed Me, Seymour!"

Me: "Mum, Do You Have Any Potatoes?"Mum: "Yes, Plenty In The Cupboard!"*opens Cupboard & Shrieks*🥔: "Feed Me, Seymour!"

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#65

This Potato Sprouted While It Was In The Back Of The Cabinet.

This Potato Sprouted While It Was In The Back Of The Cabinet.

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#66

Oops

Oops

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