E. Han Tan
@ekhtn.bsky.social
570 followers 340 following 73 posts
I like plants 🌾 / 🏳️‍🌈 {he/him} 🌈 / 🥔 Potato + 🧪 🧬 🖥️ 🐡 / Associate Professor, University of Maine
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ekhtn.bsky.social
I’m ashamed to say that I’ve been in this building for almost nine years (nine!!) and have only just realized that the stained glass feature by our ‘tree of life’ chandelier in the foyer has the scientific name of potato inscribed on it 🥔 🥔 🥔 — How did I miss this?!
ekhtn.bsky.social
Happy Friday! ❤️🥔
Heart-shaped red potato.
ekhtn.bsky.social
Some of the early generation diploid potatoes from today, 2nd or 3rd year in the field and putting out some interesting colored flesh 🌈
ekhtn.bsky.social
Purple Tomato tart, Purple Tomato nachos, Purple Tomato everything!
ekhtn.bsky.social
Recent fav, Viola canadensis from the Great Smoky Mountains NP this summer
Flower of Canada violet, mostly white, green to yellow center with purple stripes.
ekhtn.bsky.social
Sun moon, ying yang #cats composed for you today by Mia and Harry.
Two cats laying on carpet facing each other.
ekhtn.bsky.social
Ok, TDIL and answered my own question -- from Yeager (1927)
Figure from Yeager (1927) showing self-pruning phenotype of tomato.
ekhtn.bsky.social
Has anyone encountered this tomato phenotype? It seems to be quite consistent and essentially self-pruning!

The shoot apical meristem terminates into a floral meristem instead of continuing to grow vines.

This was a volunteer seedling from vegetable bed that I randomly transplanted into a pot.
Tomato plant with two flower spikes. Tomato plant with two flower spikes. Tomato plant with two flower spikes.
ekhtn.bsky.social
Any stone tool researchers out there? Beach find, this piece has a sharp edge and is perfectly grooved for holding with right hand as seen here. Material is unlike any rock found in the area.
Nine photos of hand holding a piece of stone by a beach.
ekhtn.bsky.social
Also the #cats of #giliair is the same as cats the world over—finding the best spot for attention, showered with fresh 🌺 and still be annoyed with the hoomans.
Cat lounging on concrete entryway with wooden doors, framed with flowering red bougainvillea, looking annoyed at the photographer.
ekhtn.bsky.social
Sunrise and sunset at Gili Air, one of the islands off the coast of Lombok. Fun fact: we crossed Wallace’s line yesterday from Bali to get here, and this island has no motorized vehicles! To get around other than being on foot, you have a choice of bicycles, electric scooters or horse-drawn carts.
Sunrise over a beach on Gili Air. With mountain range of Lombok including Mt Rinjani in the background. Sunset on a beach in Gili Air, with a view of Gili Meno as well.
ekhtn.bsky.social
Sunset scene from St Andrews, earlier this week at a potato breeding and genetics meeting at the University of St Andrews. 🥔 🧬 🌱
Sunset in St Andrews, seaside town in Scotland.
ekhtn.bsky.social
We all need more cats in our timeline, no?
Cat sitting on a “throne”.
ekhtn.bsky.social
Mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia) of the Great Smoky Mountain NP ~two weeks ago.
Blooms of mountain laurel on a trail.
ekhtn.bsky.social
One of my favorite spring ephemerals, gaywings (Polygala paucifolia)!
ekhtn.bsky.social
Back in the greenhouse today 🌱 🌱 and here are some good looking (and fragrant) inbred diploid potato flowers 🌸 🌸
Purple potato flowers in a greenhouse.
ekhtn.bsky.social
This cat was superrr helpful at the checkout counter in ‘cat city’ in Borneo. So… is this worthy of @bodegacats.bsky.social ?
Cat sleeping on checkout counter.
ekhtn.bsky.social
We’ve grown a lot of potato from botanical seed, but this is our first truly albino seedling. I know… I know… there are yeastie beasties on the plate but these were destined for soil, so it’s not an issue.
A green potato seedling next to an albino potato seedling.
ekhtn.bsky.social
First frog sighting in ME of 2025 from 4 days ago, a cute spring peeper from our Maine Big Night survey. mainebignight.org
ekhtn.bsky.social
Today’s weird potato flower is one that looks like fasiflora (fa) mutants in tomato, but as usual, nothing is known about this mutation in tuber bearing Solanum.

Pub with the fa mutant in tomato:
www.researchgate.net/profile/Beat...
Leafy potato flower.
ekhtn.bsky.social
Here are some potato flowers from our crossing block this year! Getting ready to go.
Potato flower cluster. White potato flowers. Pink potato flowers.
ekhtn.bsky.social
One sits, one loafs. Two cats in two seemingly appropriately sized boxes for your consideration this evening.
Two cats sitting and loafing in two boxes.
ekhtn.bsky.social
Just so happened that I just made a batch of crispy roasted potatoes today for lunch. Potato variety used is a purple skin yellow flesh USDA ARS release called Peter Wilcox. So delish! 🥔 🌿
A tray of crispy roasted potatoes.