To the Irish people, the potato was their whole life. It was the main source of food for the nation and they were dependent on the healthy growth of the crop in order to maintain their survival. Often times, they would eat potatoes for every meal. Since it was so versatile, the people of Ireland were able to make many dishes and thrive off of the starchy matter found inside. Until the blight occurred, this was their main source of living.
The Severity of the potato blight originated from the massive dependence the people of Ireland had on the crop. If there were other food sources that they could grow, the blight may have not have had as big of an effect on them. From 1845 to 1852, however, the blight was so bad across the entire nation that mass starvation occurred killing nearly 1 million people and causing many more to emigrate out of Ireland.
The blight was caused by a pathogen known as Phytophthora infestans which was believed to have originated from Mexico and made its way to Ireland via trade vessels etc. Before the origin was known, many blames were placed on God, the soil, insects and many other means of trying to understand why the Irish people were so devastated. In addition to the pathogen, abiotic factors played a role such as rain washing the pathogen through the soil and infecting other plants, replanting healthy crops in infected soil, and so many more that caused it to spread so rapidly.
Due to the malnutrition caused by the lack of food, the Irish people were much more susceptible to infectious diseases since their immune systems were “down.” The people of Ireland became infected diarrheal diseases and cholera, which made them closer to death due to their susceptibility from malnutrition. As mentioned before, this caused the citizens to flee the country and remove themselves from the horrible situation.
HR: The Powerpoint and films watched in class. No unauthorized aid was used.