The cultivars Bison, Norchief and Chieftain are in its ancestry. It was tested as ND1871-3R and was released by the North Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station on April 28, 1995. NorDonna is a medium maturing dark red-skinned cultivar grown for the fresh market. Rachis and petiole are purple on the upper surface and green on the underside.
Stems are green with areas of purple pigmentation especially pronounced at the nodes.
Straight wings also are weakly present on the stem. NorDonna produces a medium-high yield of U.S. No. 1 potatoes comparable to that of Red Norland under dry land conditions, but higher than Red Norland under irrigation. NorDonna has very attractive dark red skin that holds its color well in storage. It has wide adaptability, with a low incidence of hollow heart compared to other red cultivars. Field observations indicate NorDonna is resistant to the US1 genotype, A1 matching type of Phytophthora infestans, but is susceptible to newer genotypes.