206 STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



3. To try various methods of planting, tillage, pruning, training, etc. 



4. To study injurious fungi and test remedies for tliem. 



5. To originate new varieties by selection and crossing, also to improve 

 our present varieties. 



6. To test various methods of building, heating, and ventilating green- 

 houses. 



The present bulletin gives partial results of our work in the first and 

 third sections so far as they relate to vegetables. 



Considerable other material in this line is at hand, but as the season has 

 been quite unfavorable for careful experimental work, it is thought best to 

 hold it until the results have been viewed in the light of a second year's 

 experience. 



In the work with fertilizers many of our results were in direct contradic- 

 tion to each other, while with other crops it requires another year before 

 results can be obtained. 



The season has acted unfavorably upon several of the crops here treated, 

 but wherever the comparative results seem to be afPected, attention is 

 called to it. 



POTATOES. 



For many years experiments with potatoes have been carried on, both in 

 this country and in Europe, for the purpose of testing the value of the dif- 

 ferent varieties, and of determining the best methods of planting and culti- 

 vating them. Although the work has resulted in the laying down of cer- 

 tain principles, there has been such a variance in the conclusions arrived 

 at, that the farmer is, if anything, more in the dark than ever, and blindly 

 keeps on in the same old way. 



Hoping to throw some light on the subject, a series of experiments was 

 laid out to be conducted for a term of years under the same conditions. In 

 many cases they were so arranged as to afford duplicate and even triplicate 

 results. 



When land can be selected that shows no variation, it will afford more 

 satisfactory results if large areas can be devoted to each variety or plot, but 

 the changing character of our soil does not admit of this, and we were 

 obliged to content ourselves with comparatively small plots, but by doing 

 this we were able to secure a very imiform soil for them. 



The land used was a heavy sandy loam with a clay subsoil. It had been 

 used for garden purposes for a number of years, the crop for 1887 being 

 tomatoes and for 1888 a variety of root crops. 



In the spring of 1887 it was heavily manured with stable manure; noth- 

 ing was applied in 1888, and during the past year the fertilizers and 

 manures were applied only to special sections as indicated further along. 



After thorough preparation of the land, it was marked off, making 

 twenty -four rows, three and one half feet 'apart, the trenches being five 

 inches deep. 



The land was then measured off into sections twenty-fiv^e feet in length. 

 Three of these sections were used for variety tests, and the others in trying 

 different methods of planting, fertilizing, etc. 



