TILLAGE EXPERIMENTS WITH POTATOES. 



Summary.— Eighty-five per cent of the reports received from 

 farmers of tillage experiments with potatoes indicate profitable 

 returns resulting from the use of methods recommended by the 

 College, viz.: Early (or twice) plowing, thorough fitting, deep 

 planting; prolonged, frequent, level tillage and spraying with 

 Bordeaux mixture and Paris green. 



So mneli lias been written of late years in regard to the import- 

 ance of manures and commercial fertilizers in agriculture that, 

 possibly, tliei-e is danger that farmers may overlook the importance 

 of the pliysical condition of the soil, tillage and the employment of 

 right methods in treating crops. Experiments conducted on the 

 grounds of this station with potatoes from 1895 up to the present 

 time furnish good illustrations of what may be accomplished by 

 intensive culture without manures or fertilizers. Some of the 

 results of this work have been given in Bulletins 130, 140, 156. 

 With a view to ascertaining if similar results would be secured by 

 similar methods in other localities and more especially for the pur- 

 pose "of furnishing to the farmers in various parts of the State an 

 object lesson in thorough tillage, an effort has been made to arrange 

 cooperative experiments in the tillage of potatoes in various locali- 

 ties. In the spring of 1899 Circular Xo. 18, "Concerning Cooj)er- 

 ative Experiments in Potato Culture," was prepared and sent to a 

 considerable number of farmers who were known to be interested 

 in potato growing. A revised edition of this circular was prepared 

 the following season and as it gives a condensed summary of the 

 results obtained on the Station grounds for live years as well as the 

 plan of the cooperative work, it is here reproduced in full. Further- 

 more it is desired to keep this line of experimentation before the 

 farmers of the State as it is believed that it will lead to improved 

 methods of potato culture as well as teach valuable lessons in regard 



to soil management in general. 



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