]jS Bulletin 156. 



turned to a depth of about four inche.s. The harrow was then 

 used and the surface thoroughly pulverized and fined. Rows 

 were marked off at a distance of 40 inches apart and the fur- 

 rows for the potatoes were opened with a common shovel plow 

 to a depth of about five inches. 



The "seed" was from first-class stock, only large, market- 

 able potatoes being used. These were cut into pieces contain- 

 ing from one to three eyes, about two strong eyes to the piece 

 being wiiat was desired. The pieces were dropped in the fur- 

 rows directly after the furrows had been opened, one piece being 

 put in a place and at distances fourteen inches apart in the row. 

 The shovel plow was again used and a furrow was opened in the 

 middle of the space left when the first furrows w^ere opened. 

 This second use of the shovel plow served to cover the potatoes, 

 the earth being ridged up directly over the potato row. (See 

 frontispiece which is from photograph). The planting was done 

 on May 10. The soil was tnen left undisturbed until May 28. 

 The ridges which were left over the seed potatoes covered them 

 to a depth of about eight inches. By May 28 the weed seeds 

 which were in the surface soil had germinated and the whole sur- 

 face w^as covered with tiny weeds. A spike tooth hrrrow was 

 fitted with a piece of 2x4 scantling placed diagonally across 

 underneath the frame and held in place by the harrow teeth. 

 The harrow thus rigged w^as used upon the potato plats, being 

 first run lengthwise of the rows and then crosswise. The \\ eight 

 of the driver upon the harrow was necessary in order to make it 

 do the leveling as required. The benefit derived from this treat- 

 ment was ver}- marked. All weeds were destroyed, the suiface 

 crust was broken, all clods and stones were removed from above 

 the row and deposited in the center of the space between rows, 

 the surface was leveled and in every wa}' the conditions were 

 made favorable for the rapid growth of the potatoes, and they 

 appeared above ground in three or four days. 



The treatment which the various plats received during the 

 season and the yield from each plat is shown by the following 

 tabular statement. 



