2l8 AGRICULTURE OF MAINE. 



our interest to do everything possible to protect the Southern 

 grower. 



Care must be taken in cutting seed, to discard all potatoes 

 which show disease, and we should disinfect the knife which 

 has cut the diseased tuber. It is desirable to cut the potatoes 

 so as to make as square and blocky pieces as possible, avoiding 

 thin edges. 



In Aroostook, we think we get better results by planting 

 close together, about ten inches, and using a liberal amount of 

 high grade fertilizer. We use the high ridge method of cultiva- 

 tion, doing practically all of the work with the wheel cultivator 

 and horse hoe. A new two-row wheel horse hoe has been put 

 on the market this year, which will save the work of one man. 

 W^e go through the crop about every week during the summer, 

 keeping the ground entirely free from weeds and keeping a fine 

 dust mulch on the rows at all times. I am afraid many of us 

 are not careful enough in preparing our Bordeaux Mixture for 

 spraying. It is very important that only diluted solutions be 

 mixed together and it is a very easy and inexpensive job to 

 erect a platform from which the diluted solutions can be run 

 directly into the sprayer. I believe in using a power sprayer, 

 giving a good pressure, using fine nozzles and spraying rather 

 than sprinkling the vines. We are spraying from three to seven 

 times, depending on weather conditions. A few years ago, we 

 waited for fine weather to spray, but we have learned that the 

 time it is most needed is in wet weather, and we spray any time 

 when the tops are dry. I have noticed that potato vines will 

 dry off very quickly, fully an hour before the grass is dry. 



We should go through the fields two or three times during 

 the summer and remove all plants showing any signs of disease, 

 also any plants whose blossoms prove them to be of another 

 variety. I have found, however, that the best time to remove, 

 any late varieties, which have become mixed with Cobblers or 

 other early varieties, is to wait until the early potatoes have 

 died down and then go through the field and remove all potatoes 

 which are attached to green stalks. 



We need to improve our method of digging potatoes. I sup- 

 pose until someone invents a good potato digger, we will have to 

 use the ones we have at present, but the way our potatoes are cut 

 anrl bruised is really a shame. I did not realize how bad this 



