POTATO CULTURE, 435 



land planted, the yield would not be so great. I raised at the rate 

 of 166 pounds from one, with one eye in each hill, using no other 

 manure but that most excellent superphosphate which we get from 

 Portland, the " Cumberland," which has proved of great value to 

 me, not only for potatoes, but for turnips and corn. 



My yield of potatoes has been, for the last six or eight years, 

 with one exception, and that was on pasture land, 200 bushels and 

 upwards to the acre. This year I raised " Sebecs," at the rate of 

 280 bushels to the acre. These I manured with half a shovel full 

 of stable manure to the hill. I raised last year of the " Goodrich," 

 at the rate of 325 bushels to the acre ; and so precious did they 

 seem to me at the time of digging that I kept them to sell for 

 seed; but this spring nobody wanted them. I shall not plant 

 them any more. 



It seems to me that the gentleman's idea that the seed end of 

 the potato produces only small ones is certainly a mistake. I have 

 taken the " Early Sebecs," "Jackson Whites," and " Oronos," 

 divided them in the middle, and planted in rows side by side, and 

 the seed end always came up first, and was always ahead of the 

 others ; and in the fall I could not see but I got as many potatoes 

 in weight or measure, if not more, perhaps not quite as large, and 

 about a fortnight ahead of the others. 



Mr. Wassox. The potato crop is the leading crop, hay ex- 

 cepted, in the State of Maine, especially in the valley of the 

 Penobscot. It is a crop that is cultivated by more men than any 

 other crop grown in the State of Maine, and it is every year 

 receiving large accessions to the number of its producers. It is 

 now more than a hundred years since the potato has been grown 

 as a field crop, and yet, if we compare certain facts known to 

 those who grew the potato a hundred years ago, and arrange 

 them side by side with certain facts claimed to have been ascer- 

 tained by those who grow the potato to-day, we should all be sur- 

 prised to find that we are so little in advance of that pei'iod. 



Now, the primary object of this exhibition and discussion is, 

 that we may bring out facts and settle principles. Let us look over 

 the ground a little. Shall we select a potato of large size or small, 

 as the better seed ? Shall we select the seed end or the butt end 

 as preferable ? Shall we plant two feet apart or three ? Shall we 

 put the rows three feet apart or three-and-a-half ? Shall we plant 

 the seed with the flesh side up or down ? Shall we cover to the 

 depth of six, four, or two inches? Shall we plant upon greensward 



