452 BOARD OP AGRICULTURE. 



Mr. CoMiNS. No doubt, that will preserve potatoes, or any- 

 other kind of roots ; but the question is, can we afford to dig 

 them twice ? One year, after I got all my potatoes into my bin, 

 I covered them with turf, and let it remain there until spring. 

 My potatoes were first-rate, just as good in the spring as when 

 first dug in the fall. 



Mr. Gilbert. One or two points were raised this forenoon to 

 which I wish briefly to refer. One was, the quantity of seed. 

 Almost every gentleman who spoke thought he was disagreeing 

 with me very widely, while I thought he was coming quite near to 

 my ideas. I stated some general facts in reference to the potato, 

 and I believe if j^ou pursue the subject, you will admit them to be 

 facts. Those general facts were, that the seed end of a potato 

 was liable to produce more small potatoes than the butt end, and 

 that a small potato was liable to produce a small crop of small 

 potatoes. These, I say, are established facts ; and my reason for 

 saying so is, that all the comparative experiments made and re- 

 ported to this Board for several years past, as well as experiments 

 reported through the public journals, have proved the same thing 

 in reference to seed, and that is, that a large amount of seed, 

 other things being equal, will produce the best crop per acre, over 

 and above the amount of seed used. But there should not be any 

 larger number of stalks in the hill than there would be if a small 

 amount of seed was used ; or, at least, there should be no more 

 than the desirable number. 



With regard to another point. As a matter of theory, I ex- 

 pressed the opinion that there was a certain amount of nutriment 

 obtained by the young plant from the parent seed. That was 

 stoutly disputed by some. Now, in order to obtain striking re- 

 sults, we should experiment in widely different directions. If you 

 wish to test that point, try this experiment : After the potato has 

 sprouted, and the plant begun to grow, separate that plant from 

 the parent seed with a penknife, being careful to preserve all the 

 roots, set it out in a good field, and treat it in the ordinary man- 

 ner of common field culture, and see what the result will be. The 

 fact is, it will hardly have life enough to grow. What is the rea- 

 son ? Because it docs not receive any support from the parent 

 seed. If tlio plant i^ set in a hot bed or rich garden, as is the 

 practice with the celebrated propagators to whom I referred, it 

 will grow and produce a large yield ; but put it into our fields, 



