EXPERIMENTS IN POTATO-CULTURE. 205 

 Mr. Wake presented the following essay upon 



EXPERIMENTS IN POTATO-CULTURE. 



Althougli the potato has been known as an article of food 

 for over two hundred years, it has come into general use 

 only within the memory of people who are still living. It 

 has now, however, become the most important vegetable 

 grown on the farm. The culinary practices of most of the 

 civilized nations of the earth involve the use of the potato to 

 such an extent, that it is a necessity for all classes, — for the 

 rich and for the poor alike. A very short crop of potatoes 

 in Ireland produces a famine there. Ordinarily it may be 

 found as an indispensable article of food upon the tables of 

 the poorest families ; and the most sumptuous feast would be 

 incomplete without it. 



The potato will grow in all latitudes from Florida to Nor- 

 way, under almost all circumstances and conditions ; and 

 yet there is probably no crop that is grown with so much 

 uncertainty, upon the cultivation of which there is so little 

 exact knowledge, and concerning which there is such a 

 diversity of opinion among cultivators. For instance, such 

 points as the following are entirely unsettled: 1. Whether 

 it is better to plant whole large potatoes, whole small ones, 

 or pieces of large ones ; if pieces are used, what is the best 

 size and number of eyes? 2. Which end of the tuber is 

 best for planting? 3. Whether it is better to use potatoes 

 that are fully ripe, or those not quite ripe, for planting ? 



4. If the potato is cut, is it better to plant the cut pieces 

 at once, or to let them lay in the air a few days, until the 

 cut surfaces have seared over so that they will not bleed ? 



5. Whether it is better to continue planting potatoes raised 

 on the same farm year after year, or to get potatoes for seed 

 from different localities ; if the latter, how often should the 

 seed be changed? 6. If the seed is changed, should it be 

 obtained from the North, or from the South ? 7. Is it better 

 to plant in hills or drills ? 8. How much seed should be put 

 in a hill, or how far apart should the seed be dropped in the 

 drills? and what distance should be between the rows? 



9. Shall the seed be covered two, four, or eight inches deep ? 



10. Is it better to plough the land for potatoes in the fall as 

 well as in the spring, or only in the spring? 11. How deep 



