222 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Jan., 



better opportunity to come to maturity before the rot could 

 reach them. That was the theory. This was tested in a 

 general way in Europe some years ago, and some experiments 

 made, which however, were not especially carried on with 

 this point in view, but they, in fact, seemed to show that 

 potatoes were less liable to rot when they were deeper in 

 the ground. In my conversation on this subject with a good 

 many farmers, the majority of them have seemed to have had 

 less where they were ridged or buried deeper than they did 

 where they were near the surface. I have had replies to some 

 of those circulars. This was not a year to test it in good 

 shape, because we had no rot on any of the potatoes in the 

 state. Those replies that I have received, so far as the effect 

 of ridging over unridged, speak as highly of ridging as they 

 do of the unridged. A few got a greater yield from ridging 

 than they did from the unridged. That ridging, of course, 

 will vary with different years. Of course, in a very dry year 

 it might tend to injure the potatoes because it would dry out. 

 In our own experience, the experiment seemed to show that 

 the ridged ones did not do as well as where level culture was 

 pursued. I ridged them severely. Another year I would have 

 them ridged early and not so severely. I would modify it 

 this way. I would go deeper in the ground. I think I will 

 get the same effect. That is, if the potato is buried more 

 deeply under the ground there would be less opportunity for 

 the tuber to dry, and the probability of dry weather affecting 

 it in the ridge would be lessened. I intend to carry these 

 experiments on for a period of years, as to all of those methods 

 concerning rot. 



Those are the three points that I have been working on. 

 Now if you have anything to ask me I should be glad to 

 answer it, if I can. 



DISCUSSION. 



A Member. What does it cost per acre to spray? 



Prof. Clinton. That varies. I should say, in this state, 

 at least eight dollars an acre. But, if you get a twenty per 

 cent, increase of yield you make it up in that way. In New 



