164 



Bulletin 251. 



It will be seen from this table that the average yield of the 100 heavy 

 hills for the three years was 138 pounds against a similar average of 73 

 pounds for the light-yielding hills. This and other experiments indicate 

 the importance of the hill selection of potatoes and the writer believes that 

 breeding-work of this nature will prove very valuable for the potato-grower 

 to pursue with the view to improving the seed primarily for his own culti- 

 vation and possibly also for sale as seed. Following is a short outline of 

 such a method of breeding, which will serve as a guide to farmers desiring 

 to start work of this kind. 



Fig. 144. — Tubers of Rural New Yorker. Very nearly one-half natural size. Top 

 roiv, left, poor-shaped spherical tuber, too large; right, good-shaped tuber of 

 about right size. Bottom row, left, good-shaped tuber with good eyes, but too 

 small; right, tuber too long and too large. 



Selection of foundation stoclz of potatoes. 

 Probably no crop generally grown is more influenced by environment 

 than the potato. The experience of growers indicates that a variety found 

 to be the best suited to the local conditions on one farm may not 

 prove to be the variety best suited to the conditions existing on an ad- 

 joining farm. It thus becomes desirable for any farmer who is growing 

 potatoes extensively, to test varieties sufficiently to determine which is 

 the variety best suited for the local conditions concerned. This ordi- 



