HORTICULTURE. 149 



A method followed by English gardeners to increase the earliness of 

 potatoes was tested. The tubers were packed in sand in greenhouse 

 flats with the "seed" end exposed above the sand. The flats were 

 placed under the bench in a cool propagating house late in February. 

 A month later, when the tubers had sprouted, they were set in furrows 

 in the field in the same position they had in the flats. At the same 

 time unsprouted tubers were planted as a check. Tables are given 

 showing the comparative yield often hills of the sprouted and unsprouted 

 lots dug June 16 and of the remainder dug July 24. The authors say 

 "it will be observed that the proportional difference is greater with the 

 early digging than the later, and that the difference in the ripe tubers 

 would not be sufficient to make the experiment pay for the trouble. 

 The real gain was found in the examination made June 1, which gave 

 table potatoes a week ahead of the ordinary method." 



In 1893 a large number of varieties of onions were tested, of which 

 Prize Taker gave the best results. In 1891 a fertilizing experiment 

 was made with onions. A heavy application of barnyard manure gave 

 better results than any of the more concentrated fertilizers. In 1895 

 tests of subsoiling and irrigating were made in connection with onions. 

 The yield of onions on a subsoiled and unirrigated plat was about 103 

 lbs.; on an irrigated and nonsubsoiled plat, 167 lbs. ; on a plat neither 

 irrigated nor subsoiled, 173 lbs.; and on a plat both subsoiled and irri- 

 gated, 241 lbs. In 1896 the experiment was continued, but thrips ruined 

 the crop entirely. In 1897 a comparison of the old vs. the new onion 

 culture was made. The yields by the two methods are given in a table. 

 iSTo conclusions are drawn. Most of the onions were of inferior size, 

 owing to injury from thrips. 



A test was made of different grades of soil for forcing lettuce. The 

 soil varied from poor garden loam to a mixture of one-fourth sand and 

 three-fourths garden loam. A number of plantings were made. The 

 earliest plantings gave the best results in the mixture of half sand and 

 half loam, the next later planting gave best results in soil one-fourth 

 sand and three-fourths loam, and the latest planting gave best results 

 in the poor loam. A test was also made of varieties. Bartelde Den- 

 ver Market gave the heaviest heads, Grand Eapids next heaviest, and 

 Black Seeded Simpson lightest. Plants set 6 by 6 in. apart gave a 

 greater yield per square foot of bench than plants set 8 by 8 in. ; but the 

 average weight of the heads was considerably less in the former case 

 than in the latter. 



The method of forcing tomatoes at the station is given, and the treat- 

 ment of (Edema considered. The yield from 30 plants of each of the 

 following varieties was: Xew Stone, 86.5 lbs.; Fordhook First, 66.5 

 lbs.; Royal Red, 65.7 lbs.; Dwarf Champion, 60.3 lbs. 



Watermelons, H. N. Starnes (Georgia Sta. Bui. 38, pp. 67-103, 

 pis. 3, Jigs. 5). — The bulletin discusses watermelon culture, including 

 soils, fertilizers, planting, cultivation, gathering, marketing, seed saving, 



