104 



Cultivation of Early Potatoes. 



If jou first plough the land in a wet state, it will take much 

 longer time to dry and to get it into proper condition than if it 

 had been left alone. The state of perfection which you should 

 endeavour to attain is to make the land as dry and us free as oat- 

 meal. After the manure is ploughed down, say in February, 

 the land remains in that state till the end of March or the 

 beginning of April, the second week in April being considered 

 the best period ; for if you set sooner 

 your crop is liable to suffer from the 

 early spring frosts, and if you set later 

 your crop will come in too late for the 

 early markets. 



You recommence operations, then, by 

 harrowing the land that was left in fur- 

 rows, then plough it again — always se- 

 lecting a dry time — and harrow ; and 

 should it not then be reduced to a fine 

 state of tilth, you must plough it again, 

 but do not harrow the last time previous 

 to setting, as it is requisite the land 

 should be left in as light condition as 

 possible. 



Supposing, then, it is your intention 

 to adopt spade husbandry (which we 

 believe to be preferable), when the land 

 is thus prepared the labourer must be 

 provided with a suitable implement in 

 the way of a spade — we do not mean a 

 common square garden-spade, but one, 

 to save further description, of this 

 shape and size. A narrower implement 

 would not answer the purpose, for the 

 object is to 5tir the whole of the ground. 

 And if two or more labourers are em- 

 ployed, care must be taken that all be 

 provided with spades of equal width ; 

 for should one spade be wider than an- 

 other, it will follow that there will be 

 a greater width between some rows 

 than others — a consequence which, at 

 the time of moulding up, would be at- 

 tended with inconvenience. 

 And now we come to the setting. Tlie potatoes are carefully 

 taken up from their sprouting-places, and placed in small baskets 

 with a bow handle. Those which have more than one good 

 strong sprout are generally cut le)if/th~Vi'a.ys, never cross-ways. 



A to B I2i inches. 

 A toC ]3i 



Shape concave. 



