POTATOES. 341 



time for their full growth? I think not, and I have the impression that it is to this imma 

 turity of growth that the failure of some excellent varieties to yield may be due. I have also 

 found that a long season of growth with moderate manuring will produce sounder potatoes 

 than when the maturity of growth has been forced by more copious use of manures. Heavily 

 manured late potatoes and early ones too, of some kinds are apt to be hollow-hearted; 

 plainly an effect of over-rapid growth. These grow to a great size, but like overgrown roots, 

 are unsound and of poor quality. Slow, sound growth is consistent with excellence of 

 quality and moderate size. With a long season of growth, there will be a full production of 

 moderate-sized tubers, with no small ones, and this long season can only be secured by early 

 planting. Therefore, I would plant late potatoes as soon as the early ones were in the 

 ground, and I would plant them deep. Deep planting encourages a large growth of roots, 

 and this produces a strong, aerial vegetation, which gives great vigor to the plants, and 

 greatly assists the formation of tubers. Eight inches is not too deep planting for late potatoes, 

 or for early ones either, but especially for late ones, which have then an opportunity for 

 making a substantial growth, and a large space of soil to forage in.&quot; 



The above accords with our own experience, and we believe that if those farmers who 

 are accustomed to plant their potatoes late would plant as early as the season and condition 

 of the soil would admit, they would not only have a larger crop of more uniform-sized tubers, 

 but of better quality, also. 



It is the custom with many farmers to put a good-sized forkful of manure on each hill 

 after the seed is well covered, or, if in drills, cover the tops of the drills with manure. This 

 economizes the use of manure, and tends to keep the moisture about the roots and young 

 potatoes, which greatly facilitates their growth before drouth can affect the plants. Their 

 progress is in this way further facilitated by the leaching of the manure by the rains, which 

 sends the plant nutriment directly to the rootlets. The manure will become covered with 

 soil in the after cultivation. Deep planting is also desirable, since it affords protection to the 

 roots in time of drouth, furnishes them a cool, moist bed, and promotes a stronger and more 

 vigorous growth of plants as well as that of tubers. Besides, the potatoes are less liable 

 to become washed or uncovered by rains and ruined in this way. It will be noticed by a 

 little attention to the subject, that diseased potatoes are frequently found near the surface of 

 the soil, and that those planted rather deep are less liable to disease. Deep planting also 

 admits of a more thorough use of the harrow in destroying weeds, and thus facilitates the 

 after-culture, as the field can be harrowed two or three times without disturbing the seed or 

 the young shoots, and the weeds at first kept easily in check. We should prefer a depth of 

 six or more inches to that of any less. By planting as early as the soil and season will admit, 

 and to a suitable depth, the many evils resulting from late and shallow planting will be avoided. 



An intelligent farmer in Fort Plain, N. Y., gives the result of his test in planting 

 potatoes at different depths thus: &quot;Selecting the soundest seed I could find, I planted 

 some in the usual way, covering 2 or 3 inches deep; others 6 and 8 inches. The first were a 

 failure a few small potatoes in a hill and of poor quality. This agreed with the general 

 crop of the neighborhood. It was a matter of gratification and to the neighbors a surprise 

 to see the fine, bright tubers that came up when the deep-planted were dug which was 

 the middle of June ; those covered six inches ripening earlier, as they also came up earlier 

 after planting. They were clean and sound, and when cooked were white, mealy, and sweet, 

 with no rank, unhealthy odor.&quot; 



Deep planting necessitates working the soil correspondingly deep, with the manure well 

 and deeply mixed with it. If the seed lies on a cold, hard subsoil, failure will be the result, 

 since the roots cannot penetrate it, or subsist upon it There should be a few inches of rich, 

 mellow soil below the seed for the roots to feed upon. The objection to planting too much seed 

 is, as we have previously stated, an over-crowding in the hill, and the crop will in consequence 



