FORCING POTATOES. 103 



cost be greater, should do so. It was once the lot of the 

 writer to serve an employer who was so fastidious about 

 his young potatoes that he would not have them lifted 

 out of the soil until it was time to cook them, as he was 

 of opinion they lost much of their fine flavour unless they 

 were cooked and eaten straight from the ground. Now, 

 if the young tubers lose flavour during the time they are 

 being transferred from the garden to the kitchen, what 

 must be the quality of those brought from Malta, the 

 Canary Isles, and elsewhere? Taking these things into 

 consideration, is it not worth while making an effort to have 

 sweet home-grown tubers that are a credit to the host and 

 producer alike? For a first crop special preparations are 

 necessary, as it is useless to go to the store and take up 

 a lot of seed, plant them in pots, pits, or frames, in the 

 hope of lifting the crop of new tubers in the course of six 

 or eight weeks ; if so, the cultivator is doomed to disap- 

 pointment. 



i 



Preparing the Sets. It has now become a recog- 

 nised fact that if the finest results are to be obtained in 

 growing potatoes, whether by early forcing or not, a start 

 must be made at the time the crop is lifted in the autumn. 

 Seed intended for planting early should be selected with 

 care, being of even size, two to three ounces in weight. 

 Those of much smaller size are not capable of producing 

 the stout, robust growths, which are so necessary to the 

 assurance of a heavy crop, while larger " sets " would be 

 a waste of seed. Whole sets always produce heavier and 

 more even crops than cut ones; therefore, the latter ought 

 not to be resorted to in the case of forced potatoes. It is 

 the greatest bulk that can be produced on a limited space 

 that pays, not the heaviest w r eight from a given quantity 

 of seed, as in the case of new varieties. Having selected 

 the seed, this should be placed in shallow boxes or trays, 

 with the broad or " rose " end upwards; or, if the sets are 

 round ones, that part which possesses the most eyes. 

 The boxes should be placed in a light, airy position, where 



