116 THE POTATO. 



plements and Appliances." But with less extensive crops, 

 such as have to be dealt with on small holdings and in 

 gardens, the raising is, of course, done by hand. For this 

 purpose a broad-tined fork is the best implement; and 

 with this a skilled hand will quickly and easily lift a large 

 piece in a day, laying out the roots evenly and neatly along 

 the rows, ready for the tubers to be shaken off and gathered 

 by the pickers. An ordinary potato plough does not leave 

 the tubers quite so handily; but if alternate rows are 

 ploughed first burying is reduced to a minimum, and any 

 tubers that are left in the soil can be picked up when the 

 field has been cultivated after the clearing of the crop. 

 This is well worth doing, as a surprising number are usually 

 turned out by the cultivator, however carefully the crop 

 has been lifted. The work of ploughing or digging is best 

 done when the land is in a fairly dry and friable condition, 

 as then the potatoes turn out clean, and the soil is im- 

 proved in condition. 



Picking- up the Crop Either women or boys are 

 employed for this work, the former usually being far pre- 

 ferable. Wooden baskets, such as are called " trugs " in 

 Sussex and " bodges " in Kent, are as good as anything 

 for collecting into; but any handy-sized baskets may be 

 used. The potatoes should be sorted into three grades: 

 ware or firsts, seconds or seed, and chats or tail; and it is 

 handy to sort into these sizes whilst gathering behind the 

 diggers or plough. One woman or boy can collect ware 

 only, another coming afterwards and taking seconds, and 

 a third gathering the tail and any broken or diseased tubers 

 that are left. If preferred, the ware can be collected 

 separately, and the other two samples together, the tail 

 and seconds being afterwards separated in a sieve or riddle 

 of the correct gauge. There is often some trouble in get- 

 ting the pickers to sort the sizes properly; but this can 

 soon be corrected, especially if th<* most reliable hands are 

 set to gather the ware, and the least experienced the tail. 

 In any case, a final picking ov^r can be done when the 



