126 THE POTATO. 



1IXHW 



potatoes are first stored. After a week or two these chim- 

 neys may be closed, as there is some danger of severe frost 

 entering through them ; but they are often left open all the 

 time without bad results. As already mentioned, a thatch 

 of straw may be placed over the earth; but this is neces- 

 sary only if the clamp is particularly exposed to frost and 

 cold winds. The effect of frost entering a clamp is very 

 serious, so that it is worth while to make as sure as possible 

 against it. For this reason any wide cracks that appear in 

 the soil covering should be made good. 



Another Method of Clamping: Potatoes. 



The following plan illustrated and described in " Amateur 

 Gardening," by H.C.K., is also a good one, especially for 

 storing garden crops : The site or position must be dry, 

 and the clamp run from north to south. The reason for 

 this is that, when it runs from east to west the whole side 

 of the clamp is exposed to the north, and great difficulty 

 will be experienced in keeping out -the frost ; whilst only 

 one end faces the north when the clamps are built as 

 advised. If the soil is sandy and dry the clamps may be 

 sunk into the ground to a depth of about twelve inches, 

 but when the soil is at all retentive or moist, the potatoes 

 must be placed on the surface. When the tubers are not 

 very dry, the clamp must not be more than two feet six 

 inches wide at the bottom, but if they are thoroughly dry 

 the width may be as much as four feet, whilst the length 

 is, of course, unlimited; and the heap should be carried 

 up from the base to the apex similar to the roof of a house, 

 and as steep as practicable. A system of ventilation 

 must be adopted. This is constructed of various ma- 

 terials, whichever is the handiest, in the following manner. 

 Agricultural drainpipes, or inverted channel bricks may be 

 used, sketches of these being given in Figs. 1 and 2 re- 

 spectively, whilst a ventilation duct may be formed of 

 ordinary bricks in a similar manner to Figs. 3 and 4. 

 These pipes, channel bricks, or common bricks, are fixed 

 on the ground through the length of the clamp, side 



