276 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



and entire, from two to three inches deep in hills 

 at a distance of three feet, in rows four feet apart. 

 This will permit horse cultivation. During the 

 summer, in cultivation the soil should be gradually 

 drawn to the plants and the plants kept free from 

 weeds. They usually require little cultivation after 

 becoming large enough to shade the ground. Well- 

 ijrown plants will reach a height of 4% to 6 feet 

 or more in midsummer. 



The crop matures in about seven months, although 

 the tubers can be utilized for home use in six months 

 or less from planting. Harvesting of the main crop 

 may be deferred a month or two if desired ; but if 

 it is to be done at one time, in order to have warm 

 dry weather for the dasheens to dry properly on the 

 ground it should not be delayed till danger of frost. 

 Maturity of the crop is usually indicated by a par- 

 tial dying-back of the plants some time in October. 

 It will sometimes prove advantageous, in practically 

 frost-free localities, or where the roots can be pro- 

 tected, to leave them in the ground until wanted for 

 use or until spring. 



A ten-inch plow has proved satisfactory for turn- 

 ing up the plants when the area grown is large 

 enough to justify its use. The plants are then 

 grasped by the tops, and the clumps thoroughly 

 shaken to dislodge as much of the soil as possible. 

 They can then be broken apart by means of the tops, 

 and, in di-y weather, the tubers, with tops still at- 

 tached, be left on the ground to dry for 4 to 6 days. 

 The tubers should not in any case be exposed to 

 frost. 



Dasheens should be stored in a dry ijlace of mod- 

 erate temperature where the air can circulate freely 

 among them, or they may be placed in dry sand or 

 earth. 



Wesley and I are now as busy as bees 

 getting that quarter-acre ready for the tu- 

 bers; and to make room we had to dig the 

 wonderful Red Triumph potatoes I told 

 you about. They didn't go all to vines, as 

 Mrs. Root feared — not much. We ate and 

 gave the neighbors quite a few, and have 

 just sold three bushels of great beauties at 

 .$1.50 per bushel. Poultry manure did it 

 mostly, assisted by a damp soil that holds 

 moisture, even right over the tile drain; 

 and, thanks to a kind Providence, no frost 

 but plenty of rain. 



MY POTATO STORY. 



A year ago, or perhaps a little more, you 

 remember that I had a good deal to say 

 about growing potatoes in the back yard. 

 1 said you could not only keep chickens in 

 the back yard so as to help out quite con- 

 siderably, but you could also grow potatoes; 

 but, of course, I didn't mean that you could 

 grow jjotatoes and chickens in the same 

 yard. When I got home to Medina last 

 spring I undertook to " practice " what I 

 had been "preaching;" but although my 

 .ground was well underdrained, the exceed- 

 ing wetness of last summer hindered large- 

 ly. Another thing, I couldn't get any early 

 potatoes to plant. After exhausting at- 

 tempts in our neighborhod I sent to one of 

 the leading seedsmen in Cleveland and told 

 him to get me some extra-early potatoes — 



Early Ohio or Bliss Triumph — if possible. 

 The only answer they gave was to get me a 

 bushel of Early Rose, and these had to be 

 shipped by express from away up in Mich- 

 igan. Just think of it, will you? — sending 

 to Michigan for potatoes, and paying $2.00 

 a bushel and express charges, and then be- 

 ing unable to get any thing better than 

 Early Rose ! Although the Early Rose was 

 not much of a success we decided to bring 

 some of them along with us when we came 

 down to our Florida home, about the first 

 of November. While potatoes were then 40 

 cents a bushel in Ohio they were 40 cents 

 a peck here in Florida. 



The potatoes here in Florida offered for 

 sale in the groceries were not only 40 cents 

 a peck, but they were of a very poor qual- 

 ity at that. In fact, Mrs. Root had some- 

 times to pare off and throw away almost 

 one-half of the peck of potatoes for table 

 use that cost us 40 cents. 



Now, with this condition of affairs I de- 

 clared I would plant some potatoes just as 

 soon as I could get a piece of ground ready 

 in the garden ; but then the same question 

 came up again, " Where can I get seed that 

 will grow ? " Potatoes brought down from 

 the North, and planted here in Florida in 

 November or December, of course, would 

 not grow at all. As we had this same con- 

 dition of affairs a year ago I decided that 

 1 would come out aliead this year any way. 

 Before I left here last April we dug two 

 or three bushels of nice Triumph potatoes 

 and packed them in dry sand in our incu- 

 bator cellar, having been told they would 

 keep nicely this way, and be sprouted all 

 ready to plant when I got back in the fall. 

 It would have turned out all right had not 

 the rats discovered the potatoes; and when 

 Ave got back here there was only a great pile 

 of worthless skins. The rats had eaten 

 them all. I ought to have had sense enough 

 to surround my potatoes buried in dry 

 sand with inch-mesh poultry netting; but 

 we shall onlj' have to live and learn a little. 

 It was along in December before 1 was en- 

 abled to get any potatoes suitable for plant- 

 ing at once in Florida. I scanned the pa- 

 pers and catalogs; but along toward the 

 middle of December my good friend down 

 at the dock, Mr. S. C. Corwin, advertised 

 Triumph potatoes ready to plant. I went 

 down at once and got about a bushel. The 

 price, of course, was pretty well up — $2.00 

 a bushel. They had just begun to show 

 sjirouts, and were just right to plant. I 

 was so much in a hurry to get my potatoes 

 (o growing that I planted half a dozen hills 

 after dark. 



Now, before I proceed to tell you what 



