THE POTATO 



The Potato is one of the most important crops grown 

 by man. Taking the whole world into consideration it 

 ranks next to rice in extent and value, the world product 

 in a single year amounting to nearly five billion bushels. 

 In America it is by far the most important vegetable 

 crop, and is grown for market as a field staple in many 

 states. New York, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wis- 

 consin lead in the production of potatoes, while Maine, 

 Montana, and Nevada lead in the average number of 

 bushels per acre. The average annual crop for the whole 

 United States is estimated at more than two hundred 

 and fifty milhon bushels. 



The cultivated Potato has been derived from a wild 

 plant called Salanum tuberosum, which has been growing 

 since prehistoric times in South America and Mexico. 

 The natives of Peru appear to have brought it into cul- 

 tivation some thousands of years ago, so that when the 

 Spaniards invaded that country in the sixteenth century 

 they found the Potato in cultivation. They were so 

 impressed with its value that tubers were sent to Europe 

 in 1542 and later. 



Potatoes were also grown by the early colonists of 

 North America, though whether they were obtained from 

 Indians or Spaniards seems not to be known. A notable 

 date in the history of the Potato is the year 1586, when 

 it was introduced into Ireland. It there became so 

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