CULTIVATED CROPS »1 



There are several other common diseases affecting pota- 

 toes. These are quite easily controlled, if one is familiar 

 with them. Every potato grower should be thoroughly 

 informed regarding potato diseases and their control. Writ^ 

 to your experiment station for full information. 



Cutting Seed Potatoes. — Experiments have proved that 

 rather good sized pieces give larger yields than small pieces. 

 It is well to cut the pieces to about 1 oz. in size, being sure 

 to get at least one good eye in each piece. The large pieces 

 furnish more food for the plants until they get their roots 

 started than do the smaller pieces. Sometimes whole halves 

 are planted, and often pieces having at least two eyes. 



Questions: 



1. Why can a farmer afford to spend more time preparii^ an 

 acre of soil for potatoes than for grain? 



2. How should seed potatoes be kept during the winter? 



3. How does sprouting injure seed potatoes? 



4. How is the disease known as scab spread? How is it treated?^ 

 Arithmetic: 



1. If potatoes are planted in rows 36 in. apart, with hills 16 in. 

 apart in the row, how many sq. ft. of space will each hill occupy? 

 How many hills will there be on an acre? (There are 43,560 sq. ft. in 

 an acre.) 



2. If there are 10,890 hills of potatoes on an acre and one 1 oz. 

 piece is planted in each hill, how many bushels of seed will be required 

 to plant an acre? 



3. If there are 10,890 hills of potatoes on an acre, how many 

 pounds must each hill yield to produce 300 bushels per acre? 



PLANTING AND CULTIVATING POTATOES 



The Soil and Its Preparation. — Potatoes require rich, 

 moist, mellow soil; and, as the tubers must grow under 

 ground to protect them from the sun, it is well to have the 

 soil mellow to quite a depth, six or eight inches. It is 

 evident that the land must be plowed to a good depth. 

 Fall plowing is preferable, as it gives the soil a chance to 

 become firm and settled and be acted upon by the weather. 

 :^.pring plowing, unless very thoroughly disked and harrowed, 

 is likely to be too loose and to dry out. It is also more 

 likely to be lumpy. 



Clover sod, or land that has grown clover the previous^ 

 year, and was plowed in the fall, is the ideal soil for pota- 

 toes, especially if the land was top-drsssed with manure 



