CULTIVATED CROPS 93 



that they will have a chance to make their growth before 

 the dry, hot weather comes. Potatoes grow better in rather 

 cool weather when the soil is reasonably moist. They are 

 usually planted in rows about 36 inches apart and the 

 pieces are dropped from 14 to 18 inches apart in the row. 

 About 4 inches is a good depth to plant them. If one 

 has a horse planter it is a very easy matter to plant potatoes. 

 There are also satisfactory hand planters. If but one half 

 an acre to an acre is raised, as is the case on most farms, 

 they may be easily and well planted by marking the land 

 with a corn marker, then plowing a furrow, for each row, 

 with a common walking plow or a shovel plow, dropping 

 the seed in these furrows by hand, then covering with a 

 plow or by harrowing crosswise. 



Blind Cultivation. — If potatoes are planted with a hand 

 planter or by dropping into furrows as suggested above, it 

 is a good plan to go into the field with a cultivator after 

 they have been planted a few days and give the plot a 

 good cultivation. This is called bUnd cultivation. Set 

 the shovels so as to throw the dirt on the row, thus making 

 a ridge over each row. Follow this every few days by 

 harrowing. 



Throwing the dirt in a ridge over the rows, then later 

 leveling it off with the harrow, keeps the soil mellow over 

 the rows and prevents weeds from starting, making it much 

 easier to keep the rov/s clean. 



Cultivation of potatoes should continue at frequent 

 intervals, from the time they are planted until the vines 

 cover the ground, to keep down weeds and to check the 

 evaporation of moisture. Potatoes require a great deal of 

 moisture, and a lack of moisture at any time reduces the 

 yield. As in cultivating corn, care must be taken not to 

 cultivate deep enough to injure the roots. Except when 

 the soil is cold and wet, level cultivation is preferable to 

 hilling. 



Spra3ring. — It is now quite impossible to grow potatoes 

 successfully without spraying the vines one or more times 

 while they are growing. They must be sprayed both for 

 bugs and diseases. A spray containing Paris green or other 

 poison to kill the bugs and Bordeaux mixture or other 



