258 VEGETABLE GARDENING 



kind of soil. The continued use of small tubers for sets 

 contributes very much to the "running out" of varieties. 

 Small tubers should never be used except as a last resort in 

 a case of need. Many hills produce only small tubers, or 

 numerous small ones and few large ones. By selecting 

 only small tubers, all of these undesirable hills are perpet- 

 uated and not a single hill that produced only large tubers is 

 represented. Hence, in selecting from bins it is best to 

 take only medium and moderately large ones. 



The best way to select is by individual hills in the fall 

 during digging time, when the product of each hill can be 

 seen. Select those hills producing the largest number of 

 moderately large, smooth, well-shaped tubers. With the 

 rows three feet apart, and the hills eighteen inches apart in 

 the row, if a strain can be selected that will produce only 

 six moderately well-sized tubers per hill, weighing a total 

 of two pounds, it will produce a yield of about 320 bushels 

 per acre. If the crop is dug with a machine, hill selection 

 may be carried on by going over the patch beforehand and 

 digging up the most vigorous-looking hills and saving the 

 best ones, or by leaving a strip through the best part of the 

 field to be dug by hand. If only a few bushels can be 

 selected, plant them in a separate strip. From this the 

 best hills can be selected for the next year's strip and the 

 bulk used to plant the main crop. 



Early Planting. For early use potatoes should be 

 planted as soon as the ground is nicely settled. Light, 

 sandy loam is best for this purpose. The tops are quite 

 sensitive to frost, but, as they start slowly, they seldom get 

 up until all danger from frost is past. If there is danger 

 from frost when the tops are pushing out of the ground, the 

 plants are easily protected by covering lightly with loose 

 earth from between the rows, through which covering they 



