286 SCHOOL AND HOME GARDENS 



Culture. With a garden rake go over the entire patch 

 before the potatoes come up. If rains are frequent, it 

 may be wise to do this two or three times. 



Cultivate with a hand hoe or a wheel hoe after every 

 hard rain. The early cultivation may be three or four 

 inches deep. After the plants are in good growing con- 

 dition, cultivate the surface only. When the vines begin 

 to bloom, draw a layer of soil an inch or two deep around 

 the plants. This will hold the moisture and keep the 

 tubers from being exposed to the sun. Keep a loose 

 layer of earth between the rows until the vines furnish 

 enough shade to prevent excessive evaporation of mois- 

 ture from the soil. While the potatoes are ripening, pull 

 weeds that come up, to keep them from going to seed. 



If horse power is to be used, make the rows three feet 

 apart. Harrow the entire patch just before the potatoes 

 come up ; one good harrowing will be sufficient. Use a 

 hand hoe to remove weeds and loosen the soil between 

 the hills after plowing. 



The yield may be increased by putting straw or ma- 

 nure between the rows when the plants are in good 

 growing condition. 



How to grow very early potatoes. Select an early va- 

 riety and cut the tubers in the usual way. Place an 

 inch of compost in a four-inch flowerpot. Cover the 

 compost with an inch of sand. Place a piece of tuber, 

 eyes up, on the sand. Fill in with sand, but leave half an 

 inch of space for watering. Pack several pots with leaf 

 mold in a box about four inches deep. Water well and 



