FARM CROPS 175 



out the principles given in Section XVIII, all musty, 

 defective seeds must be discarded and all frosted kernels 

 must be rejected. Before it dries, the peanut seed is 

 easily injured by frost. The slightest frost on the vines, 

 either before or after the vine is dug, does much harm to 

 the tender seed. 



In growing peanuts, thorough preparation of the soil is 

 much better than later cultivation. Destroy the crop of 

 young weeds, but do not disturb the peanut crop by late 

 cultivation. 



Harvest before frost, and shock high to keep the vines 

 from the ground. 



The average yield of peanuts in the United States is 

 seventeen bushels an acre. In Virginia the yield is twenty 

 bushels an acre and in Tennessee it reaches thirty-two 

 bushels an acre. 



SECTION XXXVII SWEET POTATOES 



The roots of sweet potatoes are put upon the market in 

 various forms. Aside from the form in which they are 

 ordinarily sold, some potatoes are dried and then ground 

 into flour, some are canned, some are used to make starch, 

 some furnish a kind of sugar called glucose, and some are 

 even used to make alcohol. 



The fact that there are over eighty varieties of potatoes 

 shows the popularity of the plant. Now it is evident that 

 all of these varieties cannot be equally desirable. Hence 

 the wise grower will select his varieties with prudent 

 forethought. Efforts should be made, as described in 

 Section XVIII, to improve every variety selected. 



