THE DIVERSIFIED FARM. 



diversified farming by irrigation lies 1he salvation of agriculture- 



THE AGE wants to brighten the pages of its Diversified Farm department and with 

 this object in view it requests its readers everywhere to send in photographs and 

 pictures of fields, orchards and farm homes; prize-taking horses, cattle, sheep or hogs. 

 Also sketches or plans of convenient and commodious barns, hen houses, corn cribs, 

 etc. Sketches of labor-saving devices, such as ditch cleaners and watering troughs. 

 A good illustration of a windmill irrigation plant is always interesting. Will you help 

 us improve the appearance of THE AGE? 



PROFIT IN POTATOES 



The potato is a most valuable farm crop, 

 adapted to nearly all classes of soils, and 

 with careful cultivation and proper fertil- 

 ization yields from 500 to 1,200 bushels per 

 year. A rich sandy loam, containing leaf 

 mould, or natural mountain surface soil, 

 is preferable for growing choice tubers, 

 but any well drained tract, having proper 

 plant food, will produce satisfactory crops. 

 May and June are good months for late 

 planting, and the present market demands 

 the Burbank as the ideal table potato. 

 If the land is irrigated about the middle 

 of May, then we 1 ! plowed, harrowed and 

 leveled it will be in good condition for 

 planting the first of June. The most suc- 

 cessful potato growers cut the seed in four 

 pieces, using 12 to 15 bushels for an acre, 

 furrow out the land with a shovel plow, 

 drop the seed about 12 inches apart, one 

 in a hill, and cover to the depth of 4 or 5 

 inches. 



Potatoes should not be irrigated more 

 than once before the blossoms appear, 

 after which the hills should be kept moist 

 until the tubers are ripe. Too much 

 water will cause scabby half grown tubers, 

 and if kept up late in the fall will produce 

 .a second growth, making the entire crop 

 unmarketable. If the seed shows signs of 

 scab it can be soaked in a solution of cor- 

 rosive sublimate, mixed at the rate of 2 

 ounces to 18 gallons of water. When the 

 plants begin to show above the ground the 

 field should be thoroughly harrowed. 



After harrowing cultivation should be 

 given by plow, until the blossom buds 

 appear, when irrigation will complete the 

 work. The furrow system is probably tho 

 best and most generally practiced method 

 of irrigation and flat cultivation gives 

 better results than the old ridging process. 

 Water must not be left to stand upon the 

 field or run around the vines on the 

 surface. 



Harvesting may be profitably done by 

 the use of the four tined fork, if the acre- 

 age is not too large. Some potato growers 

 use small plows or hoes successfully, 

 though first class diggers are the best, if 

 several acres a-e to be harvested. The 

 tubers must be handled carefully to pre- 

 vent bruising or peeling, and should not 

 be left out long enough to sun burn or 

 freeze. A cool, dark cellar or root house 

 is the best place for storing potatoes, and 

 an even temperature is necessary to good 

 keeping. Sorting should be done at 

 leisure after the potatoes have been stored, 

 and none but first class specimens be kept 

 for market or home use. It is not 

 advisable to retain any seed for next 

 year's planting, as the annual change of 

 seed and land is necessary for good crops 

 and a healthy growth. Seed potatoes, 

 like all other garden and farm seeds, 

 should be purchased new every year, from 

 reliable seedsmen. 



Potatoes require liberal fertilizing 

 every year to be productive and profitable. 

 All experiments in potato growing show 

 that the fertilizer used must contain a 



