Vegetable Growing for Market 131 



for market-garden culture: Eclipse, The Pilot, and Thomas Laxton, for 

 first earlies; Gradus, Telegraph, Duke of Albany, William Hurst, Dr. 

 Maclean, Duke of York, Stratagem, &c., for main crops. 



The worst thing that can be said against the Pea as a crop, from the 

 market gardener's point of view, is that it is so difficult to keep the rows 

 clear of weeds that frequently it leaves a legacy of seed to be contended 

 with next year, the one year's seeding involving the trouble and expense of 

 several years' weeding. 



About 1000 pecks of Peas in pod, weighing about 6000 lb., and from 

 5000 to 6000 lb. of straw can be obtained from an acre of ground. 



[w. a L.] 



It is estimated that over 2000 ac. of Peas are annually grown in South 

 Worcestershire; and practically the whole of these are early Peas, generally 

 "Eclipse", supplemented by "William Hurst", "Daisy", and "Senator". 

 "Eclipse" is the variety relied upon for the earliest. These are usually 

 sown in January on warm and sheltered borders facing south, the succes- 

 sional crop being sown practically at the same time on other borders and 

 breadths between the lines of plum trees. The earliest on the borders 

 are usually sown about 18 in. between the rows; the others in larger plots 

 at about 24 in. Sticks are very seldom used. Mid-season varieties are 

 very little grown; and late varieties are entirely omitted commercially. 

 Peas are usually sown where Radishes, Marrows, or Cucumbers have been 

 grown the previous season. [j. U.] 



25. POTATOES 



Although regarded by many as being almost exclusively a farmer's 

 crop, the Potato receives considerable attention from the market gardener 

 proper, both in the open air and under glass. Considering its great and 

 universal value as an article of diet, the Potato is extensively cultivated 

 in all parts of the British Islands. Taking the figures from the Returns 

 of the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries, and the Department of Agri- 

 culture and Technical Instruction for Ireland, there were 1,175,168 ac. 

 under Potatoes in 1911, against 1,151,632 ac. in 1907. In 1904, how- 

 ever, the area was given as 1,232,055 ac., so that there has been a decline 

 of nearly 60,000 ac. in the course of a few years. Ireland, which had 

 1,000,000 ac. of Potatoes forty years ago, still grows more than the rest 

 of the United Kingdom put together, including the Channel Islands and 

 the Isle of Man, the Irish acreage for 1911 being 591,269 against 571,801 

 for the rest of the kingdom, of which 142,629 ac. are in Scotland. 



In Ireland, Ulster is the leading Potato -growing province with 

 243,671 ac., Munster next with 121,655 ac., then Leinster with 111,442 ac., 

 and Connaught very close with 110,376 ac. Of the Irish counties Cork 

 leads the way with 42,761 ac.; the next in order being Down with 41,561 

 ac.; Mayo, 35,898 ac.; Tyrone, 35,801 ac.; Donegal, 35,390 ac.; Antrim, 

 33,633 ac.; Galway, 32,678 ac.; Londonderry, 28,394 ac.: Kerry, 21,415 ac.; 



