24 THE POTATO 



bushels of potatoes to the acre takes 1,420,000 

 pounds of moisture from the soil. Unless humus 

 has been supplied in the application of stable 

 manure to previous crops, green crops such as 

 rye, oats, clover, etc., should be turned in to 

 supply this." 



David Young, editor of the North British Agri- 

 culturist, Glasgow, Scotland, says : 



"The potato crop is not at all fastidious as to 

 the soil in which it is grown, provided the soil be 

 properly cultivated and manured, and in practically 

 all classes of soil, excepting the stiffest clays, this 

 crop may be successfully grown." 



Professor A. R. Kohler, Assistant in Horti- 

 culture, University of Minnesota, in "Bulletin 

 114," says: 



"A sandy loam soil usually produces potatoes 

 of better quality than a heavier soil does. It 

 also has the advantage of remaining in a more 

 mellow condition during the growing season, 

 thus giving the tubers a chance to become more 

 shapely, and making it easier to dig the crop. 

 A heavier soil will sometimes produce a larger yield 

 because it is often more fertile, but brown rot of 

 the tubers is apt to be worse on such soils. New 

 land is the best for large yields, or sod land which 

 has been in clover or meadow. Sod land is some- 

 times infested with white grubs and wire worms 

 which may do much damage. These pests are 

 not likely to be present in sufficient numbers to 

 do very extensive injury unless the land has been 

 sod for some years." 



