68 THE POTATO 



^ 



principles and practice so profitably followed by 

 the skilful and enterprising farmers on the Ayr 

 and Girvan coasts, and other parts of the southwest 

 of Scotland, in the growing of early potatoes for 

 the early market, and on his being translated to 

 Ireland he soon decided to make a vigorous efiFort 

 in the way of stimulating the Irish growers to take 

 up that same very profitable business, as Ireland, 

 owing to its earlier and milder climate, was even 

 better suited than the seaboard of Ayrshire for the 

 production of early potatoes in the month of June, 

 when prices for new potatoes are always at their 

 highest. 



*' Knowing full well the outstanding abilities of 

 Mr. Wallace, Terreglestown, Dumfries, as a highly 

 successful grower of both early and main-crop 

 potatoes, Professor Campbell secured in 1900 the 

 services of Mr. Wallace to deliver an annual course 

 of lectures in Ireland, and supervise numerous 

 experimental and demonstration areas for the 

 department in Ireland. This experimental and 

 demonstration work proved a great success. 



"The system of sprouting seed tubers of the 

 earliest varieties in boxes during the winter and 

 planting them out early in spring, which was fol- 

 lowed in Cheshire in the early part of the nineteenth 

 century and has long been followed in Ayrshire 

 and the west coast of Scotland, produced for the 

 Irish growers a good crop which was ready for 

 harvesting in the early part of June before even 

 the Ayrshire crops were ready, and were all mar- 

 keted at highly satisfactory prices before the time 

 at which the disease makes its appearance, while a 

 fairly full crop of roots, cabbages, or other produce 

 could be afterward grown on the same ground the 

 same season. This was a new and very profitable 



