THE POTATO 281 



reducing the cost of growing. (4) Heavier yield- 

 ing varieties could be grown, which are the ones 

 most valuable for starch production. 



*'Up to the time when the study of the question 

 of producing starch from sweet potatoes was be- 

 gun at this station, it was a subject that had re- 

 ceived practically no attention in this country. 

 It is true, starch was made from this plant on a 

 small scale in the Southern States during the war, 

 but the starch obtained in this way was a com- 

 paratively impure product and intended^ only 

 for home consumption. 



**It would seem that the sweet potato could be 

 profitably used for this purpose, as it contains a 

 larger percentage of starch than the Irish potato, 

 yields a heavier crop, and can be grown more 

 cheaply. Another advantage it has over the Irish 

 potato is the fact that the vines of the former 

 make a good food for stock — some varieties being 

 very palatable, making good hay and excellent 

 silage. In composition they compare favorably 

 with other forage crops. 



"The development of cotton manufacturing in 

 the South has created a demand, which is con- 

 tinually increasing, for starch used in 'sizing' yarn 

 and 'filling' cloth. At present every pound of this 

 starch is brought from other states, principally 

 from the cornstarch factories of New York and 

 Illinois. The experiments which we have had 

 carried out show that for use on cotton goods the 

 starch produced from sweet potatoes is better than 

 cornstarch, and fully equal to the best grades of 

 Irish potato starch. The annual production of 

 sweet potatoes in the South Atlantic and Gulf 

 States is about 60,000,000 bushels, but this might 

 be easily increased tenfold. The theoretical 



