342 THE POTATO 



ing. By hand digging and rejecting the low yield- 

 ing hills next year and years following, a good 

 variety of potato is found to gain both in quality 

 and quantity from 10 to 50 per cent. This is worth 

 looking into. Up-to-date authorities and live- 

 stock breeders do not perpetuate the scrubs. If 

 there is an abiding law in the animal kingdom, there 

 certainly is a similar one in the vegetable. Vio- 

 lation of this and similar laws invariably brings 

 disaster. 



* ' Do potatoes run out ? They surely do. There 

 is no question about it, but it is man's standard of 

 seed selection and culture that 'runs down and 

 out.' The following are some of the causes of 

 potatoes deteriorating : (1) Wet, infertile soil, (2) 

 half preparation and fertilization, (3) late planting, 

 (4) first sprouts destroyed, (5) diseased stock, (6) 

 low vitality, (7) poor storage. 



"Another way is to maintain an annual seed or 

 breeding plat large enough for the requirements. 

 When seed plat potatoes are in full foliage, ten days 

 before they die down, go over them and remove 

 every diseased hill, that such stock will not be a 

 menace to future yields. At harvest time the seed 

 plat product should be carefully handled and put 

 into cold storage. Assort these into two grades — 

 specials and selects — enough of the former (ideal 

 shaped typical tubers) to maintain the annual seed 

 plat and of the latter enough to plant the annual 

 crop. Treat the specials with formaldehyde, one 

 pint diluted with thirty gallons of water, and po- 

 tatoes immersed two hours. 



"Potato ground is rolled ahead of potato planter 

 to insure uniform planting depth. Especially im- 

 portant is this if soil varies. At digging time, if 

 season is wet and potatoes are in deep, the digging 



