THE CULTURE OF POTATOES AND TURNIPS. 307 



the best manner of plan ting and cutting the seed; some pre- 

 ferring cuttings with but one eye, and others with two or 

 three. We prefer the common method, viz : to choose 

 medium sized well shaped tubers, and cut them by sloping 

 cuts, beginning at the top end, into sets each having two 

 eyes; and dropping two sets together, about 24 inches apart 

 in the rows, which are 3 feet apart. This gives about 7000 

 hills to the acre. Until the plants are well up, the horse 

 hoe is run both ways; Afterwards it is run in the wider rows 

 and set to throw the soil to the plants, so as to make a low 

 broad ridge. This crop is greatly helped by frequent stir- 

 ring of the soil on the surface until the blossoming is full, 

 and the tops are in the way of further work. 400 bushels 

 per acre is as little as a good farmer should be satisfied 

 with. 



TURNIPS are of little value where mangels or beets are 

 grown. Of the varieties in cultivation the ruta-baga, or 

 Swede turnip, is the only one worth growing as it will keep 

 in good condition through the winter. But mangels are 

 more easily grown and are far superior for feeding to all 

 kinds of stock; hence the culture of turnips is not one to be 

 recommended in this country, where good farming prevails. 



English farmers grow Swedes largely for feeding them off 

 from the land by sheep; a practice quite impracticable 

 with us. 



SWEET POTATOES are a most valuable crop in the South, 

 where other roots are not suitable to the climate. 300 

 bushels per acre may be grown with good culture; and for 

 feeding to all kinds of stock, these tubers are unsurpassed. 



CARROTS AND PARSNIPS are excellent roots for cows, 

 horses, and sheep; but they are no better than mangels, and 

 are not so easily grown, hence are not desirable crops for 

 ordinary farm purposes. 



