136 THE POTATO 



inch stringer or girder the length of the building. 

 It rests on the concrete of each end. This is the 

 support for the rafters; all rafters two inches by ten 

 inches. 



Two-inch by six-inch plate is bolted to the top of 

 the concrete wall for the rafters to be nailed to. 



A portion of the cellar can be fitted with shelves, 

 or drawers for tray storage of different kinds of 

 seed potatoes. 



The yield of potatoes in this country can be 

 very greatly increased by more careful selection 

 and storage of seed. Growers in Europe find it 

 profitable to store selected potatoes, to be used 

 whole for seed, in trays. This is especially desir- 

 able for early potatoes. With this system, stubby 

 strong sprouts are grown on the seed tubers before 

 they are planted. 



On top of rafters wire netting is placed. On this 

 is placed fifteen inches to twenty-four inches of 

 straw; then well covered with earth. Straw is a 

 good insulator and absorbs moisture. Any kind 

 of tight, rainproof outer covering may be used 

 above the earth if conditions make this necessary. 



Ventilators are placed every twenty feet, with 

 tight fitting cover on top and hinged sash on bot- 

 tom. 



Doors to be made of three-fourths-inch flooring, 

 to be of a double thickness, with heavy building 

 paper between the boards. 



In places where cement is much more expen- 

 sive than lumber, this building could be built by 

 setting posts and making a frame wall. 



The Colorado Agricultural College built a cellar 

 sixty by eighty feet at a cost of about $1 ,150. Piled 

 five feet deep and with the driveway filled this 



