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districts, it is important to retain moisture about the 

 surface, and to leave as little surface as possible exposed 

 to the effect of sun and wind, and also to make the 

 capillarity of the soil to exert itself, to attract the 

 moisture from the subsoil to the surface in times of 

 drought. The Lazybed is only suitable where, through 

 natural circumstances, such as in newly-reclaimed bog 

 or fen, or in otherwise low-lying positions, surface- 

 drainage is useful to carry off excessive moisture ; the 

 raised beds also place the plants artificially higher 

 above the natural water level. Except in water-logged 

 positions, and then only on a small scale, because such 

 situations are not favourable to the production of 

 potatoes of good quality, and only sufficient should 

 be grown for local consumption, the Lazybed , system 

 should not be adopted. It cannot be too. strongly 

 condemned, more especially as under the conditions in 

 which the potatoes are planted cleaning operations are 

 almost impossible, resulting, as is usually seen in the 

 West of Ireland, in a crop which consists of some 

 potatoes and more weeds. However, the Irish peasant 

 excuses his want of carefulness in respect of cleaning 

 by saying that if he destroyed the weeds the rooks 

 would scratch out the potatoes. Beyond the difficulty 

 of cleaning, effectual spraying to prevent disease is 

 rendered impossible, and it is fast being recognised 

 that spraying is a necessary operation in the cultivation 

 of potatoes. The process of planting is very simple: 

 the ground is laid up into beds, the potatoes are placed 

 on this, and earth from the sides of the beds is dug up, 

 forming a trench, and covered over the sets. 



