20 POTATO CULTURE. 



CHAPTER II. 

 Manures and Their Application. 



If wanting to apply manure for the direct use of the potato 

 crop, I would leave my year's manure over until fall, and 

 then along in September or October, when most convenient,' 

 I would draw it out and spread evenly on the surface of sod 

 ground that was to be plowed the next spring for potatoes. 

 First, if following this plan, care must be taken that the 

 manure does not waste while being kept over. If it heats 

 much you lose ammonia ; if much rain falls on it, the more 

 soluble parts leach out. Cement floors in the stables, and 

 my covered barnyard, and manure spread evenly over the 

 yard, and tramped, and some land-plaster sprinkled on the 

 surface occasionally, will keep it perfectly for any length of 

 time. Without a roof over the yard you may pile it away 

 from the eaves and surface wash, mix the different kinds 

 together, encourage stock to tramp it by putting up rubbing- 

 posts on the pile, thus preventing excessive heating and 

 waste ; cover lightly with earth in the spring, and have a 

 pile in very good shape for fall use, without much trouble or 

 loss. I went to the trouble of drawing a large pile, thus 

 kept, out in the spring, and composting it with muck in 

 alternate layers, for several years. I did not get my pay for 

 the extra handling, to the best of my belief. The manure 

 spread on the sod any time in the fall will suffer no loss. It 

 will not be likely to wash away any during the winter, as 

 the soluble parts will have been carried down into the soil by 

 rains, and the grass or clover roots will take care of them. 

 Great pains should be taken to spread this manure as finely 

 as possible. We use a manure-spreader, which does the 

 work very perfectly. If spread by hand, one may harrow it 



