POTATO CULTURE. 9 



of about $15 worth of tile -draining per acre, while my land 

 the same season brought about $100 per acre. The draining 

 in this case would have paid for itself several times over. 

 The most of my land is a loam, but some of it is almost too 

 sandy or gravelly, and some too heavy. The heavy soil we 

 have tile-drained ; but still I find that, in a very wet season, 

 potatoes will rot some in spite of the drains. Last season 

 was the worst one we have ever experienced for excess of 

 rain. From the first of May until into July our ground was 

 almost constantly saturated. We happened to have a field 

 in potatoes that has -considerable heavy soil in it. We have 

 never lost any thing to speak of from water on it before, 

 since it was drained. Last year there were spots to the 

 amount of an acre, all together, where the seed never came 

 up, put in, as it had to be, with the soil too wet ; and the 

 average of the field was, of course, not satisfactory. No 

 water stood on the surface an hour after a rain. The drains 

 did their full duty, but the soil was kept saturated and pack- 

 ed, so potatoes could do little. For once, man was just 

 about powerless. I measured a half -acre on the best of this 

 field, where the stand was good, and dug but 91 bushels. 

 On a measured half-acre in another field, of lighter soil and 

 with natural drainage, conditions of fertility about the same, 

 we dug 157 bushels. There were portions of the first half- 

 acre that yielded as well ; but tile -drained clay spots pulled 

 down the average. In a dry season I get good returns where 

 the crop failed this very wet season. On an average 1 get 

 the most satisfactory crops, all things considered, on soil 

 that is not quite heavy enough to need underdraining to any 

 great extent. Such soils are light enough to work easily ; 

 the potatoes come out bright and clean, and still they are 

 heavy enough to be strong soils, and to hold manure^ well, 

 and clover does \ery well on them. The farrp^ vvno raises 

 only a few potatoes for his own use need not pay such par- 

 ticular attention to the soil, as, if half of them are likely to 

 rot from wet feet, he can plant a larger patch ; or if they do 



