70 POTATO CULTURE. 



and with favorable conditions of soil which we can control, 

 we may be able to raise a good crop in spite of unfavorable 

 weather which we can not control. 



Years ago, one warm winter we were unable to keep our 

 seed in the cellar from sprouting considerably. They were 

 early potatoes. I well knew the risk of planting such seed, 

 and, early in the spring, I sent to the Northeast and secured 

 seed that would not sprout before we could get it here and 

 in the ground. But I did not send for enough. It was quite 

 an expense. The season might be so favorable that it would 

 make little difference. Well, when we planted the last six- 

 acre field our imported seed ran out about in the middle, so 

 half was planted with our sprouted seed. The season was 

 dry instead of favorable. All summer it was easy to see 

 where we had made a mistake. In the fall we had about an 

 even hundred dollars less from the three acres where our 

 sprouted seed was used. There was no difference in condi- 

 tions, except that the change of seed might have had some- 

 thing to do with the result. My impression is, it was largely 

 the condition of the seed. The conclusions in this book are 

 founded on numerous actual experiences such as this, in 

 every line, which are seldom given, as it would greatly in- 

 crease the size, without doing the working farmer, for whom 

 it is written, any good. 



Since the above was written we have opened our seed-pile 

 and taken out part of them. Last fall we drove stakes down 

 arid laid boards, 6 inches wide, up against them, on edge, 4 

 feet apart, to pile our potatoes in between. We think it an 

 improvement. It is easier to get them out, and less trouble 

 to build the pile. This has been a very cold winter, and I 

 was anxious to know whether our pile was all right before 

 this book went to the printer. The outside layer of earth is 

 frozen now (Apr. 1), solid. We had to chop it into blocks 

 with an ax and then turn these over by use of a bar to get 

 in. The under layer of earth was frozen way through, solid- 

 ly, on the west side, and partly on the east. If it had not 



