126 



POTATOES AND POTATO CULTURE 



Experiment X. 

 Modern Culture. 



Soil and Location. 



The ideal potato soil is deep, friable, retentive of moisture, 

 and well drained. Heavy clay and very light sandy soils 

 should be avoided. Stony laud renders planting and cultivat- 

 ing difficult and expensive. The presence of decaying organic 

 matter in the soil not only furnishes valuable plant food but 

 also increases its water-holding capacity. Everything else 

 being equal, a northern slope would be preferred to a southern 

 one, except when grown for early use, as the crop is sometimes 

 badly injured by the intense heat increased by a southern 

 exposure during a hot, dry season. 



Fig. 7.— Colebrook, Potato No. 131. 



Manure. 



Fresh stable manure, especially when harrowed in, tends to 

 produce such diseases as scab, blight, and rot, and should 

 therefore be applied, if possible, to the crop preceding, and 

 enough used to provide for the needs of both crops. 



The potato thrives best in a cool, moist soil, and, unlike the 

 corn crop, roots quite deeply. It is therefore recommended 

 that stable manure be plowed in for the above-mentioned rea- 

 sons, and also to prevent the germination of the weed seeds 

 contained in it, thus greatly reducing the cost of hand cultiva- 

 tion. 



