CHAPTER X. 



The Potato. 



OINCE the introduction of the Triumph potato, with its 

 peculiarity of making a good fail crop from home-grown 

 spring seed, the Irish potato is likely to come more 

 prominently to the front as a money crop in the far South. 

 One drawback heretofore has been, that it required a consid- 

 erable outlay for the seed every year. Now, experience 

 shows that we can grow our own seed in the fall, and when 

 planted in spring, even the smallest sized tubers will yield 

 more potatoes by far than the old northern varieties. While 

 I am a crank on potash for most things, I am bound to admit 

 that additional applications of it have shown no appreciable 

 effect on Irish potatoes here. Evidently the coast country of 

 Texas has potash enough to satisfy this crop for some years. 

 The very best yield I ever had was from my orchard ground 

 at Hitchcock the first year, to which one ton per acre of cot- 

 ton-seed meal was applied broadcast in November, the ground 

 plowed a second time in February, and planted about the ifth. 

 That was a remarkable yield, and not a very good season 

 either, as it turned out very dry toward the end. But, as 

 elsewhere remarked, manure is water and tillage, for very 

 rich ground will nearly always make a good crop with little 

 of either. 



As to the best time to plant, it is all a gamble. This 

 season the early January settings came through all right. 

 Last year they were killed and rotted. If we grow our own 

 seed, however, every one should risk a barrel or two early, 

 on good, high ground, and as the tops push through, draw 

 the soil up several times to keep them well under. Then, 

 if a freeze does come, and the patch is gone over promptly 

 the next morning, and the plants are cut off an inch under 

 the surface, they will quickly come again. If left, however, 



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