THE GEITESEE FARMER. 



107 



CUTTmG POTATOES FOR PLANTING. 



After all that has been written on the sulyect, it 

 is still a disputed point whether it is better to plant 

 large or small .potatoes, whole j^wtatoes or sets. 



The -fleshy matter of the potato unquestionably 

 fui-nishes food for the young plant- and, on theo- 

 retical grounds, it might be supposed that the 

 larger the potatoes — the more fleshy matter there 

 is to each eye — the more vigorous would be the 

 early :growth of the plant. This is probably true 

 so far as the growth of leaves and stems is con- 

 eerned, and it may be of seed (balls) also ; but it 

 must be borue in mind, iii applying general princi- 

 ples to the cultivation of the potato, that the object 

 is not to develop the natural growth of the plant, 

 but to increase the formation of tubers — of the 

 underground '"'■fgouty iiKinchesy The present habit 

 of the plant is the result somewhat of artificial 

 treittment, and in order to retain thJs habit, we 

 must resort to those practices which have been 

 found fi-om experience t-o induce the formation of 

 .tubers, rather than to those which ai'e de<luced 

 from the general .psri-nciples applicable to the natural 

 growth of plants. Dr, Lsnoley — a high authority 

 ■ — says: *'I have proved, by a series of numerous 

 •expcKnients, that the weight of potatoes per acre 

 is greafter, mnder equal circumstances, from sets 

 tlian fi«om wltole tulxirs, by upwards of from seven 

 cwt. to three tons per acre." An excessive amount 

 ■of alinaentary matter in the sets, therefore, is inju^ 

 rious rather than beneficial. 



It do»?s not follow from this fact, however, that 

 sra^ll potatoes are better for seed than large ones. 

 Small potatoes j^re apt to throw up too many small, 

 soft stems, which produce smaller tubers than where 

 there is one, or at most two, stout, woody stems. 

 It seems, also, to be proved that a set from a good- 

 sized potato is better than a set from a small one ; 

 and it is probably true, as the experiments of the 

 Rev. James Faequharsox indicate that large pota- 

 toes planted whole will produce a greater crop of 

 good-sized potatoes than small ones planted whole. 

 Yet it does not follow from this that there is not 

 too much fleshy matter in the large potato when 

 planted whole, and that it would not be better, as 

 Dr. LiNDLEY states, to plant only sets from the large 

 potato. 



It is a curious fact, but one which seems to be 

 ■well established, that tlie eyes from the extremity 

 of the potato produce crops which come to maturity 

 from two to three weeks earlier than those from the 

 root end, In some parts of England, farmgrs who 

 raise early potatoes for market have availed them- 

 Belves of this fact for many years. They cut the 

 potato into sets, as shown in th^ annexed sketch. 

 Tlifi Bets nearest the extremity of the potato (a) 



produce the earliest crop, and are planted by them- 

 selves, in warm places, for this purpose. The sets 

 at tlie root end (d) are planted for 

 a late crop, and those in the middle 

 of the potato (5, c,) are planted for 

 an intermediate crop. The root 

 end is usually thrown aside for 

 the pigs. 



It has been supposed that the 

 reason why the eyes from the point 

 of the potato are more easily ex- 

 cited into growth, is owmg to their being more 

 perfectly matured ; but this is impossible, as they 

 are the youngest eyes. It seems to us more likely 

 that the cause lies in the fact that the extremity of 

 the potato is not so ripe as the root end — that, in 

 other words, they are not so perfectly organised^ 

 and are consequently less able to resist the decom- 

 posing influences of light, air, and moisture. " That 

 which thou sowest is not quickened unless it die.'' 

 The organized matter of a plant must be decom- 

 posed (or die) before it can reproduce itself. The 

 youngest eyes, being less perfectly organized, would 

 decay soonest and grow earlier and with greater 

 vigor. It will be urged, as an objection to this 

 \iew, that the ripest buds of trees start earliest. 

 But the cases are not parallel. They derive nour- 

 ishment from the sap of the tree, and not from the 

 decay of organic matter surrounding them. Still, 

 whether our reasoning is correct or not, the fact 

 that the buds at the extremity of the potato will 

 produce the earliest crop, seems to be beyond dis- 

 pute ; and those who wish early potatoes may avail 

 themselves of it, even though the cause may not be 

 clearly understood. 



CULTIVATION OF TKE SWEET POTATO. 



We have received repeated inquiries as to the 

 feasibility of cultivating the sweet potato in this 

 vicinity. That the sweet potato can be grown hero 

 with considerable success, has been repeatedly 

 proved. We have seen unusually large and fine 

 tubers grown in this State, but they are seldom as 

 sweet and palatable as those brought from the 

 Southern States. The principal reason of this 13 

 no doubt owing to a lack of suflicient heat and to 

 our short seasons, though the difliculty has been 

 materially increased by making the soil too rich. 

 It is well known that sugar beets raised on rich 

 soils, especially those manured with strong ammo- 

 niacal manures, contain a less proportion of sac- 

 charine matter than those raised on poorer soils ; 

 and the same is probably true of the sweet potato. 

 It is by no means a common error to make the soil 

 too rich for any commonly cultivated crop, yet 

 there is a disposition sometimes to do so for a new 

 plant that is raised on a small scale by way 



