•252 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER 



FEB. 9, 181 



For ihe N. E. Farmer. 



POTATOES. 



There is no use to me in proving lint .Mr Hnr- 

 num, of Vermont, raised 2000 bushels of potatoes 

 on an acre, e.xcept thnt of provoking' me to a8l< hotp 

 it was (Jont. I dcBire to raise two thousand bush- 

 els to the acre ; but Mr Barnuni and the editor do 

 not tell me how to do it. 



Facli, which tell only what has been done, sre 

 not satisfactory ; we want truths which tell wliat 

 may be done, and hoio it may be done. S. W. 



(JIT'We have had from varioua sources, hints of 

 wishes that we would republish Mr Barnum's state- 

 ment to which we have referred, (vol. xiii. p. 320, 

 N. E. Farmer.) Aa miiny of our subscribers are 

 probably rot in possession of thut volume, we talio 

 the hints, and republish the statement so far as the 

 mode of cullurt is concerned. 



We are glud that S. W. wants to rais? ^000 

 bushels per acre, and hope he may succeed accord- 

 ing to his wishes. We have f<iith thnt it can be 

 done, but are no firm believer that it will ojltn be 

 done. 



We have made a hasty casting of figures and 

 find that if one should plant in hills 3 ft. •'} in. apart 

 each way, and put one potato in each hill, there 

 will be required to seed an acre 4000 potatoes. 

 Mr Barnum's distances will require :il,3ll0. We 

 liave just weighed one half a peck of eastern blue- 

 noses, (rather small,) and find the weight 8 1bs. ; 

 and a common sized potato of the lot weighs 1 oz. 

 This will give 33 potatoes in the half pci k, or 256 

 per bushel. Dividing 4000 by 25(), we obtain 1.5 

 5-8 bushels as a co'.uno?! seeding. And dividing 

 ;jl,;WO by 250, we gtt 122 1-2 bushels as the seed 

 required in Mr Barnum's way. The e.xpense of 

 seeding and of tilling is great, but try a small 

 patch, and see if you do not git well paid for the 

 expense. — Eo. 



From Mr Barnum's statement : — 



" PREPAKATION FOR PLANTISO. 



"Whatever soil may be selected for this purpose, 

 to insure a large crop it should be highly manured 

 with compost, decomposed vegetables or barn yard 

 manure — the latter I consider preferable, when it 

 can be obtained with convenience ; if raw or 

 coar.se be made use of, it should be spread imme- 

 diately before the first plowing, on the same day, 

 to prevent the evaporation of its best qualities, 

 wliich Will rapidly depart if left exposed to the sun 

 and Blinnsphcre. 



"The first should bo deep plnwingv. nnd may he 

 done as early as suits the conveniei.ee •f the culti- 

 vator. If B stiff marl or clay soil, it i anid be well 

 to have it plowed late in the fall previous to plant- 

 ing. Where compost or other substances not lia- 

 ablc to fermentation, are intended us a manure, it 

 is better the spreading should be omitted until just 

 before the last plowing, after which it should be 

 thoroughly harrowed fine and smooth as possible, 

 then take a narrow light cullivulor, or small plow 

 calculated for turnmg a deep narrow furrow ; with 

 this instrument lay your land' in drills, twenty in- 

 ches asunder and four inches in depth, running 

 north and south, if prnclicable, to admit the roy.f 

 of the sun to strike the plant equally on both side^f ; 

 put into the bottom ol the furrows or drills about 

 two iurhes of well rotted barn yard manure or its 

 equivalent, then drop your potatoes, if of the com- 

 mon si'/.e, or what is more important, that they con- 



tain about the usual quantity of eyes ; if more, 

 they should be cut, to prevent too many stalks 

 shooting up together. Put a single potato in the 

 drill.s or trenches 10 inches apart; the first should 

 remain uncovered until the second one is deposit- 

 ed. Plaee them diagonally in the drills, which 

 will afl^iird more space between the potatoes one 

 way, than if laid at right nngle."< in the rows. The 

 covering may be peiformed with a hoe, first haul, 

 iiig in the furrow raised on each side the drill, then 

 carefully take from the centre of the space the 

 soil to finish the covering to the depth of 3 1-2 or 

 4 inches. By taking the earth from the centre of 

 the space on either side to the width of 3 inches, 

 it will leave a drain of 6 inches in the centre of 

 the space, and a hill of 14 inches in width, gently 

 descending from the drill to the drain ; the width 

 and depth of the drill will be sufficient to protect 

 the plant against any injurious effects of a scorch- 

 ing sun or drenching rain. The drains in the cen- 

 tre will at all times be found sufficient to admit the 

 surplus water to pass off. I am not at all tena- 

 cious about the instrument to be made iise of lor 

 opening the trenches to receive the manure and 

 potatoes ; this work should be well done, and may 

 he performed with a eoinmon lioe, with much uni- 

 formity and accuracy, by stretching a line to di- 

 rect the operation: it is true that the labor cannot 

 be performed with the same facility as with a horse, 

 but it can bo belter done, and I think at less ex- 

 pense, taking into consideration the labor of the 

 man to hold, the boy to ride, and the horse to draw 

 the machine. 



DRESSI.ilG, IIOF.ING, KIC. 



"When the plant makes its appearance above 

 the surface, the following mixture may be used : 

 Fi.r each acre, take one bushel of plaster and two 

 bushels good ashes and saw it broad cast as even 

 as possible. A moist day is preferable ft)r this 

 operation, for want of it a still evening will do. 



"I consider this mixture decidedly more benefi- 

 cial and much safer than plaster or ashes alone. 

 The alkali and nitre contained in the ashes lose 

 none of their fertilizing qualities in a moist season, 

 and the invaluable properties ol the plaster are 

 fully developed in a dry one, by decomposing the 

 atmosphere and retaining to a much later period in 

 tii8 morning the moisture of the evening dews. 

 There are but few plants in our country that re- 

 ceive so great a share of their nourishment from 

 the atmosphere as the potato. The time for dre.-ss- 

 ing or hoeing will be found diflicult to describe, 

 and must be left to the judgment of the cultivator ; 

 it should however, in all climates be done as early 

 as the first buds for blossoms make their appear- 

 ance. 



The operation of hilling should be performed 

 once and oiice onh/, during the season ; if repented 

 after the potato is formed, it will cuuse young 

 shoots to spring up, which retards the growth of 

 the potato and diminishes its size. If weeds spring 

 11(1 at any time, they should be kept down by the 

 hand or hoe, which can be done without disturbing 

 the growing stalk. 



My manner of /lOfing or hitltnfr is not to haul in 

 llic earth from the spaces between the hills or rows, 

 but to bring on fresh carlh sufficient to raii-e the 

 hill around the plant 1 1 .2 or 2 inches. In a wet 

 .season Ihe lesser quantity will be suflicient ; in a 

 dry one, the larger (piantity will not be found too 

 much. The substance for this purpose may con- 

 sist of the scrapings of ditches or filthy sticcts, Ihe 



earth from a barn yard that requires levelli 

 where convenient, it may be taken from swar 

 marshes, the beds and hanks of rivers or si 

 sluggish streams at ]ov water. If planted c 

 clay soil, fresh loam taken at any depth from 

 surface, even if it partakes largely of fine sand, 

 he found an excellent top-dressing. If planted 

 a loamy soil, the earth taken from clay pits, c 

 or slaty soil, will answer a valuable purpose, 

 fact, there are but few farms in the country 

 what may he furnished with some suitable 8 

 stance for top-dressing if sought for. The hoe 

 and iiillii-g may be performed with facility by 

 ! aid of a horse and cart, the horse 'ravelling in 

 centre of a space between the drills, the cart whi 

 occupying the two adjoining ones, tliereby av< 

 ing any disturbance or injury to the growing pla 

 The tune for colleeting the top dressing may 

 regulated by the farmer's own convenience ; 

 earlier the better. Deposited in large piles ir 

 near the potato field, is the most suitable place 

 distribution." 





From the Northern Light. 

 NOTES FROM MY DIARY. 



i'! 



BT C. N. BEMfNT. 



I have kept a " diary" or journal of the " doin, 

 on my farm for the last six years, wherein ev 

 thing of importance relating thereto is carefiu 

 noted ; and more particularly wherein experime- 

 are tried, as without my notes they would be 

 little use. It is the detail and conectncss t 

 give to experiments, whether favorable or unfa. 

 rable, their intrinsic value. Should the followii 

 meet approbation, I may occasionally furnish 

 ors. 



li 



Gtrmlnation of Steds. — In order to hasten (» 

 mination, I soak my mangel wiirlzel and beet set i 

 in hot water, and keep them warm for four or I , 

 days previous to depositing them in the grou , 

 then draw off the water, and to make them s y 

 easier, I have generally sprinkled and rolled th „ 

 in plaster of Paris. One year I tried on a pi | 

 lime in powder, and to my surpri.sc, that part whi || 

 was limed came up some days earlier than U- 

 rolled in plaster, and that which was rolled in pi 

 ter came up a few days before that which was ol 

 soaked. The former kept the lead in color, si 

 and luxuriant growth, ihroughout the season. ■ 

 In 184(1, after soaking the seeds of my si 

 ' beets in warm water four days, and draininpi 

 I the water, I rolled a part in air slacked lime 

 I powder ; which, besides furnishing an alkali, 

 a great atHnily fi)r carbonic acid, which appeal 

 be necessary to be extracted from the starch bel 

 j it can be made soluble, and which produces 

 ' by concentration of the oxygen and carbon 

 being extracted. After the seeds were thorou, 

 * dampened and drained, I sprinkled them with 

 powder of liinc, and kept tlieni damp by the us 

 a small watering pot, for five or six days ; at 

 end of which time they had become plump, 

 ' when deposited in the ground they were not li 

 'in pushing through their seed leaves, healthy, 

 j right, and dark green in color, ond the plant heall 

 and vigorou.". The reasons why I preferred 1 

 were, its cheapness, and the affinity of quick li 

 ' for carbonic acid. As to its alk.ilinc prope 

 soda would probably be much more powerful, 

 lime seemed to be the more powerful, and 

 which had produced the most cfiect in the cxpeii 



