148 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Feb. 15. 



A POTATO THAT WILL NEVER SCAB ; THAT 

 $1000 OFFER FOR A BARREL OF POTATOES. 



I have been holding my breath somewhat 

 since that offer went out (see page 64, Jan. 15), 

 for fear I should have to pay the money ; but 

 I began to breathe a little easier when nobody 

 seemed inclined to take it up. The following 

 is the nearest to it of any thing we have had ; 

 in fact, it is the only communication I have 

 had on the subject : 



I will send you by mail one potato. I don't know 

 what the name is. i bought them of a man by the 

 name of Newel, so I call them " Newel." If you know 

 the right name, let me know. If you want more of 

 them I will send them. I have had them for five 

 years. Thev have never shown any sign of scab since 

 I have had them, and all other varieties have scabbed. 

 I got five varieties of vou three years ago, and I have 

 discarded all of them. The Newel has gone through 

 w.et and dry, hot and cold, bugs and every thing else, 

 and has come out on top every time. 



Tekamah, Neb., Feb. 2. J. S. Robinson. 



Well, the above is pretty good. If these 

 potatoes have been grown for five years, and 

 have never shown auy sign of scab, it certain- 

 ly looks promising. Now, when our great 

 seed and plant men get something of that sort, 

 they usually buy up the whole stock so as to 

 monopolize the market; but I do not believe I 

 want to do that way. We want these new 

 potatoes to have a thorough test in widely 

 different localities ; and I would suggest that 

 friend Newel offer them for sale at such a 

 price as he thinks will be fair ; and if it really 

 turns out to be a nice potato, a good yielder, 

 one that never scabs, the $1000 will be forth- 

 coming, for it will be worth a million or more 

 to the world, even if / do not get the profit of 

 it. There may be some question as to who 

 should have the S1000. My intention was to 

 give it to the man who originated and brought 

 to notice the potato. And that reminds me 

 that there is an advertisement, in this issue, 

 of potato seed for the benefit of those who 

 wish to introduce new varieties. One reason 

 why I believe that a scab-proof potato can be 

 produced is, there is a difference in the pota- 

 toes we have. Last fall we grew several bush- 

 els of Rural New -Yorkers that were not scabby 

 a particle, while a strip of Carman No. 1, 

 right alongside, were scabbed badly ; and my 

 impression is that the Rural New-Yorker is, 

 as a rule, less liable to scab than almost any 

 other potato. Perhaps I might add, for the 

 benefit of those who wish to go into the busi- 

 ness of growing new varieties of potatoes, that 

 it is like growing new varieties of strawberries. 

 If you should plant a whole acre of seedlings, 

 and as closely as they could stand (several 

 growers have done this very thing with straw- 

 berries) you might watch and care for the 

 whole lot, and find, after you had got through, 

 not one of them was in any way superior to 

 the berries or potatoes we have already. A 

 good many kinds are "trotted out" every 

 season, with the claim that they are away 

 ahead; but look at the kinds that have been 



boomed and then dropped out of sight, say 

 within the last 25 years, if you have been 

 watching plant and seed catalogs than length 

 of time. Will friend R. please tell us more 

 about that scab proof potato ? Is it early or 

 late ? How does its yield compare with oth- 

 ers ? What is its quality for table use ? I 

 judge the potato to be an early one, as one 

 sent me was already sprouted ; and I wish to 

 say that it is a very handsome potato. 



.Since the above was put in type we have re- 

 ceived the following additional information 

 from friend Robinson : 



Mr. Root:— I have about 30 bushels of those potatoesr 

 I could not take less than 75 cts. per bushel, for I be- 

 lieve fully half of the potatoes in this part of the coun- 

 try are frozen. It has been extremely cold here this 

 winter — 2(> below zero yesterday morning by the gov- 

 ernment thermometer, and 30 by others. 



As to the name, I could not find out. An old gentle- 

 man by the name of Newel, living in Iowa, was visit- 

 ing a son living here on a farm, and the old man came 

 over and brought a bushel of those potatoes; but his 

 son had moved to town, and had no place to plant 

 them. He told me about them, and what wonderful 

 potatoes they were. He said he paid 82.00 for the 

 bushel. I paid him £2.00 for about two-thirds of the 

 bushel. The Newel family have all moved away, and 

 I don't know where. 



Tekamah, Neb., Feb. 10. J. S. Robinson. 



DISEASES OF THE TOMATO. 



This is the title of a bulletin sent out by the 

 Florida Experiment Station. It is written by 

 Prof. P. H. Rolfs, whom it was my good for- 

 tune to get acquainted with while I was in 

 Florida. This bulletin gives most thorough 

 directions for treating all diseases of the to- 

 mato, besides discussing the matter of insect 

 enemies. Prof. Rolfs recommends the Bor- 

 deaux mixture for the black rot, and says if it 

 is made right, and applied with sufficient 

 thoroughness, it will surely kill the fungus- 

 and allow the tomato to start out with a new 

 and vigorous growth. If you want the bulle- 

 tin, write to the director of the Experiment 

 Station, Lake City, Fla. It is furnished free 

 to all Florida people, and I presume it will be 

 sent to anybody if a stamp is inclosed. This- 

 one little bulletin may be worth hundreds of 

 dollars to anybody who makes tomato-grow- 

 ing a business. 



THE BENSON RENOVATOR COW PEA. 



On pages 668 and 705 for last year I made 

 favorable mention of Benson's new cow pea. 

 Since that time I have been watching the 

 Practical Farmer very closely, especially Prof. 

 Massey's answers t,o questions in regard to 

 cow peas in general ; and my impression is 

 that there are early varieties of cow peas al- 

 ready well known in the South, that possess, 

 nearly all of the desirable qualities of the Ben- 

 son pea. Of course, I am not the one to 

 judge, as I am comparatively unacquainted 

 with the many different varieties of cow peas 

 grown in the South. Since friend Benson has- 

 used in his circular what I put in Gleanings, 

 a good many inquiries have come in to me. 

 Here is one of them : 



I am very much interested in the renovator cow pea. 

 You experimented with it last year. Can you not give 

 to us fuller particulars in regard to your treatment of 

 and success with the pea? Did you plow it under? If 

 so, how did you manage? Did stock eat the pea hay 

 well ? When did you plant, and when did you har- 

 vest ? Did the peas mature fully? 



Battle Creek, Mich., Feb. 2. W. H. Littlejohn. 



