THE KITCHEN-GARDEN. 225 



as early in March as possible. It is almost per- 

 fectly hardy, and gives me the earliest picking. I 

 should also plant Henderson's First of All as soon 

 as the frost was out, on a warm, well-drained soil. 

 For second crops, American Wonder and Premium 

 Gem ; and for the main and most satisfactory crop 

 of all, Champion of England. The Champion re- 

 quires brush as a support, for it grows from four 

 to six feet high; but it is well worth the trouble. 

 I plant the other kinds named because they are 

 much earlier, and so dwarf as to need no brush ; 

 they are also productive, and excellent in quality 

 if not left to grow too old. For the dwarf kinds 

 the soil cannot be too rich, and the warmer the 

 ground and exposure, the earlier the crop. For 

 the tall late sorts the soil may easily be made too 

 fertile; they should also be planted in cooler, 

 moister, and heavier ground. In the case of the 

 dwarfs I put a fertilizer in with the seed as I have 

 already explained. Cover the dwarfs about two 

 and a half inches deep, and the tall late sorts from 

 three to four inches, according to the nature of the 

 soil. Plant the Champion of England every ten 

 days until the middle of June, and thus secure a 

 succession of the best of all. 



We all know how numerous have been the varie- 

 ties of potato introduced into this country of late 

 years, many kinds sent out at first at the rate of 



15 



