498 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



1885. — The arrangement of the field, the mode of manuring, 

 and the variety of the potatoes raised was the same as in the 

 preceding season. The same three plats served for the experi- 

 ment, each one-fifth of an acre in size ; the potatoes were 

 planted April 27. Plat No. 1 received, as fertilizer, thirty- 

 pounds of muriate of potash and one hundred and thirty pounds 

 of steamed fine-ground bones ; Plat No, 2 received no fertilizer ; 

 Plat No. 3 was fertilized with fifty-eight pounds of potash- 

 magnesia sulphate and one hundred and twenty pounds of 

 fine ground bones. The rows were three feet three inches 

 apart, and the seed potatoes dropped from eighteen to twenty- 

 four inches in the row. One-half of each plat was planted with 

 medium-sized whole potatoes ; one-half with half a potato in a 

 spot. The seed potatoes used had been carefully selected from 

 our own crop raised during the preceding season on the same 

 plats. 



The young crop was hoed June 9. The difference in the 

 plats was quite marked July 24; plat (No. 1) with muriate 

 of potash had the largest foliage and looked darker green 

 than the remainder; that with potash sulphate (No. 3) looked 

 next best. A blight on the leaves, which showed itself during 

 the first week of August, prematurely terminated the experi- 

 ment ; the vines upon all plats died soon after. The crop was 

 harvested August 2^. (See results farther on.) 



The potatoes from all the 2)lats suffered severely from scab. 



As the increase of vegetable matter in the young plant indi- 

 cates the progress of their growth, it was decided to determine, 

 from time to time, the actual amount of vegetable matter in a 

 given weight of the more advanced tubers, by carefully expel- 

 ling the water present, at a temperature of from 100° to 110° C. 



A well-matured potato contains, as has been stated before, 

 on an average twenty-five per cent, of solid matter. 



The subsequent statements are the results of our examina- 

 tion. 



