136 Southern Gardener^s Practical Manual 



a board fence or a house. Keep it moist, but not wet. 

 Have the laud prepared and laid off read}^ for the reception 

 of the plants. When the plants have three or four leaves, 

 take them trom the bed with the mother potato attached. 

 If more than one shoot has come from a single tuber, 

 cut between them and transplant separately. Continue 

 to transplant as the plants get large enough. Do not 

 detach the mother tuber, but plant it with the shoot to 

 supply nourishment until the young plant has developed 

 its root system. If any shoots become disconnected from 

 the mother tuber, transplant with water, as directed for 

 cabbage, when the soil is dry. While this method is 

 somewhat more troublesome than the others, it is 

 compensated for in being absolutely certain. The fall 

 crop will remain in the ground all winter, to be dug as 

 needed without becoming watery or in any way deterio- 

 rating in quality, or they may be harvested and stored. 

 They will keep without difficulty, in the ground or out, 

 until time for them to sprout in spring. If left in the 

 row, two furrows made with a good turn -plow should be 

 thrown upon them. This serves the double purpose of 

 affording drainage and protecting them from freezing. 

 The potato produces less vine in fall than in spring and 

 matures in a shorter time. The fall -grown are superior 

 in quality to the spring -grown. 



There are over six hundred described varieties of 

 Irish potatoes, but onlj^ a small number of these are 

 planted in the South — mainly the early varieties. New 

 varieties are grown from seed. The tubers of the seed- 

 lings are small at first, but increase in size under high 

 cultivation. I received from D. Landreth & So.ns, in 



