SWEET POTATOES. 217 



SWEET POTATOES. 



This crop is cultivated extensively in the Southern 

 States. It may be grown successfully as far north as 

 Nebraska and Maine, but in these sections it cannot 

 be regarded as more than a garden product. 



SOIL. 



Nearly all the land in the South is adapted to 

 this crop, but clay soil is not as good as loam. The 

 opinion that rich land is not suitable has general cre- 

 dence somehow, but this is a mistake. It is usually 

 said that this kind of land will make them grow to 

 vine, hut it is necessary to have vines in order that we 

 may have starch formed to be placed in the roots. 

 Some of the very best crops have been raised on 

 drained muck land. This plant is so versatile that it 

 is difficult to find land that will not produce a fair 

 crop. To produce a large crop, warm sandy soil 

 should be chosen and this well fertilized and plowed 

 deeply. A finer grade for table use may be produced 

 by plowing shallow and using less fertilizer or none 

 at all. 



PROPAGATION. 



To obtain sets, the whole potatoes should be placed 

 in a hot bed and covered with an inch of soil, six or 

 seven weeks before the young plants are wanted. By 

 pushing the sets ahead in a hot-bed one will have new 

 potatoes at least a month earlier than by waiting for 

 them to sprout in the field. The early crop will be 

 found to be among the most profitable for shipping ; if 

 the crop is wanted for home consumption, it will be 

 sufficient to make a bed in the open from which to ob- 

 tain slips. In the far North it is necessary to start all 

 plants in a hot- bed. The amount of space required in a 

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