28 Unprecedented Propagation of the Early Rose Potato. 



UNPRECEDENTED PROPAGATION OF THE EARLY ROSE 



POTATO. 



The high price of the Early Rose Potato, and the strong commendation 

 of its quahties, induced me to purchase of B. K. Cliss & Son six pounds 

 in ]\Iarch, 1868. Potatoes at a dollar per pound will warrant propagation 

 under glass. I ordered the tubers to be cut into single eyes, and to be 

 planted in a box in the propagating-house. As soon as the eyes had made 

 a growth of two inches, they were taken off precisely as dahlia-cuttings are 

 taken, or like the cuttings of verbenas, which maybe a more familiar exam- 

 ple to many. This process commenced about April 20. After the first 

 batch of cuttings was taken, a new set of shoots developed from the tubers ; 

 and, in some cases, three or four shoots were obtained before the tubers 

 were potted from the box. As these tubers were put in thumb-pots, and, 

 during the pressure of spring nurseiy-work, were kept too long in this con- 

 fined space, though they were planted in open ground about the 20th of 

 May, yet it was too late for them. Concluding that the pot was to be their 

 limit of growth, they had determined their course, — to ripen up their new 

 and beautiful little tubers about the size of a INIinie-ball, and then retire 

 from the Held. Consequently, I got no potatoes of any size directly from 

 the original six pounds of tubers. But to return to the cuttings. As stated, 

 the first batch was obtained about April 20. These were placed in the 

 sand-bed of my propagating-house, having a bottom-heat of about 75° Fah- 

 renheit. The temperature of the house was kept about 10° lower; and, as 

 the face of the roof is toward the north, there was little trouble with the 

 light and heat of the sun throughout the month of May. The cuttings 

 rooted with great certainty in six to eight days, and were at once removed 

 to thumb-pots. For another week they were kept in frames, until the roots 

 were well out, so as to hold the earth as a ball when turned from the pot. 

 They w^ere then planted in drills in the open field, three feet apart, and one 

 foot in the drill. As fast as these plants made shoots which could be 

 taken without serious loss to the parent-plant, they were removed, and 

 placed in the propagating-bed, as before. Thus the process was repeated 

 as late even as to the 5th of August. At first, it was from a small begin- 



