34 



Water a Necessity. 



There is no farm crop that is more easily, speedily and greatly 

 affected by the supply of moisture than is the potato. It has been 

 found by experiment that it takes about 425 tons of water to grow 

 a ton of dry matter of potatoes. A crop of 200 bushels per acre would 

 therefore require approximately 650 tons of water, — equivalent to 

 a rainfall of nearly 6 inches. Because of its need for large water sup- 

 ply, and its remarkable susceptibilitj^ to climatic conditions, it follows 

 that the average potato yield is affected more by water supply than 

 by lack of plant food. The selection of soil and methods of culture 

 must be with this fact in view, if success is to be had. The liberal 

 application of fertilizers or the presence of large amounts of readily 

 available plant food will prove of but little value if the moisture supply 

 is deficient. It is also true that too much water udll check the growth 

 as quickly and effectually as too little. 



Too much attention to the fitting of the soil for the crop can hardly 

 be giA'en, for no amount of after-tillage can overcome neglect in prepa- 

 ration. Deep and thorough plowing and harrowing, so as to make a 

 perfect seed bed, not only establishes an earth mulch, so as to prevent 

 the loss of moisture of the spring rains, but it so fines the soil that 

 the plant food contained in it becomes accessible to the growing plant. 

 The conservation of moisture by frequent tillage is not understood 

 or practised as it should be. The old notion that potatoes should be 

 hilled, and that tillage should cease as soon as the potato is in bloom, 

 is wTong for most situations. HiUing is frequently practised so as 

 to keep the tubers from becoming exposed to the sun; this is not 

 necessary if the soil was properly prepared. On hard, compact soil 

 the potato will, because of less resistance of the soil, push out of the 

 ground. This will not happen in deeply worked land. 



Preparation of Soil. 



The proper preparation of a soil for the potato crop is a matter of 

 years, and not a single season. A soil in order to do the best must 

 be in an excellent state of tilth and a high state of fertility. Such 

 conditions can be obtained only by careful forethought and planning. 

 In many instances the soil is not plowed deeply enough. It is very 

 common for people to speak of plowing 7, 8, or even 9 inches; but 

 most men would be surprised if they were to apply a rule to see how 

 much short of this depth the plow goes below the actual level of the 

 field. ]\Iany men that think they are plowdng 7 or 8 inches deep are 

 only plowing 5 inches. If this shallow plowing has been practised, 

 it is bad management to suddenly deepen the plowing, as this brings 

 too much of the sub-soil to the surface in a single plowing. 



Good potato land may be handled in a three or four year rotation, — 

 potatoes, grain, grass one or two 3'ears, and then potatoes again, in 

 some such way as the following: land which is used for potatoes 

 should immediately after harvesting of the crop be treated to a liberal 

 application of farm manure, if it can be obtained, and plowed with 

 lap furrow. The plow can well run an inch deeper than it did the 

 preceding year, when the land was prepared for potatoes. In the 

 spring the soil will have crumbled by the frosts, and should then be 

 thoroughly and deeply worked by frequent harrowings with some 

 such tool as a disc or spading harrow. It should then be smoothed 

 with an Acme harrow or some similar tool, and seeded to grain. If it is 

 designed to grow only a single crop of grass, it is best at the time of 



