THE POTATO CROP. 353 



an inch and quarter riddle. If the object is merely to 

 grow seed potatoes from a new or approved variety, by all 

 means plant them at narrow intervals, and from sets with 

 plenty of eyes; but if the object is to grow a marketable 

 crop, by all means plant them at wide intervals in the 

 rows, at the same time having a wide space between the 

 rows. This will be found the best practice in planting. 

 The size and preparation of the sets is another matter of 

 great consequence, and is not well understood by ordinary 

 planters. Every perfect eye in the set will produce a shoot 

 or stalk, which will require room and nourishment, and will 

 produce fruit or tubers. These being so close and crowded 

 will of course be stinted or restricted in their growth; 

 hence the whole crop will be small and unsaleable as food. 

 To obviate this the set should all be looked over, and any 

 superabundance of eyes must be cut away, so as to leave 

 not more than two or three good eyes at the most. The 

 cutting away of 'the rose' is often sufficient, as that part 

 of the potato contains the most eyes. "When this depart- 

 ment of the business is carefully attended to, the potato 

 set will only throw out one, two, or three strong healthy 

 shoots, which rapidly get away into a fine full growing 

 potato plant, vigorous and promising ; but with many eyes 

 we have many shoots, all weak and tender, and their pro- 

 duce not exceeding a walnut in size; here, in a great 

 measure, is the clue to the fact of the stinted growth of so 

 many of our potato crops. The size of the set is not of 

 such importance as many are led to believe; it ought, 

 however, to possess full vitality, and perhaps the larger the 

 set the better. The planting of eye-sets, of course, adds 

 much to the cost ; a good-sized potato should make at least 

 two sets, and in many tubers three. No set ought to be 

 smaller than a walnut, nor need it be much larger. I do 

 not think it good practice to plant small potatoes whole, 

 except they are carefully looked over in reference to the 

 number of eyes. If they are found to be right, then their 

 being whole, is unimportant. As to the operation of de- 

 positing or placing the set, it is desirable that the most 



