POTATOES 377 



As the work is all done by hand there is little danger of injury to 

 the seed from breaking off the sprouts. In all sections of the South 

 where hand planting is practiced, this method of procedure is per- 

 fectly practicable and would entirely obviate losses from uncon- 

 genial conditions due to cold, damp spring weather and inferior 

 seed. Planting could be delayed until conditions were favorable, 

 and poor seed would be detected before it was planted. 



Held-over seed. The consensus of opinion is that in Southern 

 localities it is impracticable to keep early potatoes from harvest 

 time to the next season's planting period. The conclusions of 

 those who have given this problem careful study are that the ex- 

 posure of the tubers to the sun at harvest time is the chief factor 

 in determining their keeping qualities. In other words, it is pos- 

 sible to keep potatoes in the extreme South from season to season, 

 provided the tubers are not exposed to the sun after being dug. 

 They should be immediately carried to a protected place where 

 there is ample ventilation and where they will receive only diffused 

 light, such as a cyclone cellar, or the basement of a house, or even 

 where brush potection will prevent the sun's shining directly upon 

 them. It is, of course, necessary that the tubers be well-matured 

 before being dug and that they be the product of disease-free plants. 

 Plants killed by blight yield tubers which seldom keep well even 

 under the most favorable conditions. 



Varieties. The varieties that are grown in the Southern states 

 are quite distinct. The Red Bliss, or Bliss's Triumph, which is of 

 comparatively little value in the North, is popular in the South, and 

 is perhaps more extensively cultivated than any other single sort. 

 Next comes the Irish Cobbler, XX Early, Early Ohio, and Bovee. 

 There is a difference in the varieties used in different localities. 

 In eastern and northern Texas, perhaps nine tenths of the early 

 crop of potatoes is of the Bliss's Triumph variety. Along the Atlan- 

 tic coast the percentage of this variety is much lower, although it 

 as well as Early Rose is popular in Florida. The Irish Cobbler, 

 at present, leads all other sorts in the Atlantic coast section from 

 Florida to New Jersey. These sorts are the best now known for 

 this use, but they are far from ideal. The ideal sort for the truck 

 grower is one which sets five or six tubers early and develops 

 them to market size quickly. 



