ECONOMIC PLANTS 233 



the garden for family use or in fields for the market, 

 requires deep preparatory spring plowing of the soil, 

 especially in regions where the rainfall is not great. 

 The soil which the potato likes best is a sandy loam. 



FIG. 1 20. Potatoes. 

 The lines show how potatoes may be cut for planting. 



Potatoes which follow alfalfa or clover crops in rotation 

 show the largest yields. 



Tubers are propagated by means of the buds (eyes) ; 

 before planting, potatoes are cut into pieces, each hav- 

 ing two or more buds. Experiments do not show that 

 the size of the original seed potato affects the crop, but 

 the type does ; that is, buds of small potatoes will pro- 

 duce as large potatoes as those from large ones, but 

 buds from deformed, rough, imperfect tubers will not 

 bring satisfactory results. As a rule, the most success- 

 ful potato growers do not care how small a seed potato 

 is, providing it is perfect in form and true to type. 



If potatoes that are to be planted are well washed and 

 kept in a lighted room at a temperature of 45 degrees 

 to 70 degrees for five or six weeks before planting, the 

 sprouts will begin to grow. If then they are cut into 

 pieces two or three days before planting, and placed 

 m shallow piles so that they will not become heated, 



