208 



THE IKRIGATION AGE. 



Potato Culture 



BY L. A. ASPINWALL, JACKSON, MICH. 



[Continued] 



The time to plow should be carefully considered, 

 especially in localities where the land is heavy and the 

 climate variable in the extreme. Light soils may be 

 advantageously worked at any time when the weather 

 is not extremely dry. Plowing during the late autumn 

 and even in the open winter of some states, when time 

 is abundant and the team unemployed, is great econ- 

 omy ; however, to invert some soils at that season would 

 be objectionable. Light soils do not require the action 

 of frost to crumble and pulverize them that heavy soils 

 do. Sod land inverted during the autumn, or even in 

 early spring, will sometimes remain undecomposed 

 through the entire summer, especially if plowed during 

 dry weather and followed by a dry season. Sod should 

 not be plowed when the weather is dry. Clover should 

 be allowed to grow from ten to twelve inches high be- 

 fore plowing, and, if possible, when there is abun- 

 dant moisture in the soil. Under such circumstances 

 rapid decay is certain. Let us note that the plowing in 

 of green clover can only be for the planting of late 

 potatoes. Should the land be fairly good when so 

 plowed, the best results are certain to follow, provided 

 the requisite precautions are taken to destroy the potato 

 bugs and prevent the blight, as we shall hereinafter 

 show. Even in dry seasons the product of such fields 

 will be far above the average. In plowing stubble land 

 we should observe the same rule, corn stubble not ex- 

 cepted. A damp surface is the best to turn under, and 

 it is an important step in the direction of successful 

 potato culture. 



Harrowing the land. An ordinary harrow for most 

 soils will answer the purpose; still such implements as 

 the Acme and several of the best disk harrows are to 

 be preferred for sod land. These harrows do not tear 

 up the sod, but leave the surface beautifully pulverized. 

 The field should be traversed somewhat obliquely. This 

 will aid in following the marks made when using a 

 planter, as the driver will not be confused by marks of 

 the harrow. 



Manures and fertilizers. The question of fertility 

 is one which demands the attention of farmers not only 

 in the older settled portions of the country, but in dis- 

 tricts which were once considered exhaustless. Natural 

 vegetable decay is undoubtedly conducive to the finest 

 and healthiest growth. Sod land or green clover plowed 

 under is certainly the most natural method of enrich- 

 ing the soil. However, the impossibility of producing 

 sufficient clover for this purpose necessarily demands the 

 use of manures from the farm yard or stables, together 

 with commercial fertilizers. In the vicinity of large 

 cities where land is cropped continually, a liberal dress- 

 ing of stable manure becomes necessary, also the applica- 

 tion of commercial fertilizers. Stable manure should be 

 well decomposed; green manure increases the tendency 

 to disease where the soil is heavy and damp, while in 

 dry seasons it will remain undecomposed and the full 



benefit cannot be obtained. Clover sod should not be 

 less than ten inches high previous to plowing, which, 

 as previously shown, should be done during a time when 

 the ground is moist. By the addition of eight or ten 

 loads of manure to the acre, plowed in with the clover, 

 a fine yield may be expected. Let us note that one acre 

 well cultivated is more profitable than two poorly cared 

 for. In the absence of heavy manuring, a rotation of 

 crops should be practiced. The rule is to seed the land 

 with clover or mixed grasses, with a crop of wheat, rye 

 or oats. The following season cut one crop of hay, 

 leaving the second growth to enrich the soil, and to 

 be plowed under with the young growth the following 

 spring for corn. There will still be enough substance 

 left for a fair crop of potatoes. With the addition of 

 eight or ten loads of manure to the acre, still better 

 results may be obtained. The following season the land 

 may again be seeded with grain. Where potatoes are 

 more profitable than corn, they may be substituted for 

 it, with a much larger yield, as greater benefit from the 

 sod is afforded. When stable manure is depended upon 

 alone, fifteen or twenty loads per acre, according to the 

 fertility of the soil, is none too much. 



Commercial fertilizers have proved a great boon to 

 potato growers in many sections, especially in the east- 

 ern states. They are made according to carefully pre- 

 pared formulas, and contain the elements requisite to 

 potato growth. When drilled in and mixed with soil 

 by the fertilizer attachment of a potato plant, the plant 

 food is placed within easy reach of the young plants, 

 which they stimulate and hasten in growth. However, 

 it is always best to use compost or stable manure in ad- 

 dition thereto, which will maintain a vigorous growth 

 throughout the season. Although from five hundred 

 to one thousand pounds per acre is considered a liberal 

 amount for land of average fertility, many growers use 

 fully a ton per acre. Where the land is exceptionally 

 fertile, two or three hundred pounds per acre will 

 greatly stimulate the plant growth. The Bowker Com- 

 pany, of Boston, Mass., are reliable manufacturers of 

 special fertilizers for potatoes. These contain the ele- 

 ments requisite for potato growth. As already shown, 

 the fertilizer should be drilled in. When sown broad- 

 cast the fullest benefit cannot be obtained. Where a 

 clover sod can, with the addition of compost or stable 

 manure, be plowed in and commercial fertilizers drilled 

 in, large returns may be expected in favorable seasons. 

 To overcome the effects of dry weather, liberal manuring 

 is essential. Plant food is rendered serviceable prin- 

 cipally through the channel of moisture, which, if in- 

 sufficient, must be supplied by an increased quantity of 

 manure well decomposed. As plants also receive much 

 from the air, liberal manuring will increase the growth 

 of foliage through which they receive oxygen and nitro- 

 gen, and, more effectually covering the ground, will aid 

 in retaining the moisture. 



How to apply manure; certainly by means of a 

 spreader. They are not only great savers of labor, but 

 also of clothing, and have greatly eliminated this dis- 

 agreeable drudgery of farming. 



Manure should not be left on the surface. Exposed 

 to action of the sun and air, constant waste is the re- 

 sult. Experience has proved that manure should be 

 ploived in. It is then within convenient reach of the 

 plant roots, and slight dry spells will not prevent the 

 plants from receiving the necessary benefit. The same 



