66 THE POTATO 



The Value of Bud and Stem Ends and the 

 Middle of the Tuber for Seed. — Many ideas have 

 prevailed as to the relative values of different parts of 

 the tuber for seed. Some growers advocate the re- 

 moval of one end or the other, but thus far the ex- 

 periments condudted at a dozen stations, including such 

 varjang points as Illinois,' New Jersej',* and North 

 Dakota^ Experiment Stations, show that there is no 

 material difference noticable in yield that could be at- 

 tributed to the different pieces, and that the two ends 

 of a tuber are pradlically of equal value. 



Viability. — The buds of tubers vary considerably in 

 their ability to grow, and the same is true of the tubers 

 themselves. Goff, of Wisconsin,* when using the vari- 

 ety Burbank, obtained a stand varying from 88 to loo 

 per cent, of the potatoes planted. The importance of 

 proper moisture content of the soil is shown by the 

 results reported in the following table by Woods, of 



Maine:* 



TABLE VIII 



VARIETY STAND 



Percentage of Cuttings 

 that Produced Plants 

 Rose 22 



Early Michigan 46 



Hulett's Rust Proof 37 



Mill's Mortgage Lifter 20 



Green Mountain 6i 



New Queen i 



Polaris 55 



Maggie Murphy 50 



Irish Cobbler 65 



Early Ohio 57 



Gem of Aroostock 2S 



Bovee 55 



' 111. Bui. 40, p. 132. » N. J. Report, iS9,s, p. 308. * X. D. Report, 1901, 

 pp. 40-42. * Wis. Report, 1897, p. 306. * Me. Bui. 98, p. 1S3. 



