164 The Potato 



Deep cultivation is most dangerous in dry times. The 

 gain from v/eed killing may be offset by the loss of the 

 potato roots. 



A tool which is used less than it should be is the weeder. 

 Weeds like ragweed, foxtail or barn grass, pigweed and 

 the whole class which grow from small seeds in the potato 

 field are very easily killed by the frequent use of the weeder 

 until the potatoes are nearly a foot high. Weeders are 

 made with either two or three rows of teeth, with wheels 

 and without and with different styles of teeth. The prin- 

 ciple is the same in all, that the light and somewhat flexible 

 teeth tear out and destroy the tiny weeds starting in the 

 surface soil with little or no injurj^ to the larger sized potato 

 vines. The weeder is a tool which demands certain soil 

 conditions to be effective. It will not work at all on hard 

 soil. Many growers have discarded weeders after trying 

 them where the soil was not suited to their use. INIost 

 soils have a short period after every rain when the flexible 

 weeder teeth are able to penetrate and stir the soil. If 

 that time is taken for their use, many sprouting weeds 

 can be killed in a very short time and the surface mulch 

 established close to the potato plant. The weight of the 

 weeder selected and the stiffness of the teeth should be 

 carefully chosen according to the character of the soil. If 

 necessary, weight can be added. A needed precaution in 

 the use of the weeder is to keep the teeth free from trash. 

 Weeders are often used to follow a cultivator with large 

 teeth to better level the soil between the rows. Weeders 

 and leveling tools, like the harrow, are sometimes driven 

 crossways of the potato row. It may be possible to do 

 the work a little better in this way, but the danger of injury 

 to the growing sprouts and roots of the potatoes from 

 crushing under the feet of the horses is so great that it is a 



