39 



sufficient portion of the potato attached, because it 

 is well known that the strength of the shoot depends 

 on the power and vigour of the set. The set should 

 not he less than the fourth part of a well sized potato. 

 It is a great mistake to choose for seed those potatoes 

 which are considered too small for eating. Cut the 

 seed some days before it is planted, that the wounds 

 may dry up ; you may even cut your seed some weeks 

 beforehand, provided that the sets are not exposed to 

 dry winds or any drought so as to deprive them of 

 their moisture. The excellence of the crop wiU de- 

 pend however, principally, on the culture, the season, 

 and the sitiiation. 



The season for planting depends on the state of 

 weather and soil : if they be favoural)le plant from 

 the middle of April to the middle of May — lat€ 

 crops are seldom so abundant as early ones. There 

 is a method of cutting the potato or seed, practised 

 by Mr. Hugh WiUiams, of Bodelwydden, in North 

 Wales, by which the crop may be made to come to 

 perfection two or three weeks earlier than by the 

 usual method. The principle is that of rejecting the 

 lower part of the potato, and merely using the upper 

 part or crown, cut not horizontally but longitudinally. 

 This method in most potatoes will furnish three 

 Avholesome sets — and may be relied on for an earlier 

 produce. 



In order to have potatoes remarkably early, an 

 early sort is to be chosen — and if planted in the usual 

 time, they should be dug out in the month of August, 

 and spread in the sun upon a dry gravel walk for 

 some days till perfectly dry and seasoned, preserving 

 them from the rain or dew of the night. They should 

 then be stored upon a dry loft, and planted very early, 

 cutting them longitudinally, in the manner before 

 mentioned. 



The best seed (for most soils) is had from the 

 mountain moors, and it has been proved that the curl 

 wiU never be foimd in those potatoes, because this is 



