FIELD EXPERIMEXTS 1906-8. 89 



were undertaken in 1907 j'or the purpose of comparing a more 

 nearly level culture such :is is practiced in southern New Eng- 

 land and some dryer sections of the country with the ridge 

 method common in Aroostook County. 



IMr. Oscar A. Renn who lives a short distance out of Houlton 

 has practiced a modification of a ridge and level culture for sev- 

 eral years and reports it as successful. He plants the seed as 

 deep as possible with a Robbins planter and keeps the field free 

 from weeds by frequently going over it with the weeder, in three 

 different directions — crosswise, lengthwise and diagonally. In 

 this way he claims to keep the weeds down during the first stages 

 of growth without injury to the plants more cheaply than he can 

 by the ridge method. The weeder is used until the plants get too 

 high for a weeder, then the cultivator is run between the rows 

 until the plants are 8 to 9 inches high. At this time the horse 

 hoe is used to throw up a low ridge which is broader and flatter 

 on the top than the ordinary ridge and is not more than 

 half as high. The horse hoe is used only once and this is usually 

 the final hoeing of the field. J\Ir. Benn claims that the potatoes 

 are more easily taken care of by this method : more easily har- 

 vested, and in a season that is at all dry. better crops are obtained 

 than by the method of ridging. 



The experiments here reported were carried on practically by 

 Mr. Benn's method. It was not thought best to attempt to use 

 strictly level culture as the planter in common use in the county 

 does not put the seed sufficiently deep for a perfectly level cul- 

 ture and it was not thought that potatoes could be as easily har- 

 vested by the digger that is in common use. 



EXPERr.MEKXT IX I907. 



The season of 1907 proved an extremely wet one and unfavor- 

 able for this experiment so that the modified method of ridge cul- 

 ture could not be strictly followed. Six acres on the farm of 

 IMr. John Watson, Houlton, were given to the experiment, 

 three acres being used alternately for the modified ridge and 

 three check plots were cultivated by the method of high 

 ridge. 



The piece was planted May 24 and 2^ and a few days after the 

 weeder was run crosswise ever the field which very nearly lev- 

 eled the ground on the level culture plots and left the potatoes 



