THE VEGETABLE GARDEN 285 
of a thousand pounds per acre, will produce a better 
quality of potatoes and increase the yield. 
Cutting. The so-called eyes on the outside of a potato 
are buds from which the next year’s growth comes. Cut 
the tubers so that each piece will have at least two buds. 
The stem end is sometimes rejected, as it starts more 
slowly than the other parts. The size of the piece, rather 
than the number of eyes, is important in giving the 
new plant a good start. Potatoes which are about the size 
of an egg should be planted whole. Cut potatoes just 
before planting. If it is necessary to store them for any 
length of time after cutting, place them in a box covered 
with a damp cloth, to keep them from losing vitality. 
The pieces will also retain their vitality if rolled in 
plaster immediately after cutting. 
Time of planting. Potatoes are a cool-season crop. The 
first planting should be made as soon as the frost is out 
of the ground. Plant late potatoes in June; they will 
make much of their growth in September, when the 
weather is cool. 
Planting. Spade the soil to a depth of at least six 
inches. Break all large clods with the spade and rake 
the surface fine. With a hoe make trenches thirty inches 
apart and three inches deep; in case a fertilizer is to be 
used, make the trenches four inches deep. Scatter in 
the required amount of fertilizer and cover it with an 
inch of soil, so that the fertilizer will not touch the 
pieces of potato. Place the pieces in the trench fourteen 
inches apart. 
