1952 



ENCYCLOPEDIA OP PRACTICAL HORTICULTURE 



overrun by weeds early in the season if it 

 can be avoided. 



In case it is necessary to use an old sod, 

 plow in early fall. Although, the white 

 grubs change to beetles in September they 

 are at that time soft and helpless, and if 

 turned up to the surface they are unable 

 to find their way back and will perish. If 

 still in the pupal stage they will perish 

 without being able to transform. Plow- 

 ing in mid-September will be best for this 

 purpose, and, if desired, a cover crop can 

 be put on. In the more northern counties 

 early September may be better, as it will 

 give more chance for a cover crop to take 

 hold. This process will kill the brood 

 ready to transform, but will not kill the 

 younger grubs yet in the ground. 



To reach these, turn hogs, or chickens, 

 or turkeys, or all three into the newly 

 plowed field, and they will get the great 

 majority of all the grubs in the field. In- 

 deed, in an old sod, if a few shallow fur- 

 rows be run through it and hogs turned 

 in, they will from the start thus given 

 them root the entire field, and get all but 

 a small percentage of the grubs. In lo- 

 calities where white grubs are known to 

 be troublesome, every sod field to be put 

 into strawberries should be treated in 

 this way to avoid injury. 



Where white grubs are actually in a 

 strawberry bed, there is nothing to do but 

 dig them out wherever a plant shows in- 

 jury. In such a case it is well also to let 

 the field run moderately to weeds to dis- 

 tribute the feeding, while not enough to 

 attract beetles to lay eggs. 



(See Potato Pests for illustration.) 



Wire Worms 



Elateridae, 



See Potato Pests. 



SuMMEE Pruning. See Pruning, under 

 Apple. 



Sutton Apple for Massachusetts. See 

 Massachusetts, 



Sweet Potatoes 



The sweet potato is related to the morn- 

 ing glory, and is known botanically as 

 Xpomaea latatas. The plant is not known 

 in a truly wild state, and it is not known 

 with certainty where it originated; but 



A. de Condolle thinks that it is in all 

 probability of American origin, where it 

 has been cultivated from prehistoric times 

 by the aborigines for the sake of its nu- 

 tritious, sweetish tuberous roots, which 

 as an article of diet are greatly prized in 

 all parts of Europe and America. It is 

 a climbing perennial with entire or 

 palmately lobed leaves, variable in shape, 

 borne on slender twining stems, and 

 flowers in loose clusters. The edible por- 

 tion of the root dilates into a large club 

 shape, or cone shaped mass filled with 

 starch and other nutritious elements. 

 While in its original state it was a per- 

 ennial, it is usually cultivated as an an- 

 nual. 



How Propagated 



It is easily cultivated in the southern 

 part of the United States, where the win- 

 ters are mild, but in the Central or North- 

 ern states it is propagated by planting the 

 tubers in a hotbed early in the spring, and 

 when the sprouts are two to four inches 

 long severing them from the tuber, leav- 

 ing the tuber to produce other sprouts, 

 and planting the sprouts in ridges made 

 for the purpose, or in hills. These plants 

 are set much like cabbage plants, except 

 that the ground must be prepared in a 

 different way by ridging. The soil best 

 adapted is a sandy loam, not too rich. If 

 too rich the potato will be large but more 

 subject to the atacks of insects and not 

 so well flavored. The yam is a variety of 

 the same species, but not so popular. In 

 the autumn, when the potatoes are dug, 

 they may be stored in a cool, dry place 

 for winter. 



We quote from W. H. Beattie as fol- 

 lows: 



"Toward the northern part of the area 

 over which sweet potatoes are grown it 

 is necessary to start the plants in a hot- 

 bed in order that the length of season may 

 be suflicient to mature the crop. The 

 roots that are too small for marketing are 

 used for seed, and these are bedded close 

 together in the hotbed and covered with 

 about two inches of sand or fine soil, such 

 as leaf mold. The seed should be bedded 

 about five or six weeks before it will be 

 safe to set the plants in the open ground, 



