POTATO. 



lOi 



article is sparingly laid on. Two or three inches thick is a 

 good manuring, but if that quantity cannot be obtained to 

 cover the whole ground, put it three or four inches thick in 

 the drill only whereon the sets are laid. It is not our purpose 

 to enter into a labored dissertation on the culture of this escu- 

 lent on a large scale, or we could easily show that it is but 

 very imperfectly understood. Our object at present is garden 

 culture, and our remarks are intended to apply to that branch. 

 A gardener or farmer must be very low in the scale of his 

 profession, unless he knows what crop is to follow another ; 

 and it is a point very necessary with potatoes that the ground 

 be roughly dug before Winter, to have the soil well ameliorated 

 before planting. Presuming that the ground is clear whore 

 the late Cabbage crop was taken from, dig it deeply and turn 

 it up roughly for the action of the Winter ; then, early in Spring, 

 lay on your manure, and as soon as the ground can be worked, 

 open a furrow the full depth of the spade. Lay therein three 

 or four inches of dung, on which plant the sets with the eye 

 upward, ten inches apart, eighteen to twenty inches from row 

 to row. Dig over the ground and plant as you proceed. Sets 

 for planting should be cut at least one week before planting, 

 and spread out thin on a floor to dry. Potatoes of medium 

 size can make from four to six sets. There is a great difference 

 of opinion in regard to the size of the potato to be used for 

 the purpose of planting, some carefully selecting the largest, 

 others preferring the medium, and some retaining the smallest. 

 We never put any regard upon the size of the tuber, though 

 we are careful in observing the size of the set. In the event 

 of their being small, we do not cut them ; if of medium size, 

 we make four to six sets ; and if large, eight sets may be made. 

 Again, the point of the potato is considered more early than 

 the root-end, and some only use those eyes that are in the 

 middle. We have never deemed this advantage worth much 

 attention, though for a few very early planting we give prefer- 

 ence to those eyes nearest the point of the tuber. As soon 



