498 
On tJie Potato Disease. 
out. Fine weather must always be waited for. Rats and mice 
have free access to them, and as soon as March approaches, the 
tubers, in spite of shade or anything else, will begin to grow if 
placed in so favourable a situation for striking their roots ; so that 
they must be moved and housed at last, for we have still four 
months before new potatoes become general to supply their 
place. 
There are many advantages in having a good house for storing 
potatoes; 1st, they may be examined and turned over at any 
season, whether in frost, snow, or rain, which is generally the time 
when the hands on the farm can be best spared. In the winter 
of 1837-8, there was a great quantity of potatoes spoiled in the 
pits from the effects of the very severe frost of that winter. The 
use of them was likewise suspended, because it was next to im- 
possible to take them in without getting them frosted. All those 
inconveniences would be remedied by the use of a house. 2ndly. 
Their quarters could always be well ventilated, a thing of the 
greatest importance to their well doing ; for the steam or vapour 
emitted from the potatoes in the process of sweating is very inju- 
rious to them if kept confined about the mass, and accelerates 
decay in a greater degree than any other thing I am aware of, 
particularly where a predisposition to decay exists. 
I must now bring my observations to a close, pleading as an 
excuse for the manner in which they are penned, that my life has 
been spent hitherto in the practical cultivation of the soil, and not 
in theory. I conclude with the hope, that by attention to the 
rules of good cultivation the potato may still be restored to its 
pristine vigour, provided we select sound tubers for sets, choose 
healthy soil to plant them in, give plenty of room for tliem to 
grow in, and use great care in taking them up and storing them, 
not forgetting a judicious selection of sorts. 
XXX. — Experiment on the Potato Disease. — By Lord Portman. 
To Ph. Pusey, Esq. 
Dhar Pusky. — I send you the result of my experiments on 
potatoes, and I will preserve the order of my letter in the last 
number of the Journal for convenience of reference. 
Bryanston Field Potatoes planted in November, 1 845. 
Lot 1. IG BushfU sjutid ^ bushel diseased. 
2. -4 „ A 
3. 45 ,, 4i 
The haulm of all was equally diseased. The tubers of lot 3 were 
of regular size though not so large as those of lots 1 and 2, which 
