THE AMATEUR’S KITCHEN GARDEN. 
131 
forwarded beforehand should be read}r for the rush. The very 
best way to prepare potato sets is to select tubers of the 
right shape, that is to say, a good sample, averaging four to 
six ounces each, and spread them out only one or two deep 
in shallow baskets or boxes in full daylight in the month of 
January. A corn loft is a good place for the business, being 
cool and airy and light. Should severe frost occur, they 
must be covered w 7 ith sacks and the place kept shut, for 
potatoes that have been frozen are thenceforth useless, and 
must be thrown away. They will soon push out short stout 
purplish or green sprouts, and when these are an inch long 
the sets are ready for planting. A little damp is beneficial, 
and it is the practice of some cultivators to sprinkle the sets 
with water ; but we have found the inconvenience of the pro- 
ceeding to outweigh its benefits, and so make our sets ready 
without sprinkling. 
It must be understood that a good crop of potatoes may be 
grown without any preparation of the sets whatever. It is by 
no means essential, though it is certainly desirable. Sets that 
have formed long, thread-like, blanched shoots in the dark 
are certainly not to be desired ; but we must own that from 
such we have obtained as fine crops as ever were lifted. The 
fact is, a good soil and a hot summer will do anything for the 
potato up to twenty tons an acre ; while a poor soil and a 
cold season will make mere rottenness of the crop on which the 
most painstaking care has been bestowed. We are dealing 
with facts well established, and while we admit that the 
roughest ways may end remarkably well, we are bound to say 
that nine times in ten good management from first to last will 
have its reward. 
The selection of proper-shaped and equal-sized sets is not 
always possible. If the variety is scarce, you may be com- 
pelled to plant mere marbles, and even these may give a good 
crop ; or you may have to cut large potatoes, and here again 
you may indulge in cheerful expectations. If the sets are to 
be cut, it should be done only a few days before planting. It 
is good practice to separate the eyes that come in a cluster on 
the crown or nose end from those on the side of the tuber, 
for they will differ slightly in time of ripening and in style of 
crop. If you want a few large potatoes, cut large sets with 
one plump side-eye to each, and when these have fairly 
sprouted plant them, allowing somewhat more space between 
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