tbe same potatoes without any manure, which 
produced 129 pounds of potatoes. The above 
is taken from memoranda made the days of 
planting and digging. n. a. wright. 
■N- —Twenty trenches each 33 feet long, 
and six feet apart. 
THE TRENCH EFFECTIVE IN DROUGHTS. 
1 he Rural Trench System has, I think, given 
me good results, the chief of which I mention 
that of combatting the effects of severe 
droughts, from which our section of country 
is often a sufferer. 
Although we had a very dry summer the 
vines of the potatoes which were put in on the 
I rench System looked green and thrifty up to 
about 1st. ofJulj',when they were attacked 
by the Flea-beetle and destroyed, so that what 
at first promised a great yield realized only 
two-thirds of a crop. The difference, (pre¬ 
vious to July 1st) in the growth of those plant¬ 
ed in the usual way, and those put in on the 
Rural Trench System was so marked to the 
credit of the latter as to greatly encourage me 
to plant a large area on this method next year. 
I wish you success in your efforts to benefit 
the farmers by disseminating useful know- 
ledge. HIRAM C. WICKERT. 
Bucks Co., Pa. 
FROM EAST PEPPERELL, MASS. 
I tried the Rural Trench System on a small 
plot this season. The potatoes wei’6 fine and 
yielded better than rows in the same piece 
planted in the old way. Trial patch yielded 
225 bushels to the acre. The land when 
broken was so poor that it would not bear 
grass. I shall plant all my potatoes by the 
Rural Trench System hereafter, as I think it 
P a y s - F. L. AVERY. 
GOOD FOR IOWA. 
~>ny 2 Against 321%.—I planted two plots 
of exactly equal size, lying side by side, the 
one on the trench method, and the other on 
the old method of hilling. 
Each plot contained six rows, 2% feet be¬ 
tween rows, each row containing 44 plants ex¬ 
actly 12 inches apart, making the length of 
row from the two extreme corner plants, 
just 43 feet. The land had only been cultiva¬ 
ted one year previously and had never re¬ 
ceived aiiy manure of any description. It 
had been very carefully spaded last fall to 
make drainage perfect and left in the rough 
so as to expose it as much as possible to the 
action of the frost. This spring it was in an 
excellent condition. The potatoes— the Early 
Ohio —were cut to two or three eyes. 
I make the contents of each of these plats 
just 1-6 of an acre. 
pi.ot i. “trench method.”. 
The seed potatoes to be used had alb been 
cut to two or three eyes some time previous to 
the planting, and all had been dipped in char¬ 
coal dust to guard against rotting. They 
were planted on April 18 and 19; weather 
warm and dry and the soil in excellent con¬ 
dition. 1 used 40 pounds of a commercial 
fertilizer manufactured in this vicinity, of 
bones, refuse from slaughter houses, dead 
animals, etc., etc. 
The eyes on the seed potatoes were’perfectly 
dormant. When about three or four inches 
up, the tops were severely bitten by a late 
frost early in May. After this the plants 
grew well making tremendously vigorous 
foliage. As this plot was the earliest in the 
garden they were dug first—from July 15th 
to August 10—in order to make room for the 
planting of table celery; and on this account 
those dug first really did not have their full 
growth, and a number of small potatoes 
which were not taken into the account in 
measuring, would uuder the then extremely 
favorable weather, have grown to good-sized 
tubers. The total amount of potatoes re¬ 
ceived from this plot was 7% bushels, 
making an average of 7%x06-511% bushels, 
60 pounds to the bushel. 
PART II. OLD METHOD. 
The-seed pieces were planted May 21st. 
The eyes by that time had sprouted half an 
inch or more in length. The plants grew 
very luxuriantly, having had an abundance 
of rain, and the potatoes were not dug till 
the tops had dried up completely. I gathered 
exactly 4% bushels of very fine and large 
potatoes, from the plot, making an average of: 
4%x66—321% bushels per acre. w. o. 
ALL THAT IS CLAIMED. 
The Rural Trench Method is good. It is all 
that is claimed for it. As stated in a note at 
planting time, we tried the system on about 
five acres. The plot of old ground was last 
year’s wheat stubble on which, on accountof 
drought, we failed to get a catch of clover. 
As before stated, it was fertilized with about 
750 pounds of Buffalo potato phosphate,manu¬ 
factured in Buffalo Is'. Y. The average yield 
was about 265 bushels per acre. But now 
comes the 'strange statement which is never¬ 
theless trne in the rows staked. 
Fertilized: the yield and quality were so 
nearly alike you could not tell the difference. 
On the plot of newly cleared land without any 
fertilizer (Rural Trench System) we have the 
finest yield of potatoes both in quality and 
quantity that I ever saw on the farm. The 
yield, as nearly as I can judge by what we 
have raised will be 375 bushels per acre. 1 
noticed a few of the Cucumber beetles but not 
sufficient to do any injury to the crop. Mr. 
A. L. Crosby hits the nail squarely on the head 
in his article on “ What I Think I would do As 
Director.” That is what we farmers want; 
more cold, hard, applicable facts and less sci¬ 
entific theory. j. w. maits. 
Boughton, Pa. 
FIRST AND SECOND PREMIUMS. 
I take pleasure in saying that the Rural’s 
Trench System, or method, turned out 
splendidly for me. I have raised some most 
ference in favor of the trench row was mani¬ 
fest, but on seeing them two weeks later, I 
found that the bugs had about destroyed both 
rows. The work up to that time had been 
well done, and I regret exceedingly that the 
experiment was not carried out. 
.1. A. FOOTE. 
FROM NANUET N. Y. 
Last year the laud was in corn; we plowed 
it the 15th of April and thoroughly harrowed 
it and marked it out three feet apart, six 
inches deep; used a shovel plow and planted 
April 10th. The seed-pieces were placed one 
foot apart and the soil was plowed back. I 
used the J. C. Wood’s complete fertilizer at 
the rate of 800 pounds to the acre, and the 
potato yield was at |the rate of 500 bushels 
to the acre. 
FROM JACKSON, MICHIGAN. 
We have had this season an unusual and ex¬ 
cessive drought. Since the 13th of June until 
this moment not enough rain has fallen, alto¬ 
gether, to wet down to the potatoes. 
REDUCED TO ONE-QUARTER NATURAL SIZE. 
Fig. 368. See " Ruralisms.” 
splendid potatoes on your plan. It was a 
pleasure to see the fine, large, smooth tubers 
turn up. I am not able to give you the num¬ 
ber of bushels to the acre, as I was experi¬ 
menting with varieties as well as trying your 
method, having nine different varieties plant¬ 
ed, of early, medium and late, to ascertain 
which would be the best for my soil, as to 
quality and yield. The difference in yield 
was from 21 to 32 bushels from one bushel of 
seed. I think I have the largest-sized and 
smoothest potatoes ever raised in this neigh¬ 
borhood, some varieties yielding nearly all 
large tubers, so few small potatoes that the 
entire crop could be sold without sorting. 
| t Our county fair is now being held and 4 I 
see that I have taken both first and second 
premiums on potatoes, as the red and blue 
cards are both on my exhibit. 
1 will also add here that I made my selec¬ 
tion of varieties for seed from the Rural 
New-Yorker’s reports of its experiments. 
I intend to plant a much larger quantity 
next year, and will again use the Rural’s 
method, as I am fully satisfied it is the way 
to get a yield of large potatoes. 
Kittatinning, Fa. e. a. brodhead. 
FROM CRAWFORDSVILLE IND. 
I regret to say that it was a failure owing to 
negligence of the person in charge. When the 
potato vines were about half grown, the dif 
The result of any system of cultivation un¬ 
der such a condition would necessarily be 
unsatisfactory to the producers, but the 
Rural’s method—deep planting in a trench, 
close application of fertilizers, level and fre¬ 
quent cultivation—appears a common-sense 
method to follow to resist drought. 
My field of six acres in which the Rural’s 
method in all its details was followed, will 
yield 125 bushels per acre of merchantable po¬ 
tatoes. Had there been an average rainfall 
through the growing season, t,he| yield, judg¬ 
ing from the number of potatoes set, would 
have been at least 400 bushels per acre. Such 
a yield for this locality and mj soil would be 
enormous. m. harmon. 
THE TRENCH METHOD IN .SCHUYLER CO., N. Y 
Varieties. M’ch’table. Unm’ch’table. T’l Y’lrt. 
Chas. Downing.... 190 2H 222 
Early Maine.202 15 217 
Crown Jewel. 280 27 413 
Early Sunrise. 225 35 200 
Everett. 172 S3 205 
Beauty of Hebron. 220 83 253 
Summit. 374 58 432 
Monroe Co. Prize.. 288 81 319 
White Elephant... 811 33 844 
The above yields were calculated from 33 
feet of row, planted similarly to the Rural’s 
Trench Method; % of an acre was planted 
with Beauty of HebroD, and Early Sunrise: the 
other varieties were in small plots for trial* 
A special potato fertilizer was used, at the 
rate of 600 pounds to the acre, scattered in the 
trench. Afterwards the seed-pieces . were 
lightly covered with soil, the ground made 
level and 300 pounds to the acre of the fertili¬ 
zer sown broadcast and harrowed in; level cul¬ 
tivation all the season. The summer with u • 
has been rather dry, enough so to lessen the 
yield somewhat. My potatoes are better this 
season, both in regard to quantity and quality, 
which fact I attribute to the method practiced 
by the Rural, and from this year’s experience, 
I am so well satisfied with the trench method 
that I shall give it another trial the coming 
season. c. n s. 
FROM ROCKLAND CO., N. Y. 
I send you a sample of five Rose seedling po¬ 
tatoes, raised by the Rural’s Trench Method. 
They yielded at the rate of 500 bushels to the 
acre - L. VON OHLSEN. 
[The five potatoes weighed 5% pounds. 
Eds.] 
FROM DAVENPORT, IOWA. 
I planted six rows of Early Ohio potatoes 
April 19. 
The length of rows from center to center of 
outside plants was 43 feet. 
The rows were 2% feet apart. 
I used 40 pounds of a fertiliser manufac¬ 
tured here from bones, dead animals, etc. etc. 
Soil clayey loam, virgin prairie, broken a 
year ago last fall. The first crop raised on 
the land last year was sweet corn, and this 
year the above potatoes were planted exactly 
as advised according to the Rural’s. “Trench 
System,” 
The potatoes were dug—one row at a time 
—from July 16th to August 6th, as the space 
was to be required for table celery. I gather¬ 
ed fully 7% bushels of extraordinarily fine 
potatoes from this plot,—not only in quality, 
but in size, many of the potatoes measuring 
six inches long by 2% to 2% inches thick. No 
sulphur was used in planting:—but hardly any 
scab was noticed—only once in a |while a hill 
would be found in which the potatoes showed 
a number of white excrescences, very similar 
to those described in the last number of the 
Rural by W. G., Davenport, Iowa. These 
white spots rub off very easily and do not 
seem to affect the tubers deleteriously.—[Of 
course, if I had given all the six rows time to 
fully mature, I should have had a slight ad¬ 
dition in the total quantity of tubers raised.] 
After the potatoes were planted we had 
quite a dry spell for over two weeks and for 
the following four weeks, rain about every 
three days, which ’is unusual in this region. 
w. o. G. 
“a perfect success.” 
I have just finished digging my potatoes 
and take pleasure in submitting a report of 
the same as requested by you. 
Plot No 1 produced 239 bushels.—marketable tubers 
” ”2 ” 340 ” ” ” 
The season was not favorable, as the latter 
part was too dry, and the Flea-beetle injured 
the vines, (with two exceptions) quite serious¬ 
ly. I think the “Rural’s Trench System” a 
perfect success, and am confident, with a 
favorable season, I can raise 700 bushels from 
one acre, and I mean to try it again next year 
by planting “six acres." 
Port Huron, Mich. hiram presley. 
SOME REPORTS OF THE NEW POTATO 
“RURAL NEW-YORKER NO. 2.” 
A single tuber of the No. 2 was sent to 
several potato specialists and to many of the 
experiment stations. The following are the 
reports thus far received: 
“The Rural New-Yorker No. 2 turned 
out very satisfactory, the crop being good, 
and the tubers of beautiful shape, and free 
from disease, and of excellent quality. I 
hope to give a more extended trial next year_ 
But I am sure that it will prove a lasting 
variety, and be largely grown.” 
Gosport, England. james groom. 
“The Rural New-Yorker No. 2 potato 
gave us very satisfactory results notwith¬ 
standing the severe drought during the latter 
part of the season. The quality is excellent.” 
J. TROOP. 
Purdue University, Experiment Station, 
La Fayette, Ind. 
“I Planted the single potato and dug the 
crop to-day. There were 22 pounds, all of good 
size, some weighing one pound each. They 
grew short and thick, light color. They cook 
well.” ALBERTUS N. CLARK. 
Melford, Conn. 
“The Rural New-Yorker No. 2 potato,’ 
made a very poor showing with us. being 
small and of an uneven shape, possibly owing 
to the season, as all or mostly all varieties 
were not quite up to their regular standard 
this season.” a. backus’ sons, 
Newtown, L. I- 
