872 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
Nov. 
adapted to their production. We have never seen 
finer specimens of apples than were exhibited by Mr. 
Richards of Panton, Mr. Chapman of Middlebury, 
Mr. Burroughs of Yergennes, and Mr. Smith of 
Whiting. They comprehended the varieties of 
Baldwin, Spitzenburgh, R. I. Greening, Porter, 
Peck’s Pleasant, Jewett’s Best, Twenty-ounce, Etc, 
There were also fine specimens of the Bartlett, 
Beurre Bose, and Seckel pears, shown by Mr. Jew¬ 
ett and Mr. Smith. Good specimens of the Isabel¬ 
la, Winne, and several varieties of exotic grapes, 
were shown by Dr. Merrill of Middlebury, Mr. 
White of Yergennes, and Mr. Smith of Whiting. 
64 Small Potatoes for Planting. 
Eds. Cultivator —In your paper for January, 
1849, I found an article, from which the following 
is an extract. You will re-publish the extract here, 
or not, as you think best. I think your readers may 
be benefited by having their attention turned to the 
subject again: 
“ Eds. Cultivator —It has long been a prevalent 
opinion with our farmers, that seed potatoes should 
be selected from the largest and best. But a gen¬ 
tleman of my acquaintance, the owner of a large 
farm in the county of Worcester, in the spring of 
1847, found his stock of large potatoes completely 
exhausted, and from the general scarcity could not 
renew his supply. He then determined, from neces¬ 
sity , to plant his fields with small ones, varying in 
size from a marble to a small pullet’s egg, placing 
two or three without cutting, in each hill. The re¬ 
sult was an unusually fine crop, in size, quantity 
and quality. 
In the spring of 1848, he repeated the experiment, 
so far as to plant alternate rows of small ones and 
large ones, cut into four or five pieces. I was pre¬ 
sent when he was harvesting the crop, in the early 
part of October, and it was evident that the produce 
of the small potatoes exceeded that of the larger ones. 
Should further experiment confirm the fact, that the 
small are of greater, or even of equal value for seed, 
it will be of some importance to farmers. M. B. 
Beverly. Mass., December, 1848.” 
As the writer says —“ It has long been a preva¬ 
lent opinion with our farmers, that seed potatoes 
should be selected from the largest and best.” But 
who has before made a fair experiment to ascertain 
the facts? Since reading what your correspondent 
published, my attention has been turned to the 
subject, and held to it, by my observation and expe¬ 
rience in cultivating the sweet potato. It is the 
common practice, as far as my observation extends, 
to save and use the smaller of the sweet potatoes 
for planting. And from five years’ experience and 
observation I have obtained no evidence that the 
practice causes deterioration, as to size or quality. 
During the past season I have made an experi¬ 
ment with other potatoes, using the kind, or variety, 
called the Neshannock, or Mercer. Side by side, 
on ground treated alike, and of like quality, as far 
as it was possible to have it, we planted large po¬ 
tatoes and small ones, separated from each other. 
Both were planted on the same day, tilled on the 
same days, and harvested on the same day. The 
result is, quite as large an amount, and quite as 
good quality, from the small potatoes used in plant¬ 
ing. Our son, M. M., in my absence, dug an 
equal number of hills, in parallel rows, and called 
on me to decide between the heaps. I decided with¬ 
out hesitation, as to the amount and size. His 
mother was then called on, and her ready decision 
agreed with mine. Our decision was in favor of 
those which he said were dug where the smaller 
were planted. We then went on and dug the whole. 
The result agreed with the appearance of the heaps 
first dug. 
It might seem to some like exaggeration if we 
should say the potatoes were more and better from 
the small ones planted. We say that the quantity 
was not less. We think the proportion of small 
potatoes was less from the small potatoes planted, 
than from the large ones. 
There is not the slightest ground for conjecture 
that any mistake has been made. My own eyes 
have been on the work, and my own hands in it, 
from beginning to end—with the exception of the 
digging of the hills in the parallel rows, by my 
son, as before mentioned. At the time of planting, 
the stakes were set, and the facts were written 
down. All has been done with a carefulness that 
leaves not a doubt. 
It is proper to say here that the contrast in the 
size of the tubers planted was decided. I think 
that not more than one fourth, or at most one third, 
of the amount in weight, was planted where the 
smaller were used. Of the large, only one potato 
was used in a hill, the hills being about three feet 
apart each way. Of the smaller also only a single 
one was used, except with the smallest, when two 
were used, the hills being at the same distance with 
the others, about three feet apart each way. 
The subject is worthy of attention. If equal 
quality and quantity can be produced, on equal 
ground, from the smaller of the tubers, it is time 
to have it known. Hitherto it has been thought to 
be otherwise. I confess that I am now looking for 
more general experience to confirm us in this new 
view. In propagating plants from seeds, I should 
still say, all other things being equal, let us have 
the largest seeds. But propagating the potato from 
the tuber, (or what one writer has called a sprout, 
and others would perhaps call a germ,) is another 
process. If we can obtain as good a plant from the 
smaller tuber as from the larger one, it is what we 
all need to know. I need not enumerate the advan¬ 
tages. They are apparent. Orson S. Murray. 
Fruit Hills, Warren co., 0., Sept., 1850. 
The Season in New-Hampshire. 
Eds. Cultivator —The season thus lar, has been 
an extraordinary one. May was extremely wet, 
so that a great deal of planting had to be done 
in the first and second weeks of June. Whatever 
was planted then came up quick and grew rapidly. 
Haying was fairly commenced about the fifteenth 
of July, and from that time until the middle of Au¬ 
gust, there were but ten good hay days. There has 
been a large amount of hay ruined, but the crop 
was very large. A gentleman who lives about 
thirty miles north of here, told me the eleventh day 
of August, that they had then had but four days of 
good hay weather, and that all the low mowing 
land was full of water, and consequently much grass 
must be left uncut. Grain as a general thing is 
good and it was secured in good condition. Corn 
has ripened well. Owing to the lateness of the 
season a smaller and earlier kind was planted in 
numerous instances, and also less planted than there 
otherwise would have been. So that I should think 
the crop would be below the average. Potatoes 
are badly diseased. In all directions is heard the 
same general complaint. There will not be more 
than half a crop, and perhaps not more than a third. 
The rot is not of the same character as that which 
