1848 
arc going to save them, too. See the farmers hunch¬ 
ing. They know as much as any class. If any doubt 
it, let them try to wipe out the above truths and 
show us. We will fix it so wool, cotton, wheat and 
every production will bring cost and then will put it 
in circulation. w. w. Reynolds. 
Ohio. 
Growing Potatoes in Cribs 
F OR two or three years now there have been some 
startling stories about raising potatoes in pens 
or cribs. These stories start in the daily papers and 
run through the country, giving glowing accounts of 
potato raising on a small area. We are told that it 
Construction of Crib for Potatoes. Fig. 615 
is possible to raise a full supply of potatoes in the 
backyard, by planting them in pens or cribs. Our 
estimate is that a hundred thousand people in this 
country have each sent several dollars to the pro¬ 
moters of these schemes in payment for so-called in¬ 
formation about it. Up in Alaska the problem of 
raising potatoes rapidly and on a small area is a 
lively one. and the Experiment Station at Fairbanks 
tested out this crib method. They took round poles 
from 4 in. to 5 in. in diameter, and cut them into 5-ft. 
lengths. With these pieces a square crib was built 
5 ft. high. Fig. 015 shows how it looks. . As this 
crib was built up the potato seed was planted in 
layers. The first layer was put right on the ground, 
and then several inches of soil was put on top, and 
then another layer of the seed. This made eight 
layers with 16 hills to the layer, or a total of 12S 
hills. Straw was used to fill in the cracks between 
the poles so as to keep the earth from sifting out. 
The joint of an old stovepipe 7 in. in diameter was 
buried upright in the center as a place for watering 
the crib. They used a rich compost soil for filling 
in Up in that country of short seasons it is neces¬ 
sary to sprout the potato seed before planting, and 
this was done by packing the seed in damp sawdust. 
The potatoes were planted in this pen on May 18, 
while on June 12 the plants began showing through 
the straw in the cracks. On July 8 the first bloom 
appeared, and by the middle of August the vines 
covered the pen, as shown at Fig. GIG. The pota¬ 
toes were harvested on September 12. The picture 
shows that the tubers were found only in the top 
layer and in the corners near the top. The total 
yield was 71 lbs., or about half a pound to the hill, 
while in the garden outside the same number of hills 
yielded about 250 lbs. of better quality and with less 
labor. That seems to be the whole story. The crib 
method is a good thing to talk about, and the de¬ 
scription of it apparently sells well, but as for prac¬ 
tical work there is nothing to it. 
Suggestions for the Roadside Public 
Market 
fAll over the Eastern States the roadside market is 
becoming a great institution. Some of these stands, in 
a good location, do a tremendous business. The Massa¬ 
chusetts Agricultural College sends out an article by R. 
,T. McFall. which gives some good suggestions. This 
market is based on the theory that the joy-rider and 
sightseer will stop on the road and buy produce if he 
thinks he can make a good bargain.] 
T will naturally succeed unless the farmers try to 
take for themselves' the whole benefit of this sav¬ 
ing, and make the autoists tired of being the victims 
of overcharging. The farmer should remember that 
the city man is just as tired of high prices as he 
himself is of his large expenses, and the main reason 
the autoists stop to buy is to save their money. By 
catering to this economical turn of mind the fanner 
can often build up a good business. After all, the 
main part of the saving in this marketing is due to 
the part the city man plays. The farmer who recog¬ 
nizes this and splits the difference between whole¬ 
sale and retail price is the man who is going to make 
the most money. 
A good location is essential. There is no use in 
lht RURAL NEW-YORKER 
trying to run a roadside market along a lonely road 
where few autos run. A good State road where the 
autos are thick is the only satisfactory location. It 
also must be placed where an auto can stop con¬ 
veniently. Part way up a long hill would be about 
Growth of Vines. Fig. 616 
as good a place as a mile away from the road. At 
the foot of a hill where the cars are speeding up to 
climb the hill would also be a poor spot. The top 
of a hill is about as satisfactory a location as possi¬ 
ble. At the outside of a not too narrow curve where 
the stand can be seen and where the cars must run 
slowly is also a goou general location. These points 
should l)e taken into special consideration when the 
farm itself is not situated on the main road and, 
consequently, the stand cannot be located at the 
farm. A good variety of products for sale is a great 
asset. One article may attract one person to stop, 
another article may attract another person. Once 
they have stopped, a good salesman can induce 
patrons to buy products for which they never would 
have stopped. 
Probably the most important matter of all is to 
convince the passerby on first glance that this is a 
real chance to buy right from the farm itself. An 
old kitchen table in front of an unmistakable farm¬ 
house will make a better stand than a fancy stand 
far from any appearance of a real farm. The city 
man does not need to go to the country to buy from 
a fancy store, lie wants something different; he 
wants to buy from the original producer. There is 
a sort of glamor in going right to the farm for farm 
products. Too many farmers make the mistake of 
thinking that they must attract city folks by making 
their stands look like city stores. No bigger mistake 
could be made. b. j. m’fall. 
Storing Apples in Pits 
I N Eastern Pennsylvania at the National Farm 
School we used to store apples in pits for the 
Winter. As our soil was heavy, we selected a piece 
toweet Clover 10V Inches Tall. Fig. 611 
December 11, 1920 
that was fairly high where surface water would not 
gather. A deep bed of straw was placed directly on 
the ground and formed in a circle about eight or 
10 feet in diameter. We found that 20 bushels of 
apples was about the right amount for each pit, 
as that was as many as we wished to take out of 
storage at one time during the late Winter or early 
Spring. 
The*heap of apples was made in as high a cone 
as possible and covered with plain sheathing paper 
or with old burlap bags, on top of which was placed 
hay, straw or shredded cornstalks to the depth of 
about six inches. It is of great advantage to use 
the paper, or bagging between the apples and the 
Tubers Mostly On Top of Crib. Fig. 618 
straw, as the apples will sweat, and when the pile 
is opened, they will be quite wet, and without the 
paper, the chaff and dust from the straw will sift 
through the pile and make it necessary to clean 
every apple. The paper must be the plain red sheath¬ 
ing paper. If roofing or tar paper is used, it will 
flavor every apple in the pile, as we found out by 
actual test. 
The pile was protected from cold by layers of 
soil and some barnyard manure. We did not leave 
any hole in the top for ventilation and covered 
the piles with at least 12 inches of soil on top of 
the straw. We knew that the ventilation hole in 
the top of the pile was considered absolutely necess¬ 
ary and we deliberately did without it to see what 
the effect would be. No harmful results could be 
seen, and we made at least five pits of apples of 
20 bushels each every year during the six years I 
was connected with the school. We p'tted mangel 
beets and turnips the same way with excellent 
results. By using soil from around the pile to 
cover it, a ditch was made around the pile and a 
surface drain to lead the water away. 
We opened these pits under many different con¬ 
ditions of weather and temperature, some of them 
when the protecting layer of soil was frozen solid. 
We got into them by picking out a small hole and 
then using iron wedges and a maul, such as are 
used in splitting wood. Others were not opened 
until March or early April; some on clear, mild 
days and others when the weather was bad, even 
during snow squalls or showers. For whenever 
we started to open a pile, the job was carried through 
to completion and the apples sent to market or to 
the hoarding-house. 
When the layer of soil had been removed, the 
straw was raked off and the paper or burlap care¬ 
fully rolled off so that none of the dirt from the 
straw would get on the apples. The apples were 
always wet, but firm, sound and prime for use, and 
by the time the pit had been open twenty minutes, 
they would be dry. We never found more than 
three or four quarts of rotten apples in any one 
pile of 20 bushels, nor did we ever find where rot 
had spread from one apple to another by contact. 
This led us to believe that the apple that rotted 
must have started rotting before placed in the pit. 
This experience has convinced me that the ventila- 
or in an apple, turnip or mangel pit is unnecessary, 
and I have never used one. I have never tried to 
pit. cabbages as I have raised but a few of them. 
However, the first time I have any to store, I shall 
build the pit with no ventilator, fully believing 
that the cabbage will keep in the best of condition. 
As a storehouse for late Wintei apples, I consider 
the pit superior to a cellar. george eaton, jr. 
One of the hardest things this year has been the effort 
to sell small lots of apples in the big markets. Many 
people with a small place want to sell a few barrels on 
commission. The big markets are flooded with apples, 
and the price has run so low that little shipments barely 
pay cost of transportation. 
