March 7, 1896. 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
435 
but the average in each case is altered for better or 
worse, usually the former by deep cultivation. 
Land that is trenched opens up a deeper root-run 
for the plants, and at the same time allows the 
moisture in the subsoil to rise more freely to the 
upper strata by capillary attraction, thus making the 
subsoil subservient to the wants of the Potatos in 
many ways by the additional water containing 
mineral ingredients of plant food brought within 
reach of the roots. This is most apparent in dry 
seasons when the supply in the surface soil has 
practically become exhausted, and the roots are en¬ 
tirely dependent upon the subsoil moisture to main¬ 
tain their healthy-growing condition. 
Very early varieties of Potatos planted in the 
open air in the southern counties of England get 
little or no rain at all in seasons of severe drought 
from the time they are planted till harvested. No 
crops are mire handicapped in the fields than 
Potatos in droughty seasons, particularly if the 
drought continues during June and July, when the 
plants ought to be making rapid progress. In the 
case of spade culture the land should be trenched at 
and Schoolmaster, 2J cwts. These statistics were 
drawn up from the trials in the wet season of 1894. 
-•*.- 
CARTERS’ KING OF THE RUSSETS- 
There are many who look upon a rough-skinned 
Potato as a sure sign of a mealy or floury character 
when boiled. Whether this is an infallible indication 
we are not altogether certain, but a rough skin and a 
floury condition when boiled often go together. The 
roughness of skin is pretty well marked in Carters' King 
of the Russets for the illustration of which we are in¬ 
debted to Messrs. J. Carter & Co., High Holborn, 
London. The tubers are handsome in form, of large 
size, and attractive generally. The skin is red, as the 
name would suggest and the quality excellent for late or 
spring use. The variety has been accorded an Award 
of Merit on more than one occasion when shown at 
the vegetable exhibition of the Royal Horticultural 
Society at Chiswick. Its regular, handsome shape, 
even outline, and shallow eyes have a taking appear¬ 
ance when placed before the judges on the exhibition 
tables. The result is that many first prizes have 
already been awarded it at the autumn shows. It is 
gious craps ilka ’ear, tall the disease in ’45 a’maist 
destroyed its constiteetion. The Tawnie only dififert 
by haein’ tawny strips and splashes a’ ower the skin, 
like a tigger. The Rochie wis a roun’ reid Tawtie 
wi’ a vera roch skin and a fite, mealy flesh fan biled. 
Anidder fav’rite wis the auld Reid Peter, like a 
modern Red-skin Flourball, only nae sae big. Then 
we hed Roun’ Blue, which wis pale purple ootside 
and dark blue to the hert, but geyin’ black fan biled. 
A’ the kinds mentioned abion had maistly been 
ante°quated afore the hinderen’ o’ the saxties, L,r it 
wis a laabour o’ luv to keep them alive in wat sizzens, 
fan disease wis the best crap. Only the sma’ fair- 
mers, crafters, feuars, cotter bodies, an’ idder auld- 
fashioned folk, wid tribble thir heids aboot sic 
welkly delicacies that micht hae come oot o’ the Ark, 
fan they cud grou’ the newer roch and richt kinds 
that wid stan’ the disease. Oddsakel bit it wis a 
peety we cudna 1 keep thae fine-tastit Tawties, for it 
wis a hole in oor herts to see them gyang. In thae 
days the Tawties were maistly grown for hame eese, 
sae that the Tawtie murrain wis a rale calamity tae 
the kintra folk. 
least 18 in. deep. Seeing that the beneficial effects 
of trenching last for two or three years, the initial 
cost in the matter of labour should be distributed 
over that period. The enhanced profit on the two 
or three years' cropping, as the case may be, must 
be taken into account when reckoning up the advan¬ 
tages accruing from deep cultivation. 
The Wilts County Council for some years past 
have been making experiments in order to determine 
the value of deep cultivation in conjunction with 
spraying as a preventive against the Potato 
disease. Untreated plots constituted a check upon 
those that were. The gain from deep cultivation 
was largest in the case of the Belgian Blue Giant, 
amounting to 4 tons 7 cwts. per acre. White 
Elephant came next in point of extra weight, giving 
2 tons 9J cwts.; Reading Giant followed, with 2 tons 
4§ cwts.; The Daniel was only \ cwt. lighter; and 
Daniel’s Dreadnought showed a gain of two tons for 
this extra labour of deep cultivation. Only in three 
cases out of twenty-four was there a decided loss by 
the operation. This occurred with Imperator, which 
showed a los9 of 15 cwts.; Reading Russet, 5J cwts. J 
Carters’ King of the Russets. 
a maincrop variety, and admirably adapted for field 
culture on account of its vigorous habit of growth and 
fertility. 
BUCHAN TAWTIES IN THE SAXTIES. 
It may luik mair genteel to use the wird Petawtis in 
my discoorse, bit Tawtie is short and hamely. Afore 
the Tawtie disease brak oot in the ’45, naebody cud 
blaw aboot better craps o’ the tuber than we hed in 
Buchan. It wis thocht naething to get fifteen tons 
o’ Tawties aff gweed Ian' wi’ plenty o' coo’s muck, 
though mair racently we fand oot that naething cud 
beat ase [ashes.—E d.] fae the hoose fires in which 
peats and sticks, maistly the former, were brunt. Ye 
cud aye ken the cotter bodies’ Tawties alaogside the 
fairmer's by the ranker and greener shaws The 
cotters hed only peat ase, and the fairmers hed muck 
fae the byres, an’ the difference wasna’ sma’ I can 
assere ye. 
The king amang the Tawties in thae days wis auld 
Lang Blue, and gweed kens fan it wis young, for 
that wis afore my day. It was a black-blue Kidney 
wi’ a yallow flesh o' capital flavour, and gied prodee- 
The big fairmers grew a gweed hantle o’ Orkneys 
a coorse-tastit Tawtie that wis nae eese tae bile tull 
spring—say Aprylle, and fae than tull the first makin' 
o’ new anes in August. Muckle better kinds cam 1 
intae eese mair racently, sic as Pink Eyes, Rocks, 
Fortyfaulds, Regents, Glenbervie Earlies, Early Dod, 
etc. A purple Kidney producin’ tubers 6 in. to 9 in. 
lang turned up and was plantit tae^ sma' extent, bit 
the disease wis a mark on’t. I never cud get the 
name o’t. Maybe this wis the Tawtie that Paddy 
sat on ae en’ o’ and roastit the idder in the fire. 
Porter’s Excelsior, raised by Porter, the ungtioneer 
[auctioneer.— Ed.] o' Auld Meldrum, was a' vera 
weel for flooer shows; and Scotch Champion wis nae 
better. Baith were fine mate for the coo, bit 
naething m air .—Gcovdie Tam. _ 
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