2 18 
The Culture of 
= Potatos. = 
The success or failure of the Potato 
crop largely depends upon the seed 
tubers, and too much stress can hardly 
be laid upon the importance of a change 
of seed. If the best results are to be ob¬ 
tained it is absolutely necessary to ob¬ 
tain seed that has been grown on soil of 
an entirely different character to that on 
which it is now to be planted. New seed, 
in addition to being more disease-resist¬ 
ing, produces the largest crops, and this 
alone should be the reason of frequent in¬ 
troductions of new seed. It is also advis¬ 
able to obtain new seed as early in the 
spring as possible before sprouting has 
commenced, so that the damage which 
sprouted Potatos suffer in the course of 
packing and transit may be avoided. 
As soon as new seed is obtained it 
should be boxed and placed in a well- 
lighted shed; this will cause the tubers 
to produce a slow, sturdy growth of 
sprouts which are much less liable to be 
knocked off at planting time than the 
pale, elongated sprouts produced in the 
dark. It is always desirable to have the 
seed nicely sprouted as the increase in 
the weight of the crop is considerably 
more than when seed i§ planted in an 
unsprouted condition. 
Considerable diversity of opinion pre¬ 
vails as to the size of tubers to be planted, 
but experiments have shown that whole 
tubers about the size of a hen’s egg are 
the most profitable. Of course, large 
tubers cut into sets of about 2 oz. or 3 oz. 
in weight can be employed, and with this 
class of sets the weight planted per acre 
is greater than when seed-size Potatos are 
used, but, on the other hand, the produce 
will contain a larger percentage of ware 
Potatos than the produce of whole seed. 
When cut sets are used, the planting 
should be done as soon as possible after 
cutting, and the cut surface dipped into 
finely powdered lime; this dries the cut 
surface, and prevents the set drying out 
before the young plant is sufficiently 
rooted to sustain itself. 
The choice of variety is also an impor¬ 
tant factor. The soil, manure, and sets 
may be all of the best, and yet one variety 
may yield tons less per acre than an¬ 
other. It is always desirable to test 
several varieties before planting exten¬ 
sively, and then those most suitable for 
the soil can be selected. There are a few 
varieties, such as British Queen, The 
Factor, and Up-to-Date that thrive in 
almost any soil, but personally I can¬ 
not recommend others. I have tested 
numerous varieties, some of which have 
proved most satisfactory in other districts, 
but with me have been a failure, so, as 
before stated, the only way of selecting is 
by trial. 
Manuring is another important factor 
in Potato culture. Both the quality and 
the quantity must be considered. Heavy 
dressings of manure appear to seriously 
depreciate the value of Potatos for cook¬ 
ing purposes. A moderate dressing of 
farmyard manure with the addition of a 
well-balanced mixture of artificials will 
produce Potatos of the first quality. The 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
following mixture can be relied upon to 
produce excellent results. Farm yard 
manure, two to three tons to the rood, 
sulphate of ammonia 28 lb., superphos¬ 
phate 56 lb., and sulphate of potash 28 lb. ; 
the latter mixtures to be applied at plant¬ 
ing time, and the farmyard manure prefer¬ 
ably some time in advance of planting. 
Artificials are not profitable when applied 
to early Potatos, as their duration of 
growth is too short to benefit thereby. 
Cottager. 
-- 
Croydon Gardeners. 
At the last meeting of the Croydon .and 
District Horticultural M.I.Si, Mr. P. F. 
Bunyard, M.B.O.U., F.Z.S., delivered a 
very interesting lecture on “A Trip to 
the North Mist.” 
Council’s Fruit Plot. 
The Cornwall County Council fruit 
plot at Gulval, two acres in extent, 
yielded a return of £100 for the first year’s 
working. Three new vegetables for the 
district were tried—Celeriac, Cardoons, 
and Indian Corn ; the first two did badly 
but the Indian Corn grew and sold well. 
- Q. W. - 
Prize Competitions. 
GENERAL CONDITIONS: —Competitors must 
write on one side of the paper only. Regular 
paid contributors to THE GARDENING 
WORLD or other gardening journals are de¬ 
barred Irom entering, hut occasional con¬ 
tributors may compete. The namo and ad¬ 
dress of the competitor must appear on each 
article sent for competition. The Editor’s 
deoision is final, and he reserves the right 
to reproduce, in any wayjl any article or photo¬ 
graph sent for competition. The conditions 
applying to each competition should be care¬ 
fully read. 
WEEKLY 
PRIZES. 
A PRIZE OFTEN SHILLINGS will be given 
for the best paragraph or short artiole on any 
gardening subject, such as hints of practical 
Interest to gardeners, notes on the propaga¬ 
tion or cultivation of flowers, fruits or vege¬ 
tables, eradication of pests, eto. The para¬ 
graph or article must not exceed a column, but 
value rather than length will be considered in 
making the award. Mark envelopes “ Com¬ 
petition,” and post not later than the Monday 
following date of issue. Entries reoeived later 
than Tuesday (first post) will be left over until 
the following week. 
Two prizes of 2s. 6d. will be awarded each 
week for the two best letters, not exceeding 
160 words, on any interesting gardening sub¬ 
ject. 
RESULTS OF 
LAST WEEK’S 
COMPETITIONS. 
Some of the best papers in this competition 
are too long, and we desire readers to keep 
within a column. 
A prize in the Readers’ Competition was 
awarded to “ Miss D. Sparkts," for the article 
on “ How to Eradicate Insect Pests,” page 202. 
The Prize Letter Competition was crowded 
out last week for want of space. 
April 3, Icog. 
The Culture of 
Large Onions. 
In early autumn I select -a good ope, 
spot away from the shade of tree's. I the 
proceed to trench the ground at lea! 
three feet deep, well breaking up the bo 
tom, on which I place a good layer 1 
farmyard manure quite S in. to 10 ii 
thick. I then put some of the 'soil fro- 
the next trench, filling up to about 10 in 
on which I place a good layer of pigeo: 
poultry, and sheep manure. After this 
fill up with soil, leaving the surface ; 
rough as possible, at the same time givin 
a surface dressing of soot, wood ashe 
and lime. In February I give anoth< 
dusting of soot. 
The first week in April I fork over tf 
bed about 6 in. deep/giving a dressir. 
of Clay’s Fertilizer, .soot, etc. I sow tl 
seeds under glass in a cool greenhou 
early in January in boxes about 4 in. 
5 in. deep. I like a mixture of soil mat 
up of two parts fibrous loam, one pa 
leaf soil, one part spent Mushroom be' 
■with enough sand to keep the soil open. 
I sow thinly, pressing firmly, and ju 
cover the seed with fine soil, and the 
give a good watering. When the your 
plants appear, place them as near tl 
glass as possible to keep them sturd 
Thin them out about 3 in. apart whe 
large enough, and stir the soil careful 
with a pointed stick. I find that they gro! 
better like this than pricking them ou 
Towards the end of March remove them 
a cold frame, keeping them close for 
day or two, then admit more air, so as 
get them ready to go out in the groui 
by second week in April. The plantir 
out I do with great care, not disturbir 
the roots more than can be helpe 
Showery weather is the best time for th 
work, but if the weather is dry waterir 
must be done for a few days. Pla 
about 18 in. apart all ways. 
F or the first two or three weeks kei 
the soil stirred, doing this, of course, ve 
shallow, and afterwards mulch with sho 
manure to about 1 in. to 2 in. deep, th 
from a Mushroom bed being the best f 
the purpose. 
Every twelve days after this give tl 
beds a dusting of Clay’s Fertilizer ai 
soot, watering in if the weather be dry. 
Onions, if they are fed much after t] 
end of July, will split, so it is best not 
feed after that; also if the weather 
wet towards the end of August the be 
bulbs are apt to split. A good plan 
to raise them with a hand fork, not qui 
out of the ground, but to break some 
the roots, which will help to ripen theil 
When finally lifted, if the weather 
wet, the best place for them is a coi 
frame, or the shelves in an airy gree 
house. 
Onions cannot be too ripe for exhil 
tion. The best sorts to grow, I think, a 
Ailsa Craig and Dobbie’s Golden Gloti 
A. B. C. 
-- 
French Gardening. 
It is stated that Lord Northcliffe 
arranging for a large experimental g;- 
den on the French plan at Sutton Plao 
near Guildford. 
