White Cloud Kansas chief. [volume] (White Cloud, Kan.) 1857-1872, 1872-04-11
for the farmer.
sArsINc roTAreEs USDk. srsAw.

One of the most convenient and successful
methods Of raising potatoes, especially in cottage
gardens or ON small lots. for private use, s by
uInutiny under heavy covering of straw or old
litter as practiced at the south, where the I'Ota
tors cannot be well grown without some sucl,
protection from til. extreme heat Of the sun.
This method have practiced for several years,
and know shat il is prscticcd Ia large extent
both in New York and Ohio, with great satisfac:
ton and profit.
The plan is this dig trenches, or open deep
burrows with the pillow, four feet apart, using, If
lossible, a heavy twO-h0rse pl0w twiee, in the
same furrOw, as to open it ut least six eight
inches deep. If you can then run q small one
horse sub-soi pillow in the bottom Of the furrow 10
much the i'etter.] Drop your seed at the usual
distance in the bottom Of this deep furrow. Then
throw upon the seed such manure Us Won intend
to use; well rotted stable manure, cow dung and
rotted sod being best, with lime and ashes applied
to the or peat in compost before mixing with the
manure. HyOudrill the manure and compost with
q cart, the wheels will the seed sufficient
ly; if not cover the seed with 'abOut one inch Of
soil. Now fill the entire furrow trench with
long straw, old litter, refuse hay river wash, &c.
covering the seed six or eight inches deep with
such material The vines will find their way
through foot of them. As soon the vines are
well up, and the weeds have begun to start, pl0w
hoe the earth to the vines little, to kill
the weeds, and this is all the cultivation they
need If you choose to run the cultivator two OF
three times through the rows, use the hoe
freely, it will of course do good; or if You
have an abundance of litter and choose to cover
the space between the rOws with straw, SO rs to
smother the weeds, such mulching will he Of
great service, especially i'm dry season. In the
South they are compelled to cover the whole sur
face with straw, but have'not found it necessary
to do so in nnsylvania.
The result of this method of growing potatoes
is this: Yon always get an abundant crop of
large, sound, handsome potatoes no matter how
dry the season may be, with very little labor in
cultivation, and leave yOur soil in admirable con-
ditiOn for any crop requiring a good carbonaceous
loan. Few or no potatoes grow outside of the
drill trench, nearly all are of the largest size
this is excellent method of planting, Us it in
sures crop. think market gardeners will find
it to pay, the cost of the straw is conn
terbalanced by the saving of labor in cultivation,
the value of the straw the land and the GER
tainty of heavy saleable crop.
have large patch of potatoes this season
planted in this manner, and patch of equal
size along side, planted in the usual manner, and
will perhaps report the result in another number
of your paper. At present l will only say, that
the size and show of product the piece planted
in straw, as compared with the other, is truly
markable.
In reference to the capacity of the potato to
grow in straw without loan soil, it is said
that the captains of whaling vessels out of
New Bedford, Mass, frequently grow potatoes in
crates filed with straw alone, in the South Seas
after being year absent from home. The straw
is of course kept wet, and an partially rotted
state.