Ellsworth American., 1875-09-09
Farm anD houstboIO.
Harvesting Potatoes.

Various opinions exist as to when J.
the proper time TO harvest potatoes.
some believe that il is best TO let them re-
main IN tile ground as long as possible
before digging. thinking that they keep
better than after they are dug. | pom dry
ground. provided the weather continue,
dry, quite likely this would be good
WAY to manage, but almost always ia
autumn we have heavy rains which thor
oughly wet the ground and keep it sat
urltrt much of the time. In such cases
jAt potatoc, would he likely to decay.
Il. moreover, they were upon a wet.
c.tfes piece ot ground, the danger 1T
decay would be lar greater.
O.hcr persons practice digging thcir
potatoes as soon a, they are Iipc and
place them in 4 cool, dry place. We
have tried this method for several ycar>,
and met with better result than by the
old method OF letting them remain til
late in the ground We have du. them
the last OF August or the first OF Septe n
Dcr. and during the rest OF the month,
and put them in the cellar. They kept
well. and dccaycd but verr little, had
Were nearly as good the next summer a,
when first dug. One advantage III dig
ging them before the autumnal rain,
come on, is that the potatoes are sm Doth
and bright, and the dirt does not stick
to them, and if dug and housed in a
pleasant day, there is very little dirt or
moisture carried in with them.
Ii lett in the ground after they are ripe,
dirt sticks to them, and they do not look
80 nice nor are they so mcaly a. when
dlg earlier. II the weather should be
warm and wet, very likely they Will rot
badly, and those which remain viii be
-pideu. miserable thing, TO eat Ii po-
lttoc- aye left in the ground after they
..re ripe, il ,hsu!d be no longer than tin
they cau be conveniently dug, unless
they are upon dry land, and the weather
continues drv.
some may be afraid TO dig potatoes 20
carly lest they should rot. We feared
tu4t this would be the case before we
tried il, but after thorough trial dur
ing several wears, we feel convinced
that they keep far better and are of -u-
perior quality. It looks reasonable that
the time TO dig potatoes, i a soon a.
iaey are ripe, the ame as we harvest all
other products. Apples are not benefit
ct by remaining on the trees after they
arc well ripened. A fter ripening. the
keep the better ii gathered before quite
fully rIpcned. Oar grains and vegcta-
b.es generally, We gather As soon as ripe.
or as soon Il they cease to grow. Now
we would advise all to dig their potatoes
a soona, they are ripe, and house them
in shallow bins Of casks. | f any feel
aiiald to risk all their crop, let them try
part of them and see which lot keeps
the best. \ writer in the .J0urnaI last
year recommended that potat ocs should
be kept in the ground, not only as late
asp ossiblc, but even all winter, claim
ing that the earth was their natural ele-
ment, and best preserved them. All
that We see thai is objectionable in this
view, j, the proposition o keep them IN
the ground all winter, or ill late in the
fall, even. If the earth could remain
dry, We do not doubt that, ii protected
from the frost, they would keep well
We thought his suggestion that the earth
Is the natural element OF the potato, and
lis preservetive, worthy of remembering
and irving. Now would it not be well
10 try potatoes packed in drv cart h in
boxes, or barrels, and even upon the
bottom OF the cellar? We have noticed
that potatoes which happened to be COW
cred with dirt upon the bottom of the
cellar, kept nicely, and appeared much
tresher in the spring than others which
were uncovered. This suggestion is
worth acting upon. and may be of con-
siderable value.
Potatoes will be likely to bring higher
prices this year, late in the season, if the
Colorado bug should seriously injure
the crop in the Middle States. In the
West, where the bug has been, potatoes
have sold at one dollar per bushel. Far
mers will do well to keep an eye upon
the newspapers in regard to the ravages
of the bug, and then decide accordinly
in regardto sellin. their potatoes