Southern standard. (McMinnville, Tenn.) 1879-current, 1882-12-02
Sweet Potato Culture.
Southern World.

y
multiplying millions of inhabitants
pressing upon the soil of this country,
an effort is being made to utilize one of
of the easiest made, surest grown crops
that can be planted in an immense
breadth of country stretching from the
Atlantic to the prairies of the West.
When we come to estimate the pos
sibilities Of production of this cheap
food product over so wide an area, the
question Of supply is at once admitted.
Transportation and the preservation of
the article are the only difficulties that
are presented to the producer. The
question of markets, ofrapid and cheap
transportation at such periods as the ar
ticle is sought for consumption, the ex-
hiDition Of it in good sound condition
are the only obstacles to profit.
AT one time it was hoped that dessi-
cation of the evaporating process might
enter into large profitable distribution
Of so weighty, cumbersome product
to foreign demand. Recently Southern
railroads have been attracted to this
heavy freightage and are offering in
creased inducements to growers toavail
themselves of the profits of crop,
hitherto considered mere appendage
to farm support.
The writer has for years given atteu.
ton to the cheapest mode Of tillage,
the proper food, the best varieties, and
the best, surest way to keep here per-
fectly during the winter months so del
icate vegetable. l have "boxed the
compass" as it were with every plan
to keep sweet potatoes from harvest
time to harvest time again. The diff
Guilty is not so great in making as in
keeping them sound and edible.
As to varieties best to ship. There
are early and late varieties planted in
our State Of Georgia. have planted
not less than dozen varieties myself,
and find that early kinds planted in
the warm sandy soils in the seaboard
c1unties from Il time sEIc menlwy u
man runneth not to the contrary" need
not be eschewed for Jersey Sweets
Jersey Reds, Virginia Nansemond OF
Essex county potatoes where the char
acter of the soil here seems so admira
, bly, adapted to this crop.
A recent suggestion for the earlies
to be found in Jersey aud most palata
bic is not borne out in my experience
There is annually marketed in Savan
:. nah by the Bulloch and Efinghan
farmers, the fellows (aIias Cracker
. who ride their cart shafts still to mar
ket as in the days of King George III
i, a small red potato-that is ripe to di!
by first of July. This have though
was the Identical variety changed by
climate and soil to Jersey Reds. Will
this soon comes the white and yellow
. yams, the Spanish varieties of pumpkin
and white Spanish being still later. N
one has ever seen the perfection of thi
! esculent, unless he has eaten it a da,
after being taken from the clay Dutch
ovens of some farmer who prepares tn
Spanish pumpkin variety for market
k presenting it thoroughly done, with al
= exudation of saccharine juice aroun,
4 it, as if cooked in sugar.
= AS in the grape for good wine, it re
quires just so many days Of sun heat
. under favorable circumstances, to ms
= ture good wine grape, or sweet pota
. to, with sugar enough for its alcoho
>, The Germans on the upper Rhine max
Rhine (sour) wine, but they know tn
- excellence of Spanish and South Franc
- perfect wines. They will be glad
a make their products pay for these otht
i wines,
t. The potato revels in light, ric
to soil, with manures containing goo
,t per cent. of potash and vegetabl
# mould. Thus about the sites of settl
70 ments are grown the finest specimen
h The pine lands of Georgia produce +;
"a fine as the world can exhibit if enriche
40 by the treading and manure of stool
no The earlier varieties are not the be
10 keepers, nor do they sweeten and in
,t prove by parting with an excess of W
er ter by evaporation. The later matu
as ing sorts are preferable as to late shi
ou ping. They lose much in weight, b
If come solid and are justly worth mo
Is as food. Every season, therefore, fro
a. harvest time, ought to exhibit goo