Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1898-08-25
POTATO BLIGHT.
SOME VALUABLE EXPERIMENTS AT
STATE FARM.
Farmers Have It In Their Power to Rid
Their Crops of This Disease Stand
ard Bordeaux Mixture the Best
of All Solutions.

Cassius Peck, in charge of the Vermont
Experiment Farm, has been making
some very interesting. and what will
prove to be valuable, experimer on the
prevention a blight which has become 80
d destructive to the potato crop through
out the State. Whole fields Of potatoes
are often ruined by this peculiar disease,
for disease 1t is. pure and simple. The
tops begin to wither and die ont COM
pletely before the potatoes have scarcely
had time to set, and in this way the
Whole crop is ruined. The experiments
maze by Mr.. Peck prove beyond doubt
t.. this may be checked OF prevented IL
t."a,cd with the proper solution In due
time Mr.. Peck has tried several differ
ont solutions to test the value Of each and
ind out, If possible. which Is the best.
He made his experiments on a piece of
potatoes of about an acre in extent lie
treated the first two rows with a sofu-
ton for preventing scabs This Is a new
thing and has proved of some value and
will be heard from in the future. He
next treated two rows with a new pre-
pa, alton, Bug Death" Ono row was put
on dry and one wet. The results from
the wet solution show up little better
than from the dry. II Ia claimed for this
preparation that II will kill bugs and also
prevent blight, and Mr.. Peck's expert
mcnts prove beyond doubt that It will
though not so thoroughly as some of the
other preparations. Two rows were left
without treatment. The tops OF these are
all deed and have been for some time,
while those treated are still green and the
bottoms growing.
Laurel Green is another solution tried
by Mr.. Peck but the results are not very
satisfactory. the tops showing but very
little difference from those not treated.
The Laurel Green solution cannot be spo-
ken of very highly. Paris green was used
with and without lime intermixed. The
results seem best from the plain paris
green put on wet and very strong. The
two rows thus treated are stHl green and
show but little indication of blight MI
Peck speaks very highly of this treat
ment.
The best solution of ALL In Mr.. Peck S
opinion. is the Standard Bordeaux mix
ture. Where he has used II, the crop has
been completely preserved. and he rec
onmends this above all other mixtures.
He has also used the Commercial Bor-
dcauX mixture but finds II much inferior
to the Standard. There are two grades OF
the Standard. No. 1 and No. 2. The No. Z
lis an inferior article, and not recon-
mended by Mr.. Peck. Two rows were
treated by spraying the soil, but the re-
suits were not good.
Once a week, IL hills are dug from each
IroW ana inc potatoes weighed ana COM
pared to note the difference. II is found
that those not treated are much smaller
and have long since ceased to grow while
the others are larger and still growing
Those treated with the Standard Bordeaus
mixture have thus far proved to be in the
best condition.
| This matter is of great interest to farm.
ers, and II they profit by these expert
mcnts they will find that their potatoes
Will Weld much betfer and will ha In roo,
and smoother. Anyone who will call al
the Experiment farm will see for them
selves what the results of these expert
ments are.