The Florida agriculturist., 1905-11-01
Eyeless, Topless Potatoes.


We did not believe a word of it, but
the American Farmer tells the story
so well and its remarks are so good
that we give it place this week.
We like a good story, even when we
know it is not true. In fact, many of
the best stories are pure fiction, but
if well told are entertaining, and that
is the main purpose of a story.
Naturally, however, we are skept1cal
and when we read one of these wonder
stories in connection with agr1cult-
ural matters, feel like throwing out
word of caution and labelling the mat
ter. important if true" This is pre-
liminary to mentioning a story set
afloat BY the Chicago Evening Post
about one Darst, who claims to lave
discovered a method of raising po-
tatoes that will not only revolution1ze
the tuber business but make him
veritable Rockefeller i'll wealth. 1t
is rather against Darst that he once
lived in Chicago, but as for several
wears he has been located at Great
Falls, Montana, the improved atmos-
phere there may have toned down the
love of the marvellous liable to be
generated in the Windy City. But
here is the tale in brief, on which the
American Farmer will suspend judG-
ment until it sees some of the po-
tatOeS:
Darst declares the secret lies in the
composition of a preparation that
takes the place of soil. 1t is upon this
mixture that he claims to have secured
a patent He says that layer OF this
mixture three or four inches deep.
NAV be placed in a box, with eyes OF
potatoes; on this first layer may be
placed another layer of the mixture,
with potato ewes scattered through it.;
and so on one layer on top OF another,
until the box has been filled. Then
the mixture may be heated, he de
c1ares. and the growth of potatoes Will
commence and progress rapidly in
each of the numerous layers. He
claims that all that is necessary IS to
keep the mixture at growing temper
at1re and to water it every two weeks
and that within sixty days of the time
of planting the eyes there will be a
crop of perfect potatoes in each layer
of the box. all the tubers being of
about the size of a hens egg. All this.
he claims. will result without a single
vine or sprout appearing above the
surfact
In his experiments Darst has
heated the contents of his box by
means of a steam coil but he declares
that this is unnecessary. and that the
heat of the sun will suffice. if the box
be covered with glass. He terms his
box an incubator. The one he has used
is a small one. but he claims the same
results may be secured in box OF any
depth. length or width
He claims he has demonstrated he
can produce. in a box fifteen feet deeD
and covering 1880 square feet, 10000
bushels of "new' potatoes every sixty
davs. and secure six such crops every
wear. He claims such box covering
one acre. with the required heatino
apparatus, may be constructed for
SIS and that the cost of his com
pound and the labor required
will amount to S2.OO a ton He
declares that at certain seasons, he
can market all the potatoes he can SUD
DIV in Chicago at cents a pound It
he received only 7 cent a pound. his
Weld an acre. on an investment OF
S.. 500. and an expenditure of $1,000
for labor and materials. would be
$4,000. according to his figures
Darst declares his potatoes are not
only "vineless" or ''tOpless." but that
thev are also eyeless. He asserts
thev are as smooth as an apple, hav-
ing no eve and that he must secure