Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1909-04-14
SEED POTATOES.
Poor Seed n Cause of Great Loss
Killing VS.. Level Culture.

Killing VS.. Level Culture.
From observations of potato growing in
the various widely separated localities n
the United States, / am convinced that the
question Of killing potatoes or cuitivating
them as level as posi- BILE is one OF moisture
almost wholly, says l.. B. Dodge, OF the
department of agriculture. In northern
Maine the surplus moisture is usually
considerable during the summer, owing
to heavy rain fall, and the killing that they
give the crop provides for surface drain
age to a certain extent and keeps the
growing plants from excess of moisture
On the more porous, orier soils of other
localities and where the rainfall is less
excessive during the growing season, it is
far better to cultivate the crop as level as
possible, using a weeder for the first two
or three civilizations, following this with
the ordinary corn cuitivator, without any
wings, to hill mp the crop.
have found numerous potato growers
on other sections of the eastern and
northern states who follow very much the
same methods used in Areostook in grow
ing their crop. Some of these are in the
southern part of Maine, where potatoes
have for long time been considered
poor crop to grow. Others are in various
parts of New York and in Michigan and
WISCONSIN. 1t is very significant that
these methods are giving the same heavy
Yields that they do in Aroostook county,
Maine.
There are good many growers in
other localities who, like few men in
Aroostook, are improving vastly upon
the usual system of farming in that
county; that is, they are remedying the
weak point which occurs there by raising
some class OF livestock in sufficient auan-
titles to feed ali their hay and grain
right on the farm, and SO return a con-
siderable amount OF manure to the land.
This kind Of farming is an Improvement
over the selling of all crops not oniy
potatoes. but hay and grain for it ia taxi
ing very much less risk OF a failure of
the clover crop, end without clover there
il no profit in potatoes.
There are sections in New York even
where there was good. prosperous farming
twenty years ago. but more recently clover
has failed to grow, and with it every other
crop is a failure. The whole section ia
growing poorer eyery wear. until the farm
ers are facing the necessity of moving ont
or starving. All the seed potatoes used in
the country are necessarily grown in the
northern states somewhere.
The men who grow potatoes as a truck
crop in the South must send North for
their seed at very frequent intervals,
usually every wear. New seed potatoes
from the North planted in Texas. along
side seed grown there one year but from
Northern-grown seed the year before, will
mature q week or ten days sooner than
Southern-growns seed.
One OF the weakest points in some po-
tato-growlng sections Of the North is care
lessness in choosing good seed for plant
ing at home; and, of course, this means
that poor seed stock is sent out to other
parts Of the country. In some potato
growing localities there is even an absol- (
ute indifference to varities at all, the only !
note being made of the potato by the com !
mon farmer is weather it is red or white.
II we are to keep up a high standard of
potato growing in the North, we must take !
better care Of the standard varieties which
we have and find acceptable on the market |
or be continually experimenting with the
new varieties brought out by the seedmen,
and paying high prices for their seed.
have found few farmers who are sue
cessfully keeping up the standard OF their
old varieties OF potatoes, and even increas-
ing it. To do this they are following a |
plan which has been proved by the work
Of one or two of our State experiment sta
lions to be feasible, although not carried
out for any long terms BY the stations.
1t has been found that the logical unit
OF selection to improve or maintain the
standard areas OF potato seed is not the
single tuber but the whole hill of potatoes
as they grow, so long as the hill, grows
from the same niece Of seed
There is wide difference betweer in.
d;v;drol hills - ,,o.a+o.s