The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1913-12-20

tNo icriiiiZcr In tho furrOw with
bull-tonguc or small shovel pillow. ana
cut the potatoes 20 good sized pieces.
with two eyes each, and drop them
fifteen inches apart Lap burrows over
them from each side. and just before
they should be coming UP harrow down
tho ridges level. and after they arc
up run wccder both ways over them
TO destroy any weeds starting, ANA
after that use the cult!vator rapidly
and lay th.m by with a furrow from
. each side. How !nany you can grow
! cannot pretend TO guess. nor what
they Will bring on the market, for
thore IS nothing more uncertain than
the price any truck crop may bring.
In some seasons the early potato crop
pays very we'll and In others not at
all As tho potato crop North was
short this scason--and there VIII be
no Importation OF potatoes because OF
the quarantine against thcm-the
chances seem good for the crop next
spring.
Lining Garden.
"Ary garden Is old and has been
heavily manfred year after year.
Would It not he advisable 10 lime (;
to proven, potatoes running all to
tops and other things ia like manner.
making more tops than roots?' Lime
you'd doubtless help the soil but so
far as the potatoes are concerned. -
would render them more liable 10 the
attaCks OF the scab fungus by making
the soil swccter The difficulty in your
garden. as ia hundreds or old gardens.
is that you have gotten an excess OF
nitrogen, and have failed To keep up
/ the phosphorus and POTASSIUM 10 bal-
ancc IL These mineral elements arc
the plant foods that mainly have the
property OF making tubers aud seed
hy tho storing OF starch What your
garden needs rather than lime is phos-
phnte and potash. II your soil IS
strong clam loan YOU may not .spc-
ciaily need the potash. but IL VIII be
wise TO use some.
! But an application next spring Of
acid phosphate, at the rate of 1000
pounds AN acre, viii make all the dif-
/ ference in the world IL. tho crops, and
on a light soil 100 pounds OF iuurlate
/ OF potash viii hc needed an acre. This
Is what | do Tor my garden OF light
sandy soil every year. After inanur-
| ing during the winter use in the
spring = fertilizer that has per cent
ammonia per cent phos phuric acid
and 10 per cent potash | do not care
especially for the small percentage OF
ammonia, but as II is convenient 10
buy tho rcady-nladc article ! take the
ammonia, too.
You have certainly given me Qucs-
/ tons enough for ono letter, and the re-
ply must OF necessity lie rather con
dcnsed. Never burn broomscdge or
ANY kind OF vegetable matter that will
decay I'm the soil After blowing tho
ibroomsedrc sod under. II VIII be wise
to spread 1000 pounds OF .lakcd limo
IAN acre, and harrow IL in before plant
ing corn. Then ii will pay TO use 400
pounds acre Of acid phosphate
broadcast on the corn. Plant the corn
/ that has been LONG grown In the
neighborhood. and then. BY annual Sc
/ lection. improve it. Corn brought from
! a distance viii never do as well at
! frs; as corn that is already acclinatcd.
/ RANT the corn in rows four feet apart
ana twenty inches In tho rows. = one
horse corn planter Will plant e all
right Then harrow we'll before ii
comes up with a smoothing har-
I row and cultivate shallow and
level. Early potatoes need heavy fer
! tilzation and oa"ly planting. They
should he in the ground in late Feb
runry or early March. TIE variety
now generally planted for carly pota-
toes IS the Irish Cobbler. Cut the po-
tatocs to two eyes. You can buy =
ready mixed fertilizer that runs per
cent ammonia, per cent phosphoric
acid annd 10 per cent potash. and this
makes 81 very good potato fertilizer.
Use not. less than / 900 pounds an acre
In the burrows. which should be two
and = half feet apart. Stir tho fer
tiliZcr In the burrows with a small
shovel plow to mix II In the soil. Drop
the potatoes fifteen inches apart in
the burrows ana cover with II fur
row from each side. Then. just before
they come up, harrow the ridges down
level and cultivate rapidly after they
arc up, and finish with Il furrow
thrown to each side. Put your land
into q regular rotation OF crops, and
liz YOU want to make a success with
hogs You should have several en-
closed lots which you can grow
To gather. so that you Will only have
to finish them on corn. For shade
trees. get the Norway maple, which
YOU get from the Richmond
nurscrymen. They grow more rapidly
than the native red naples. For black
berries. the earliest is the LucretIa
dcwbcrry. then Early Harvest and
! Nanticokc. Raspbcrrcs Cuthbcrt and
st. Regis for red and Gregg for black
cap. When you get the farm started
| will gladly reply in The Times Dis
patch to any matter that troubles YOU
and trust that in making Il home in
Virginia you will have the most abund-
ant success. Use cement floors In
stables of course.
Growing Onions.
II am interested in growing onions
here in North Carolina, and have been
! fairly successful. and my crop this year
I las already been sold at 4 good price
| But l was attracted by n statement of
come experiments made In New York