Elmore County Republican. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1910-1915, 1913-08-23

Of the careful growers obtain yields
OF 200 to ESQ sacks an acre, under
conditions causing them loss OF
stand ranging from 10 to rs per
cent and the. presence OF diseased
plants amounting to about as great
percentage. Is there any other
business beside farming that would
tolerate such percentage Of loss,
mostly avoidable with a modicum Of
care?
1t is none too early to make pre-
parations for the coming harvest and
the marketing and storage OF pota-
toes.
The spring inspection showed the
presence of potatoes infected with
powdery dry rot and Rhizoctonia scan
In practically every cellar. This
means that now the spores OF these
disease producing fungi lie in wait to
attack the new crop. In plain Ian
guage, In their present condition, II e
cellars are veritable pest houses for
potatoes. What then is to be done?
1t is true of plant. as we'll as Of
animal diseases, that sanitary meas
ures are among the best safeguards.
A thorough cellar-cleaning and disin-
lection Is therefore In order now. In
the dust and trash lying on floors
and In every nook and Granny Of po-
tato cellars in this state lodge innu-
merable potato disease germs, which,
unless removed or destroyed, may,
and probably will attack the new
crop placed there during the coming
harvest.
All the trash should be removed
from the floors quite thoroughly, in
Guiding old potatoes, and sacks which
have previously been used to
hold potatoes or have been In con-
tact with them. The cellar should
then be thoroughly disinfected. One
Of the best methods Of doing this
would be the application OF lime
wash containing q fungicide to walls
and ceiling, either by brush or spray
machine. For this purpose fresh lime
should be slaked with water to q
creaE like consistency; to this should
be added l quart Of formaldehyde to
every 10 gallons of the wash. Every
portion of the cellar should be treat
ed. The floors might better be treat
ed first, and instead OF the lime
wash, they might be sprayed heavily
with solution Of copper sulphate
(blue-stone, blue-vitrioD, pound to
10 gallons of water, or formaldehyde,
2 pints to 10 gallons Of water. Then
the lime-wash or copper sulphate sob
ton should be sprayed all over the
walls and ceilings of the cellar.
All sacks that have been previously
used or stored In the cellars should
be soaked several hours In the above
mentioned formaldehyde solution,
then dried in the open air.
It has been stated that the dry-rot
fungus mostly attacks potatoes at
bruised or wounded spots; 1t has also
been shown that an enormous num-
Der of potatoes are injured by care
less handling. For some years orchar-
dists have found it necessary to han.
die apples, pears, oranges and other
fruits SO carefully as to avoid bruis-
ing them. They have discovered that
1t amply repays them to use such
care. 1t Is the belief Of the writer,
based on close observation. that far
more careful handling than is now
practiced will be necessary by the
successful potato grower, and that
he will find such care remunerative.
1t is entirely unnecessary to maltreat
the magnificent potatoes grown IN
Idaho in the manner now only too
common.
Sorter injuries are perhaps the
most common. These are crescent
shaped or semicircular cuts or in.
donations caused by throwing the
potatoes with fork or shovel directly
upon the wire screen OF the sorter.
In this manner the finest and largest
potatoes receive the worst injuries
on account Of their greater weight,
whereas the culls escape almost I'M
injured. 1t would be a very simple
matter to pad the box or shute of
the sorter, or even to make an ex-
tension to the shute and pad that
with old carpet or sacking, under
which excelsior or other resilient ma
terial might be packed. The pota-
toes could then be thrown into this
padded extension instead Of directly
upon the screen. They would then
roll down upon the screen with the
usual jolting motion Of the sorter and
pass over or through the screen
uninjured.
Then again, but too frequently are
potatoes dumped through windows or