The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1917-05-12
SWEET POTATOES A
NEGLECTED FOOD

potatoes can be made an important
and cheap source OF food. say spe-
cialists in the L. s. department of
agriculture. II Is quite easy to in
crease the acreage enormously and
the adoption of better methods Of
handling and storing would improve
the product to such an extent that
the demand would he greatly slim
uiated.
Storing sweet potatoes has always
been more a difficult problem than
producing them. 4 large part OF the
southern crop is kept in pits and
banks. with the result that proba bly,
thirty per cent of the potatoes decay
and even those which are fit to put
on the market do not keep we'll
Moreover, the pits and banks can not
be opened during wet or rainy weather
/ without risk Of injuring all the stock
in them. so that il is not uncommon
for growers to be unable. because of
weather conditions, to get out their
potatoes at the very time that the
market demand for them is greatest.
These difficulties can be done away
with to a great extent by the use OF
sweet potato storage houses the
management and construction of
which are discussed in detail in Farm
ers' Bullentin 54S OF the department
OF agriculture Records covering the
Z
bushels of potatoes for an average
period OF 124 days show the average
decay to be only as per cent Il, IF
they were to be adopted generally by
growers in the South. it is estimated
that a. least ten million dollars would
be added to the value of the crop
each year.
practically all other crops. subject to
disease in the field as well as to decay
in storage. Black rot, scurf and soft
rot are found wherever the crop ia
grown. Stem rot. foot rot and other
diseases OF minor Importance are
severe only in isolated centers and.
with the exception OF foot rot, all
the diseases do more damage in the
! North. where the crop IL grown Mn
tensively. than in the South. In the
North the loss from disease is estimat-
ed at from 10 TO 40 per cent OF the
annual crop; in the South, including
storage diseases. at from 10 to 20
per cent. The best methods for the
control OF the various diseases are
| discussed in Farmers Bulletin TIA.
Partl' because OF the difference in
their ability to resist disease and
partly because of market demands
more attention should be paid to the
variety OF sweet potato grown. For
example, Yellow erseys. Big Stem
Jerseys. Nancy Halls and Early Caro-
linas are particularly susceptible 70
stem rot, whereas most OF the other
commercial varieties are more or less
! resistant On the other hand, the
yellow and the Big Stem Jerseys,
which are dry and mealy when cook
ed. suit the Northern consumer and
are varieties commonly sold TO him.
However, the markets OF the Central
West and West will take the semi
|
and Dooley il they are properly grad
ed and packed The highest price,
paid for carload lots of sweet potatoes
on the Chicago market in two sue
cessive seasons was for Southern
grown Nancy Hall. In the South,
moist fleshed potato Is preferred. A
knowledge of such facts Is essential to
profitable marketing of the crop. but
at the present time most producers,
especially in the South. grow num-
Der Of different varieties in the same
field and store them miscellaneously
together. The result is Improbable
confusion.
| Even as it is, sweet potatoes are.
! in point OF value. the second most
important truck crop in the United
States. being exceeded only by Irish
potatoes. The production, however,
can be increased almost indefinitely
for there are millions OF acres of
cheap cut-over lands in the South we'll
adapted to the crop. BY adopting the
Improvements suggested the demand
can be inci eased proportionately. for
an attractive product can then be
placed on the market throughout the
year instead of for a short season
only. as is now the case In many sec
tons.
1t must be remembered, too. that
the value of sweet potatoes as feed
for live stock is not yet ~generally
understood. Three to four bushels
are the equivalent of bushel of corn
for hogs and in connection with rich
concentrates the potatoes are a good
feed for cattle. On light soils that
produce from twenty to twenty five
bushels Of corn, the same care and
attention will return 100 to 200 bus
hels Of sweet potatoes Finally it is
not unlikely that by artificial drying
a product may be obtained which will
keep as long as is desired and be-
cause of It's reduced bulk, may be
shipped long distances at a compare
lively low cost Government expert
ments along this line, however. have
not been carried far enough as yet to
recommend drying on . commercial
scale n