Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1918-04-28


 'he south every year from the sale of 'he sweet potato. The United States Army has recently added this vegeta- Die to it's ration and this means that the crop will be in demand more tban ever before. The South is d sweet DC tato section and none of the states are better suited to the growing of sWerr potatoes than is our own state. We must nave an abundance of this yege- table next fall
 Sweet Potato Pays We'll.
 4he sweet potato will produce, on very common soil, from 100 to 1a3 bushels per acre and at present prices af $2 per bushel there are few. f any, CT our crops that will equal it. However, while The sweet potato grows and produces fairly we'll on a great variety of soils. it seems at it's best on the well-drained sandy loam soils of medium fertility. Sweet po- tatoes intended for storage should not be planted on poorly drained soil, because they are much harder to keep over winter than are those that nave been produced on the better drained soils. Clay soils produce good potatoes, but at digging time the soil adheres to the potatoes and IS the cause of great deal of bruises and unnecessary lahOr in removing dlrt from the tubcrs it is not adviS- able to grow potatoes on the same soil two years in succession. and if d stubble of COW peas or clover or q GOV CT crop of rye OF oats can be turned under,- so much the better.
 1t Pays To Use Fertilizer.
 As rule our farmers use too little fertilizer on the sweet potato soil. From 100 to 800 pounds per acre of fertilizer made by mixing equal parts by weight of cotton seed meal and acid phosphate should increase th,, yield of the potatoes from 20 to 25 per cent. If a supply of hard wood ashes can be had it would also be we'll 70 apply a few loads of this to each acre the ashes contain lime and potash and the latter is considered one of the chief essentials for this crop. Or der your seed potatoes right away or place your order with some one who will grow the plants for you, because the Indications are that seed sweet potatoes are going to he scarce again this year In sections of Louisiana and Texas the sweet potato weevils almost destroyed the crop last year and at the Arkansas. Sweet potato growers from the weevil infested states are now searching for suitable seed for bod ding this spring and they have all ready purchased a great many from our storage men. Re sure to cull out all potatoes showing black rot before bedding them.
 Bed Sweet Potatoes Properly.
 To bed the potatoes select some well-drained sunny location and dig a pit about eight to ten inches deep. Put about six inches of good, rich. well pulverized soil in the bottom of this. then place the potatoes on this just close enough so that they do not touch about Is inch space is enough. Af. ter the potatoes are thus placed cover over with about one inch of sand o1 soil that will not pack readily and keep moist Where bottom heat IS de sired it is necessary to dig the pit about six inches deeper than men toned above and put six inch layer of horse manure in the bottom of the bed. Always water the bed thorough ]v before removing the plants.
 Use Labor Saving Machinery.
 The scarcity and high price of la Dor at the present time makes it nee. essarv to use labor saving machinery wherever possible. The man who ilt- tends to plant ten or twenty acres will in the long run find it profitable to buy a sweet potato planter. These can be purchased at prices ranging from S60 to S70, and with it one can plant three or four acres'with a force that would not ordinarily plant more than one acre the old way Make rows about 1-2 to 3 feet apart and set the plants about IS to IS inches in the row. It is claimed by some that closer planting will lessen thu size of the potatoes, so if your crop has been over size try closer planting and vice versa. Do not try to get the plants on high ridges. Ordinarily from 3 to 5 inches is high enough and the plants are cultivated more easily.
 Cultivation Should Begin Early.
 As soon as the plants have become established the cultivation should be- gin. Avoid the use of blows which run too deep near the roots of the plants. Upon examining the roots or niants where one man had been cuitl- yating with a heel sweep it was found that several roots that would have made potatoes had been cut off. Use the harrow freely and as often as IS necessary to keep the top soil loose and free from weeds.
 Write Experiment Station. Fayette' vile. Ark, for Bulletin on Sweet Pc tatQes.