Year: 1861




Mr.. JOHN r. ALsToN of Madison county, in this
State, communicates to the Southern Homestead the
following as his mode of cultiyating and preserving
the sweet potato or yellow yam:


PREPARATION OF THE GROUND.


In the first place, l would select the rich upland
upon which / have wintered my cattle, or manure
in February with stable manure, scattered broad
cast Turn under the land about the first of March.
with a horse plow; then throw up your ridges
about four feet apart and continue to them
every twelve days, until your slips ready
to set out By this mode of reversing, your ridges
will be well pulverized, the thorough preparation
of the soil being the first thing necessary to the
cessful growing of an abundant crop.


MODE OF BEDDING POTATOES.


Bed your potatoes about the 10th of April, as no.
thing is to be gained by bedding earlier, though
nv persons think differently. Select the richest
place in your garden for bed, spade up deep, and
then rake and pulveriZe until every clod is broke
and made smooth. Place the potatoes on the bed
about an inch apart then take well rotted stabble
manure with which partially cover the potatoes,
and then spade up the ground either side of the
and with the dirt cover the potatoes about three
inches All the soap-suds you have about your
place during the Spring should be put on the pota-
to bed, as it is not only the best manure you can
use but gives vigorous aud healthy roots to the
plants When the slips of proper size, set them





when through with the first planting, run q center
furrow between tina remaining implanted ridges
with shovel plow, and reverse the ridges and
tuue the same process until the whole crop plant
| ed. You will find the second and third planting
equal to the first, if net larger yield. If you
should not have ss many slips in time as you would
wish to plant, you may clip the vines of the first
setting about twelve inches long, and pl,nt them
/ as directed in the first instance. planted some in
July, part Of the potatoes raised from which, ex-
hibited at the Division Fair in jackson, in 1858
Some of these potatoes weighed q pounds, on one
vine were sixteen potatoes of good size.


CULTIVATION.


When the ridges become grassy the first work Il
| be done is TO take the cotton scrsper and serap'
| as you would cotton, then chop through will
| the hoe, taking cut all the grass left By tbs
scrapsr let the bed then remain until the grass be
| gins again to make show, on the ridges or bed
which will be in about ten or twelve days; thei
take the turning plow, and ruR the bar next TO thu
potatoes, leaving ridge six or eight inches wioe
In four or five days, take the same turning ploW
with which throw the DIRT to the potatoes with fou
burrows; then follow with the hoe draining the dir
to the potatoes and making the bed of the prope
size. Be careful and leave no dirt on the vinei
which is as / think, very injurious to the growth
the potatoes; for wherever the vine is covered wit
dirk, it takes root and thus draws from the mai
roots their proper nourishment. any more wor
be necessary, go over the potatoes in August, an
pull out all the grass and weeds with the hand; an
other work is now unnecessary.


L NODE OF PRESERVING.


; 1 have thus given briefly! my mode of prepar
ton for and the cultivation of the potato, but Il
. most important question is, how can preserve p
tatoes through the winter ane following summe


This is easily done with little care and stte
: ton. think some persons commit q crest err
? lin digging too soon. They think that ewht


the vines are but partially bitten by the frost. it
l. then the proper time for digging. Should it the


turn warm, and, which Is frequently the case, 7


main so for some time, they will stand q go
J. chance to lose their potatoes by heating. There
= another objection to early digging owing to the
being too much cap in the potato. It takes cold
weather in the Fall Of the year to injure potato
= than many persons think. have known more


rot from early than late digging. My time for d


ging is when am of the opinion that the cold w
: ther has fairly commenced Immediately with !
!. digging commence hauling the pstatocs 70 my


lar, to prevent them from being TOO exposed TO
lsun, without proper constructed cellar, and q