Year: 1866




KEEPING SWEET PoTAToEs.-E. a. BA-
| KER, Of Bonneville, Indiana, publishes in
/ the Country Gentleman the following direc-


tons for keeping sweet potatoes;


Two or three plans are practiced in this
community. One is 70 build a small cellar,


say twelve or fifteen feet square, under the


family room Of the house, only entered by
a trap door through the hoor-the cellar


walls fitted up 10 the floor Of the room snug,
50 that no air can get through. The pota-
toes are dug and allowed TO dry, when they
are let down into the cellar without brnis-
ing. Through the winter the cellar is ven
tilated once or twice 4 week by opening the
trap door for half an hour, during which
time the outside doors of the room above
should be kept closed. l have kept sweet
potatoes in this way till the middle of
April


Another, and think the best plan, is to
"build house within a house." filling the
space between the walls with clay. The
doors are hung, one to the inner and one TO
outer wall. The space above the joints are
filed with clay or saw-dust. The potatoes
are dug and hauled TO she house. The
floor, or rather the ground, is covered with
dry chaf. 4 layer Of potatoes is carefully
laid on and another layer Of chaii, the pro-
cess continuing until the pile is about
three feet high. 4 thick layzr Of chaf is
then spread over the top, and the process is
completed. A box, two by six inches, is
placed in the wall, opposite the door for ven
tilation. This is kept closed in cold wealth


and only opened in the middle ofthe day
on warm days.


VIII it pay? One of my neighbors, whose
name | might give if necessary, planted two
acres of sweet potatoes last year, and did all
the work Of cultivation himself, and he is
sixty years old. He has two potato houses,
built after the plan given above. In the
spring, he sold out of the two houses and off
the two acres, five hundred bushels, at three
dollars per bushel Other culiVators in
this county are doing as well, and perhaps
better but give this mans crop as an ex-
ample, because | know the facts. Sweet
potatoes generally sell for one dollar in the
fall, and from two to four in the spring.


Sweet potatoes are not affected by drouth
like the Irish potatoes, and are not eaten by
the potato bug.


PRUNING.-For the removal of small
limbs from your trees hardly any time can
come amiss. 1t were better to do it out of
season than to neglect it. And it is a good
rule to have sharp pruning knife always
at hand, when passing among our young or
chard trees. There is but one time when
pruning should be absolutely interdicted,
and that is at the time that the wood is
frozen. When so circumstanced, it should
never, on any account, be cut or handled |
in any manner, not even to crafty your
best friend by helping him TO a few gratis
.f,l,
riety. Let him wait for thaw, or so away
without them, rather than commit such an
outrage upon your tree as TO approach it |
when frozen.


While considering the question of the |
proper time for pruning there is an axiom |
Of great importance, which should be firmly |
impressed upon the mind of the orchardist
much will depend upon which of the two
leading objects he may have in view-vigor |
Of growth, and symmetry of form, or simply |
ruitfuness, as the results of his labor i'll |
pruning trees. Pruning at one season |
will induce the former effect; at a different |
period Of the year, the same work will con-
luce to the latter results. Hence, the value |
IF this postulate, which is pithy and easily |
prune in winter for wood-in |
for fruit.-Dr. Wdrder.


FALL PLowING.-The fall is the time to |
olow land that is pretty well run. Especi- |
lily is this the case where clay predominates. |
In such case the pillow should be run an inch
)r two deeper than usual. This should not |
De neglected, as the soil thrown up from |
below is the original soil, and has the
strength of the top soil ere it became ex-
lausted. 1t will be like coat of manure,
he frost and the rains having the effect to |
lecompose and mellow and prepare the soil
hus thrown up. 1t needs the elements to
prepare it. The sun the succeeding summer
inishes what the frost failed to do. A coat |
If manure worked into the top would aid |
his operation, but it will do well without
he manure


This plan (of pIowing deeper) has another
advantage; it increases the soil-the availa-
Die soil for the growth, and is equivalent to
ubsoiling to a small degree--so that two
points are reached at one opera
ion, and the extra outlay is little more
horse power--not necessarily an additional |
iorse So there is no interference with this
Ilan; no extra expense it is simply adjust
ng your clevis pin.-RUrdi World.