55

Pota toes are not now high in price when their food value is taken into considerat ion. Compared wi th other foods pota toes are cheap at 6 cents a pound and a medium-priced food even at 8 cents a pound.

The chances then of s teady to riging prices for pota toes between January and March are good indeed.

HIGH SPOTS IN MR. E. L. NIXON'S POTATO TALKS

IN OHIO

By Earl Jones

Big Four of Potato Growing I. Good seed. 2. Proper spraying. 3. Humus . 4. Po ta to Mentality.

The Bes t Seed . - -Pennsy lvan ia growers are very part icular about the qual i ty of their seed and insist upon the best of certified seed produced in nor thern states. Representat ives of local associations visit, dur ing the growing season, Michigan and other nor thern states and contract for the seed from the best fields. T h e y look for fields with vigorous plants, practical ly free from degenerat ive dis- eases. The good growers prefer to buy their seed every year from the North, altho several Pennsylvania counties, with favorable con- ditions for seed growing, are compar ing their seed wi th northern grown seed.

S p r a y ing . - - P rope r spraying (where good seed is used) is the most profitable practice the pota to grower can adopt. Mr. Nixon lists the Big Three of potato spraying as: 1. T i m e ; 2. M a n n e r - - 200 lbs. pressure, 100 gal. of material per acre, proper nozzle ad- jus tmen t ; 3. Material.

W h e n Spray?.---The first application is made when the plants are large enough to be seen in the row, and the second comes ten days later. These early sprays control flea bee t le injury. Pota to bugs seldom lay eggs on vines covered with Bordeaux and if they do the eggs turn black. La te r sprays are not so f requent (10 to 20 days) until hot weather comes. During hot periods spraying at seven day intervals is recommended" These sprays are continued during the season, with longer intervals during cooler weather.

H o w Spray? . - -100 gallons per acre and 200 lbs pressure are the minimum requi rements set by Mr. Nixon {or sat isfactory spraying. In no other way can the vines be covered with a thin film of Bor- deaux. A sat isfactory sprayer delivers 7 to 8 gallons of water per minute at 200 lbs. pressure. Three nozzles per row, adjusted so that both the upper and lower sides of the leaves are covered, are necessary.

56

Spray W i t h ? 4-4-50 Bordeaux is the standard spray material . Stone lime, kept in steel barrels is used. This is careful ly slaked, adding the w:ater slowly so that the mater ia l is never dus ty or watery, but is of the consis tency of mush. The barrels of stock solution are placed near the wate r supply.

Dust ing vs. Sp ray ing . - - In Pennsylvania dust ing has increased yields only 9 per cent whereas proper spraying increased the yields 40 to 44 p.er cent.

H u m u s . - - T h e humus supply is, af ter drainage,, the most impor- tant soil factor. A good supply of fresh humus tends on heavy soils, to correct the conditions b rough t about by very wet or very dry seasons. Legume sods and manure are the best sources of humus. Pota toes , ra ther than corn, should follow clover. The manure hauled out dur ing the late summer and fall should be put on the pota to field. Manure the pota to land before New Year 's Day.

Legume sods are preferred as fol lows: 1. Sweet clover. 2. Alfalfa. 3. Red clover. 4. Soybeans.

Sweet Clover . - -Swee t clover plowed under the next spring after seeding, when it is four to six inches high, is the best, because it furnishes the most humus material . A two year ro ta t ion of wheat or rye (oats or bar ley where grain is not sown in fall) and sweet clover is r ecommended for farmers who are potato specialists. This rotat ion has practically el iminated the wire-worm as a potato pest.

Alfalfa . - -Alfafa , as a rotat ion crop, is recommended for dairy- men who must have hay. Red clover must be depended upon by many growers until their soils are in condition to grow alfalfa or sweet clover.

Soybeans . - -Soybeans sown thick (2 bu. per acre) are recom- mended for ge t t ing runout land in condition for good potato yields. The inoculated soybean seed is sown about June 1st and fertil ized with 400 to 600 lbs. of acid phosphate. The soybeans are plowed under and r3~e is sown in the fall. The rye is plowed under in the spring before it has dried out the soil.

Scab Not Ser ious . - -Pennsy lvan ia growers have had little t rouble with scab, al tho they are l iming enough to get sweet clover and alfalfa. Mr. Nixon believes that p lowing under green rye, alfalfa and sweet clover in the the spring, helps account for this.

Soils . --Mr. Nixon does not discriminate against heavy soils, provided the drainage is good and the hard pan not too close to the surface. In Pennsylvania the heavier soils are, dur ing dry seasons, the most dependable for sat isfactory yields.

Fert i l izers for Po ta toes . - -Mr . Jones discussed the quest ion of ferti l izing pota toes in Ohio. Demons t ra t ions in Cuyahoga County

57

0 K Champion Line S E E D C U T T E R S

P O T A T O P L A N T E R S S P R A Y E R S

Traction or Power for Pota- toes, Celery, Grapes, or F ru i t Trees. Pota to D i g g e r s - -

F a m o u s No. 8. Ask your neighbor about the

O K Champion Digger Orchard Harrows and Ti l lers

Our No. 22 Automatic Potato Planter has fulfilled its obligation for many years. Originated 28 years ago. The orginal Cup Feed P lan te r - -p lan t s the seed without sticking into or bruising. It Plants, covers, marks for the next row and sows ferti l izer.

Don't fai l to look it over i f you are in need of a first c lass Planter .

C H A M P I O N C O R P O R A T I O N

333 Sheffield Ave. , H a m m o n d , Indiana

O ~ O

in 1923 i n d i c a t e d t ha t 1C00 lbs. of c o m p l e t e f e r t i l i z e r was more p r o f i t a b l e t h a n 500 lbs. of e i t h e r c o m p l e t e f e r t i l i z e r or ac id phos - pha t e . I n 1925, one C n y a h o g a C o u n t y g r o w e r w h o used 1000 lbs. of 3-12-4 p e r ac re on his field fc)nnd, t ha t an e x t r a 800 lbs. on a d e m o n s t r a t i o n p lo t i n c r e a s e d the y ie ld 54 b u s h e l s p e r acre .

I n q u i r i e s in L a k e C o u n t y in 1923 i n d i c a t e d t h a t the g r o w e r s w h o g o t y i e l d s o{ 200 bu. or m o r e used at l eas t 700 ll-s. of f e r t i l i ze r pe r acre .

D e m o n s t r a t i o n s in R i c h l a n d C o u n t y in 1925 i n d i c a t e d t h a t a c o m p l e t e f e r t i l i z e r is p r e f e r a b l e to ac id p h o s p h a t e , a l t h o app l i ca - t i ons o v e r 750 lbs. pe r ac re d id no t p r o v e w o r t h w h i l e in 1925.

M o s t O h i o p o t a t o g r o w e r s use f rom 500 to 750 Ibs. of f e r t i l i ze r p e r a c r e on the i r p o t a t o e s . T h e m e t n b e r s of the 400 -bushe l P o t a t o Club in P e n n s y l v a n i a use, on the a v e r a g e , 1600 lbs. of f e r t i l i z e r per acre . A b r o a d c a s t a p p l i c a t i o n of 1000 lbs. of acid p h o s l ) h a t e is m a d e and a r o w a p p l i c a t i o n of 600 lbs. of a c o m p l e t e f e r t i l i z e r s i m i l a r to a 3-12-4.

O h i o g r o w e r s wi l l g r a d u a l l y i nc rea se t he i r ap I ) l i c a t i ons of con> p le te f e r t i l i z e r to 1000, 1200 and 1500 lbs. pe r ac re and p r o b a b l y more . M o r e a t t e n t i o n wi l l be pa id to hulp.ns and to d r a i n a g e .

P l o w E a r l y a n d C a r e f u l l y . - - G o o d g r o w e r s a re ca re fu l to set t he f u r r o w s on e d g e . s o t h a t t h e g r e e n m a n u r e c rop is we l l d i s t r i - b u t e d t h r u the soil . L e f t in t he b o t t o m of t he f u r r o w it m i g h t

58

make t rouble in a dry year. Ear ly plowing and early preparat ion of the seed bed is the rule.

Plant Deep . - -Pennsy lvan ia g rowers plant about 3 ~ inches below the surface of the soil. The ord inary planter, which makes a ridge over the row, leaves the seed piece about one inch below the sur- face. T o remedy this, the shoe in f ront of the planter is removed and a large shovel put on. The disks are set so tha t the furrow is not comple te ly filled.

Use Weeder Regula r ly . - -A wide weeder cover ing four or five rows, is used regular ly once a week or after every rain until the plants are several inches high. I t affords an economical means of killing small weeds and its regular use ( 1 ~ inches deep) pre- vents root format ion near the surface. Deeper roots mean that the crop suffers less in dry weather .

Pota to plants ordinarily fall over in an irregular manner . The use of the weeder (always in the same direction) will cause them to fall over uniformly, almost complete ly covering the row and prevent ing g rowth of weeds.

The cul t ivator is used in addit ion to the weeder. T h e first cul- t ivation is deep and later cul t ivat ions are shallow. Cult ivat ion is continued unti l the vines meet be tween the rows.

Plant Close . - -The Pennsylvania growers who get good yields plant closer than the average grower . The rows are 32 to 34 inches apart and the seed pieces about 9 inches in the row. T h e y use 18 to 19 bushels of seed per acre.

Plant E a r l y . - - T h e best growers in Pennsylvania plant around May 10th. In dry seasons the soil is seldom very dry by that time, but if it is, plant ing should be postponed.

Get Good Stands . - -Poor s tands in a potato field are usually due to one of four causes:

1. Cut t ing seed too long before planting. 2. P lan t ing in a ve ry dry seed bed. 3. Too much sprout ing of tubers before planting. 4. H e a v y rains just af ter planting.

Cut Seed Quick . - -Mr . Nixon demonst ra ted an economical method of cut t ing seed potatoes, by which an average worker can cut 55 bu. in nine hours, instead of 18 bu. the usual rate. P lans for this home-made potato cut ter will be sent out later, and his recom- mendat ions for cut t ing seed will be included. Th e cut ter is taken to the field and the potatoes cut just before they are planted. Only enough are cut for each half day 's work.

Good Storage Necessa ry . - -P i t s torage is recommended for home- grown seed. The tubers come out with little or no sprouting. Cellars wi th furnaces are unfit for s tor ing seed. Ea r ly plant ing does away with the necessi ty of l ight sprouting, but it is recom- mended where planting, is delayed until June.

Heavy Rains Need Not Ruin S t a n d . - - W h e r e heavy rains come just af ter plant ing on heavy soils, the soil should be loosened, as soon as it is dry, with a spring tooth or disk harrow. Th i s should run a lmost as deep as the pota toes are planted.

59

Po ta to Mentali ty~--Mr. Nixon stated that it was difficult to de- fine wha t is meant by proper potato mentali ty. I t is indicated in a pota to field by straight rows, absence of weeds and other signs of careful at tention on the part of the owner. Such a grower is glad to show visitors thru the field and is not continual ly apologiz- ing for having left someth ing undone. A successful potato grower likes potatoes.

R E S U L T S O F P O T A T O S P R A Y I N G IN P E N N S Y L V A N I A

1918- 1925 4 unsprayed rows left in each field.

All spraying done according to the recommendat ions on the at tached sheets

Year 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925,

No. of counties 12 26 46 57 63 63 64 45 Number of farms on which demon- stration~ were conducted 32 224 318 402 447 220 174 125 Number of acres, in s ta te sprayed Est. according to rec- about ommendat ions 314 1 7 8 7 6197 10140 16680 23000 28646 40000 Av. yield per acre sprayed fields 142 169 258.3 233.5 220 257 230.7 256 Average gain in yield for spraying'. bushels 34.8 42.9 74.7 74.3 66.0 58.0 66.6 78.0 Gain in yield for spraying, per cent 32.2 34.2 41.4 47.7 44.0 30.0 40.4 44.0 Average cost per acre of spraying $8.26 $10.85 $10.56 $11.03 $10.34 $12.05 $10.90 SILO0 Average number of sprays 5 5 6 6.5 6.8 7.3 7 7

Note the increase in yield per acre in 1920, due to the use of better seed.

The num~ber of demonstra t ion fields in which sprayed checks were left, was reduced in 1923 because of the labor of fol lowing up the checks.

B R I T I S H C O L U M B I A C E R T I F I E D S E E D P O T A T O G R O W E R S A S S O C I A T I O N

C. Tice

At the request of the Provincial Depar tment of Agricul ture a number of growers of certified seed potatoes met in Victoria two years ago for the purpose of invest igat ing the problems of the potato industry in British Columbia. This meet ing resulted in the