THE RURAL WORLD.

King Country Chronicle, Volume VI, Issue 487, 31 July 1912, Page 6

THE RURAL WORLD.

INTENSIVE CULTURE. The following extract from an English paper shows to what an etxent every available space of land is utilised. It is an account of the early potato growing in Cornwall: — "Most of the potatoes are grown on the face of the cliffs, even down to nearly high water mark, and every little pocket of ground is U3ed. Som3 of them are only a few square yards in extent, and the smaller one are the lowest down. These patches are protected from the wind by high hedges, principally of elder, and in places where there are no hedges fishing nets are hung up, and I saw gates covered with bags. Wind seems to he much dreaded, but frosts are almost unknown. "Planting is started about the middle of January and the crop is ready for market from the middle of April to the middle of April to the middle of May, according to the weather. All the first crop this early season was raised by the end of the ' second week in May. The cost of production is great; £6 to £8 per acre is paid for rent, ana fresh seed is used every year, at a cost of about £l2 a ton. Seaweed is exensively used, and a big dressing of artificial manure. This added to the expense of setting, raising, and sendng to market, brings the cost of production very high in some cases to over £3O an acre. The seed is set 10 in. apart, and from lOin. to Ift. between the rows; thus they get double the amount of sets than when Dlanted 2ft. between the rows as is done in these parts. "They never earth up these early potatoes, and dig them when the tops are still quite green. After the potato crop is dug they again manure, and plant with autumn broccoli. It will be thus seen that the land has to grow two very exhausting crops and a large application of different manures is a necessity. One grower whom I asked it the land should not be rested now and again or different crops be grown on it, said, I have had this half-acre potatoes for thirty-five years myself, and it grew them before, and I have never had a better crop, than this year.' The weight grown per acre varies, but fromJlO to 14 tons per are is a general result in a good season, and one grower said he had grown 16 tons, which to me seema an enormous crop. The price last week was at the rate of 23s per sack of 2cwt, though they are generaily sold wholesale by the hundredweight."