PROFITS IN POTATOES.

Shannon News, 14 April 1927, Page 2

PROFITS IN POTATOES.

CULTIVATION METHODS. MISTAKES TO BE AVOIDED. • In .view of the large area of laml that, is annually sown down in potatoes in New Zealand,' and the very considerable returns that can be obtained from good crops of these tubers, there is surprisingly little printed matter to be found bearing on the proper treatment of the land and seed which will aid in securing bumper-crops. While a successful early crop is usually the most payable, there are only certain localities where these can be grown without the risk of a heavy loss through late frosts, but with modern, quick, and comparatively cheap trans ; port per motor-lorries there are many localities on the seaboard throughout the North Island, at least where potatoes could be grown for the earliest market. Sandy loams, close to the coast, offer ideal conditions, and much of this land is at present in pasture or being farmed with much less profitable crops, writes lIE T. in the New Zealand “Herald.” A serious mistake made by most potato growers is that-they employ the same land for a number of seasons in -succession. This has the effect of luuisting the soil of those constituents' which the potato requires, and at the

same time allows the disease organisms which may attack one crop to survive

and infect the following. To combat this, a regular rotation of crops, including cereals, roots and fodder crops should be employed, using >he land foi potatoes not more than once in every four years. If this course is not followed, disease and soil exhaustion will make unprofitable crops almost certain. The primary essential in preparing the land for potatoes is deep and thorough tillage. This serves to conserve the moisture in the soil —which is all-

important —destroys weed growth, and allows of an unfettered development of the root system and tubers. Deep ploughing in autumn, followed by cross ploughing in early spring and thorough discing and harrowing, should leave suitable potato land in first-class order, and slumming of the original cultivation results only in *disaT)pointment, no crop reoponding more than does the potato to fine and deep pulverisation cf the soil. SELECTION OF-SEED.

The selection and treatment of the seed is the next important matter.. Selection of true type, vigorous and disease-free plants from the growing crop, reserving these for use, is the ljjeal method, but if this has not been, done, seed should be procured from a grower whose crop is true to variety, and blight free. The seed should not be kept in bags or heaps in some dark corner, as the tubers will, if given this treatment, throw out shoots from a number of eyes. These get broken o • rubbed off in : handling, and subsequent shoots, are weaker,, owing to the vitality, having been sapped from the . seed, and-produce slowly-develop-ing, weak plants; The correct method of keeping seed is to “box” it. This is done- by . placing the sets in shallow boxes having; raised ends, which allow one box to be stacked on. top of another, while the light and air are able to penetrate each- box freely . The potatoes should .be. in ? single layers, with the “.rose ” end up. This is, the end opposite the stalk which originally connected the tuber with the parent plant and carries most of the “eyes.” Usually the central eye will throw out the first and strongest shoot. To induce the seed to shoot quickly the stack of seed boxes should be covered with sacks, and if the conditions are. dry these should be damped Immediately the main eyes shoot the sacks should be removed and the seed exposed to light and air, when their skiqs will become green and toughened, and further growth of shoots will be arrested until the seed has been placed in the ground. It will then come away rapidly, ensuring a crop some weeks earlier than from unsprouted seed, and, therefore, runs much less risk from attacks of disease. Further, when using sprouted seed, the grower, can reject potatoes which have thrown out weakly shoots, and thus get early and strong shoots throughout the whole crop. Whole seed with only the main eye sprouted at planting will give a heavier yield than similar potatoes sprouted from every eye, hence, the little extra attention given to carefully storing and sprouting the seed is well repaired. It must always be remembered that over sprouted seed, which requires desprouting, is considerably weakened, and though a second growth of shoots will take place from the strongest eyes, these will be weaker and slower in reaching maturity. SIZE OF THE SETS. The practice of planting well-devel-oped, moderate size, healthy seed, is accepted as good practice with all cereal and other crops, and this should be applied equally to potatoes. Very small seed, or very large, and especially mis-shapen, should be avoided. A set of approximately 2oz. is considered the best, though bigger seed will produce moie vigorous plants than smaller. The depth to which the sets are planted must depend entirely on the nature of the soil, but where the conditions are not too diy, shallow planting followed by good ridging will give earliest development and best crops. The width between the rows should not be more than 2ft). 3in. to 2ft. Gin., with 15in. between the sets, but this latter may need to be varied according to the locality and soil, and growers must be guided by previous experience. Regular tillage, so long as a horse and implement can be get between the rows, must be carried on, especially after rain, when the surface soil has a tendency'to cake, allowing a rapid evaporation. ; This after-tillage is equally as important as thorough preliminary. cultivation of the land, and -only by thorough cultivation at all stages can a; really maximum crop be produced. A farmer, with suitable land and locality, who treats his potatoes with the respect ancf care which is their due, observing a regular rotation which will check disease apd stimulate, the soil, may well find, in the course of a few years, that they are paying off the-, mortgage. I