for the SOUTHERN PLANTER wmmmm By CLINTON CROW SWEET POTATO CULTURE )\ FOR THE SOUTHERN PLANTER BY CLINTON CROW ASSISTED BY Prof. C. W. WAUGHTEL, A. B. Complete Instructions from Bedding to Harvesting the Crop, with Chapter on Commercial Sweet Potato Plant Growing in the State of Florida. PUBLISHED BY CROW cV RROGDOX Seville, Georgia Copyright 1915 By Southern Printers, Inc. Americus, Ga. DEDICATORY. TO THE THOUSANDS OF HUSTLING PLANTERS ALL OVER THE SOUTH WHO ARE BREAKING AWAY FROM THE ONE-CROP SYSTEM. THIS ROOK IS RE- SPECTFULLY DEDICATED BY THE AUTHOR. Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2016 with funding from Duke University Libraries https ://arch i ve . o rg/detai Is/sweetpotatocu ItuOl crow PREFACE The courtesy of correspondents, the co-operation of ttie leading growers and shippers of Ihe South, and our own knowledge of the sweet potato, acquired through years of re-search and study, enables us to set forth in this book all the informabon necessary to proper cultivation of this luscious tuber. This treatise, if properly observed, will result in the greatest possible good to Southern farmers en- gaged in the sweet potato industry. Intelligent culture is the only means of rendering any farming industry more profitable, and the great mass of our farming people know comparatively noth- ing of sweet potato culture, hence they fail. They fail in variety because they know not its adaptabili- ties; they fail in production because they know not their soil requirements; they fail in storage because they know not when to harvest, how to harvest, and how to store for sure keeping. The aim of this book is to place at the farmer’s command all information, in a practical manner, that will lead up to a more intelligent culture of his sweet potato crop. The late Ben Hill said “That the farming indus- try was the greatest single industry in the world,” and we verily believe the day is not far distant when the South will recognize the growing of her sweet potato as tier most important individual farming in- dustry. In collecting and arranging the matter contained in this work, we have considered- well as to its source and reliability and can conscientiously recommend every suggestion offered on the sweet potato in this book as authoritatively correct. Of course there are differences of opinion advanc- ed by various authorities which are caused, not by an error of the brain hut by local physical conditions. We respectfully submit the (took on its merits, which we trust will gain the confidence of Southern farmers and prove a blessing to the potato cause. THE AUTHOR. TABLE OF CONTENTS Page CHAPTER I — Introduction. 9 CHAPTER II— Adaptation 11 CHAPTER III — Varieties 13 CHAPTER IV — Bedding, Seed Selecting, Etc IS CHAPTER V — Preparation of Soil 27 CHAPTER VI — Fertilizers, Methods of Application CHAPTER VII — Transplanting, Time to Set, Methods, Cutting Vines 40 CHAPTER VIII— Cultivation 52 CHAPTER IX — Harvesting and Storing 57 CHAPTER X — Marketing 65 CHAPTER XI “Conclusion 70 CHAPTER XII — Commercial Sweet Potato Plant Grow- ing in tlie State of Florida 74 CLINTON CROW MR. E. V. BROGDON Junior Member of the Firm of Crow & Brogdon. INTRODUCTION CHAPTER I. THE SWEET POTATO. The sweet potato with its long creeping vines, halberd-shaped leaves and projecting lobes, its pur- ple blossoms and close-clustered seed, tells us very plainly it belongs to the Morning Glory family. As to the native country of the Sweet Potato we know nothing definitely, however it stands to reason that the Sweet Potato originated in a country whose climate, soil and seasons are best adapted to the pro- duction of a well matured potato. It might have originated in one of our extreme Southeastern States or in the West Indies. Some authorities say Brazil is the origin while others say it originated in East India. While the Sweet Potato is evidently a member of the Morning Glory family; yet. strange to say, it has never been known to grow wild as is so characteristic of the Morning Glory. So far as we know the Sweet Potato is purely domestic. The Sweet Potato will produce fairly well in many sections of the country, but there are few places in all the world where it will mature perfectly - — where- the vines blossom yielding well-ripened seed- 10 SWEET POTATO CULTURE lings, and where the potatoes are uniform in both size and color. There is no crop grown in which there is so much confusion of names as in the growing of Sweet Pota- toes. Every community puts a different construction on the word “Yam.” We will go further in details when we reach the chapter on varieties. The Sweet Potato, next to corn, is the most im- portant commercial food crop. The chances are that in ten years it will be the most important. The questions asked more frequently than any other in the growing of Sweet Potatoes are "How many bushels can be made per acre, and what will an acre produce in dollars and cents?” The yield per acre will depend on the nature of the soil, cultiva- tion, climatic conditions and fertilizers. We have known successful potato growers who would one year make two to three hundred bushels per acre, and the next year would not make over fifty bushels. They would attribute the failure to the season. Profits per acre can only he determined by the cost of the fertilizer material, amount paid out for plants, labor, and the number of bushels sold and the price received per bushel. Of course one must figure the value of those fed to the stock and those used at the table. This item alone of raising what we eat and consume on the farm is worth more to the South than we can estimate. FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 11 CHAPTER II. ADAPTATION. The Sweet Potato does its best in any locality where the soil is a light, porous, sandy loam, rich in humus and where the weather is warm for at least four months in the year. The Sweet Potato does well in all the cotton states, as well as certain sections of the central west. Delaware and New Jersey. The writer made 'recent experiments in New York. Michigan. Indiana, Ohio. Nevada and Califor- nia with the Nancy Hall and Triumph. The reports I bus far received are very satisfactory. There is no doubt but that in the sandy soils of many of the north- ern states the Sweet Potato would do well if tried and become a commercial crop to those sections; but, as we are writing our book for Southern farmers, we will not give any of the reports received from these sections in the north and west in which we have ex- perimented. We have never known a crop to fail on new ground well prepared and full of humus and potash, no matter what .locality, provided the season and warmth- lasted for a period of at least three and one- half months. As the value of the Sweet Potato and ils adaptations to soil and climatic conditions become better known, it will be grown successfully in new areas in which it was thought impossible to grow Sweet Potatoes. In concluding this chapter we wish to caution prospective Potato growers not to undertake to plant land deficient in humus; nor low, wet. soggy land, 12 SWEET POTATO CULTURE in Sweet Potatoes. If a crop were raised on such land the quality would be very inferior and such po- tatoes would not sell on the market nor keep any length of time if banked or housed ever so carefully. There is so much good land especially adapted to the growing of Sweet Potatoes in every Southern state that it is not necessary to risk a crop on land not adapted to its successful growth. FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 13 CHAPTER III. VARIETIES. There is no phase of the sweet potato growing in which there is as much confusion us in the names of Hie different varieties. One of tiie questions frequently asked by the prospective grower, is "What kind would you advise me to plant?” The answer is easy enough if one knew what type of potato he liked or knew tiis markets. There are two distinct types of the sweet potato, and the leading varieties of each type can be counted on the tips of your fingers. This may seem confusing when there are about one-hundred varieties listed in the United States. The explanation is that there are many of this number the same, assuming different names in different localities. A few years ago a man by the name of Baker ordered some Triumph plants from a Florida grower; and now the neighbors in Baker’s neighborhood call it the “Baker" potato. And again another party ordered the Porto Rico from some dealer in Alabama, and now he and his neighbors call it the “Alabama Red." In another section of Georgia a minister of the Primitive Baptist church ordered a potato from some grower, and in after years the neigh- bors called it the “Hardshell.” The above examples are given to show how easily names originate. The two types most usually used by writers on the subject are the “Jersey Type” and “Southern Yam.” The former type includes such varieties as the Big- Stem Jersey, the Southern Queen, West India, Yellow Jersey and the Triumph, while the Yam type consists of such varieties as the “Nancy Hall. Porto Rico, Red 14 SWEET POTATO CULTURE Providence, Norton or Dooly Yam, Golden Beauty and the Bed Yam.” We might mention right here that the word “Yam” is used in a different sense in different sections of Die country. By most people it is meant to include a distinct type; while others use it for a dis- tinct variety. We might mention here that the Jer- sey type consists of all varieties of sweet potatoes of whatever name, that are light in color inside, with a dry, mealy texture. On the other hand, the Yam type includes all these varieties of whatever name, that are of a wet. juicy, sugary texture. Some authorities make three distinct types, including the large, course kind as a separate type which are ordinarily known as the stock potato. We prefer to give them in two types and then treat in classes according to use, namely: table varieties and stock varieties. The table varie- ties include all potatoes of either type that are of a fine texture; the stock varieties include a large, coarse, stringy kind, and chief among this class we might mention the Shanghai, California Yam, San Domingo, the Brazilian Yam, the West India Yam and Davis' Enormous. As a usual thing the stock potatoes will out yield any of the othpr kinds, but the writer has tested sev- eral of the above named varieties and found none, in- cluding Davis' Enormous, that would yield as well as the Triumph. We wish especially to impress upon the South- ern grower the importance of raising these stock varie- ties for his own feed on the farm. It has been demon- strated in nearly all experiment stations of the differ- ent Southern states, that sweet potatoes, when fed with a grain ration, make an excellent feed for hogs, cows and horses. All varieties will do better in certain localities. FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 15 contrary to the views of some growers who seem to think that any variety will do as well in one section as in another. This is all wrong. The writer has made several experiments and some varieties yielded five times as many potatoes as other varieties, though all were planted the same day under like conditions. The Georgia Experiment Farm has made like experi- ments with different varieties and has tabulated the results. We would ask that any one wishing this informa- lion. drop a card to the above named institution for (he bulletin treating on Ibis subject. 11 might be a good plan not to plant all your crop of one kind until you have found the one best adapted to your soil, location and climatic conditions. DESCRIPTION OF VARIETIES. NANCY HALL — The most popular potato in the South. Tubers elliptical in shape, much like the Dooly or Norton Yam. The skin is light yellow, the flesh deep yellow; cooks soft and juicy. A good keeper and a powerful producer. In some sections, however, this potato is inclined to blight. The vine is a short stubby bunch, with large thick round leaves, with a purple pip at the end of stem next to leaf, but no red veins on leaf. THE GOLDEN BEAUTY — Skin light red; flesh a deep golden, and quality very good. Tubers oval, and inclined to be long. Yield is great. A very desirable potato. The vines are long, with a forked leaf, and red veins under leaf. Vines much like Triumph only longer, and again it resembles the Porto Rico only leaves not so regular. RED PROVIDENCE— Similar to Nancy Hall in 16 SWEET POTATO CULTURE every particular except the leaves are likened unto those of the violet. The yield is immense and the quality even better than the Nancy Hall. This potato will supercede the Nancy Hall in the next ten years. PORTO RICO — Very Similar to Golden Beauty. This is a fine potato in texture and quality. The skin is pink. The potatoes are shapely and if grown care- fully many of marketable size can be obtained. Vines are very long and dense. Leaves regular. It is free from blight. RED YAM — (Sugar Yam. Georgia Yam, Pumpkin Yam.) Is a great vielder under favorable conditions. It is usually a late potato. It is an excellent market potato for the South. It is a good keeper. The vines are long, with forked leaf. Many farmers have bred this potato for years and will have no other. MYERS’ EARLY — Similar to Nancy Hall. The writer planted the two varieties side by side and could not tell the difference in yield, earliness, or quality. TRIUMPH -This is a seedling, produced by Prof. T. K. Godbey of Waldo. Florida. It is all its originator claims for it. The tubers are oval, inclined to be long. The skin is a dirty white, and the flesh is a creamy white. Mealy in texture and free from strings. If enough marketable potatoes could be obtained this would be the variety to grow for the Northern markets. This potato is a wonderful yielder. It outyielded by 25 per cent seven different varieties in a test made by the writer several years ago. The vines are thrifty, leaves forked, with red veins under side, bunched and free from blight. BIG STEM JERSEY — One of the best varieties of the Jersey type, and one of the earliest sweet potatoes known, has cream colored skin with light pink streaks; FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 17 oval shaped, and never cracks, has slender vines that run at great length. This potato is a great producer. ENORMOUS — A stock potato, skin white, and flesh white cream. Texture rough. Potatoes grow very large. Specimens from 5 pounds to 12 pounds are not uncommon. Excellent for stock. It is also grown by those for the table who like a mealy, choky potato. Vines something like Triumph only longer. YELLOW JERSEY— Skin yellow .flesh light yel- low inside. Potatoes not large. Many of marketable size as wanted in the Northern markets. This is prob- ably the potato that can be bred up to the require- ments. Vines rather slender and not so thrifty looking as some of the Yam varieties. 18 SWEET POTATO CULTURE CHAPTER IV. BEDDING. There are many ways of bedding out sweet pota- toes in different sections of the South in order to grow plants. In the cooler sections, where the season is late and the sweet potato is grown for the early market, artificial heat is used. Some large plant growers have extensive steam heat appliances: somr use the tile furnace system, while others use the old- fashioned hot bed method which is the simplest and most effective way of getting plants on a small scale. The cold frame method of raising plants is ex- tensively used all over the South by plant growers. The results are practically the same as with hot bed. only the plants are from ten days to twenty days later. In the warm sections of the South, and other sections where the plants are wanted for the general crop, beds are made in the open field without any artificial heat. HOT BEDS. As to the size of a hot bed. it is immaterial so far as results are concerned; however, it is well not to have any plant bed too wide. We would suggest five feet as a good width so that the plants can be drawn easily from the sides of the bed without getting on with the feet. The length of a bed is absolutely imma- terial. We would suggest a south side location for the hot bed. Spade out the soil to a depth of twelve to fifteen inches to the size you want your bed; put the boards around the side until the back part of ttie bed is about eight inches higher than the front. This will give it a nice slope. In the bottom of this bed place at least a foot of fresh stable manure, prefer- FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 19 ably from that of the horse stable. Some very good authorities use two-thirds horse manure and one- third cow manure. Pack this manure well into the bed, then cover with a depth of about three inches with sand or porous soil ; level the bed, then place the seed potatoes on top so that they will he about one-half inch apart. This is done so that if a potato should rot that the disease will not spread over the whole bed. When the potatoes are thus laid on the sand, then cover to a depth of from one to two inches with good sandy soil, or porous loam if the sand can- not be had. Some very successful growers in the sections where it can be had. go to the woods where logs and trees are rotted and get the soil from along- side these logs and place it on top of the potatoes in- stead of the sand. Our experience has been that the potatoes will be less apt to be attacked by any dis- eases, if sand is used. Keep the sash on the beds until the weather is warm, ventilate with cracks by propping the sashes, being careful not to get too much cold air. Every day f he bed should be examined to see that it is not too hot. It might be well to use a thermometer for Ibis purpose, and whenever the heat should rise to about 90 degrees Fahrenheit, give the bed a little more air. If the heat still continues to rise, make tiny little holes to the potatoes about twelve inches apart, and in a few hours Ibis will have the desired results. Very little water should be put on the hot bed during the first ten or fifteen days. In fact, our ex- perience has been to use no water at all as it is apt to make the bed too hot. When the plants begin to make their appearance we give them more air; and during the warm part of the day, while the sun is shining, we take the glass off entirely. As the plants 20 SWEET POTATO CULTURE become greener and accustomed to the outside air. we leave the sash off altogether, except on cold days. This process will harden the plants. When they are six inches high we draw them from the potatoes and plant them in the field. If the ridges are not prepared we heel the plants out in a good place, as described in another chapter, until they are wanted. The question is often asked at what time we should make our hot bed in order to get plants. This depends entirely on when you want your draws. We generally make an allowance of about twenty-five days, as in that time, if the bed is properly construct- ed, plants can be drawn from it. Another question often asked is. "How large shall I make my hot bed in order to get plants enough for an acre?” Such a question cannot be answered definitely as this depends on both the size and variety of the seed. The smaller the potato bedded the more space they will take up to the bushel on the bed; then again, some varieties will yield twice as many plants as others. One plant grower says that one peck of good seed, carefully bedded, makes him plants enough to give, a yield of fifteen bushels. This, of course, is very indefinite. Another grower says that thirty-five bushels of good seed well bedded, gave him sixty- thousand plants. Of course, as we have just said, it will all depend on the variety and the size of the seed. COLD FRAMES. The Cold Frame method of raising plants is ex- tensively used all over the South by truckers and plant growers. The results are practically the same as with a hot bed. only the plants are from ten to twenty days later. The same material is used in fitting up a cold frame as in that of a hot bed, the only difference FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 21 being that cloth of some kind is used instead of glass, and in some sections no covering at all is used. OPEN FIELD BEDS. The majority of the plant growers use this method. See the illustrations given 'in this book showing trenches made in the open field, and notice the seed beds. In this method no boards are used, and many use no stable manure; however, even for this method, a layer of three or four inches of stable manure would be a decided help in warming up the soil and acting as a tonic to the plants and thus hasten their growth ten to fifteen days. In selecting a site for your cold frame, or open- field beds, be sure to get close to a water supply. A week of dry weather may cost you a loss of many dol- lars. SELECTED SEED. There is an old saying that “Like Begets Like.” Applying this principle in sweet potato growing, is it not reasonable that small, deformed and diseased potatoes will produce an inferior crop? We believe that the sweet potato, being almost immune to dis- eases. that we never need fear of any dangerous dis- eases if care be taken in seed selection. The same care in selecting for seed should be used as in grading for the markets. (See chapter on Marketing). We wish to urge upon every farmer, building at least one hot bed; he ought to have two or more. Think of the many good things you can raise in the winter months with a couple of hot beds, few cold frames and a winter garden. The grocery bill can be cut in half. The following articles on bedding are of inter- est because they are backed by experience : 22 SWEET POTATO CULTURE “HOW I BED SWEET POTATOES.” By W. T. Brittain, Wbitesburg, Georgia. March 2, 1915. — Southern Ruralist “As it is time to bed potatoes, and 1 see so much about how to make a hot bed, I will give the readers my plan and never have failed to get slips in 12 days. First dig out the size bed you want. 8 inches deep, put 6-inch boards around, fill up with pine straw, pack down tight, then put 4 or 6 inches of fresh stable manure on that; then pack it. Go to the woods, around old logs, and get the light dirt and put it about 1 1- or 2 inches on manure, then put potatoes close but not let them touch each other. Press them in the dirt, then cover with same kind of dirt, and just get them covered, and when the potatoes begin to slip, cover about one inch deeper. Keep rain off bed by covering with plank water-bed. After slips come up. take plank off when not raining.” We quote another article by J. R. Davis, of Bar- low. Florida, one of the greatest truck growers in the South : BEDDING THE SEED. “The methods practiced in bedding out the tubers for slips are different in the northern area from those practiced in the South. As this work is applicable only to operations in the South I shall not discuss the steam-heated appliances used in the extreme area. For the extreme southern area very little stable ma- nure is required and sash may be dispensed with al- together. If artificial heat is desired light canvas can be treated with linseed oil and drawn over the beds so as to exclude as much air as possible and by this means the temperature may be raised as much as 20 degrees. For the southern portion of the Gulf states I would advise opening out beds six feet in FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 23 width by scooping out about two inches of dirt, run- ning the beds east and west. Fill the bottom of this bed with two to four inches of stable manure. Place (be seed potatoes directly upon the manure allowing about one inch between each potato. Then cover with just enough dirt to hide the tuber. Then lay over the bed a piece of poultry wire with 1 % inch mesh and six feet wide. When the sprouts begin to push through the soil, throw on two inches more of dirt. The shal- low covering, by keeping the tubers near the surface, induces early sprouting and thereby minimizes the danger of rotting before sprouting begins. The poul- try wire is used for the purpose of preventing the po- tato from being pulled up while drawing the slips. A light coating of pine straw will answer the same pur- pose as the poultry wire. If it is desirable to use ar- tificial heat, light canvas treated with linseed oil may be drawn tightly over the beds as soon as they are prepared. Where the canvas is used it will be nec- essary to use a ten-inch plank around the bed with cross pieces eight feet apart and small wire strung up on these to support the canvas. The covering can be sewed up in 100 or 150 feet lengths and rolled up on a pole when it is desirable to remove it. This canvas also furnishes a protection against late frosts, which sometimes occur. When the slips have at- tained a length of seven or eight inches they should lie drawn out allowing others to take their place. All grass and weeds should be kept pulled out and the bed kept well watered, using water after each pulling of slips. For areas further north, where it is colder, it will be found necessary to use more stable manure, hut oiled canvas may take the place of sash in almost any territory in the South where sweet po- tatoes are grown. For more northern localities 8 to 12 inches of fresh stable manure should be trampled 24 SWEET POTATO CULTURE into the bottom of the bed and covered with about two inches of good top soil. The oiled canvas or sash, as the case may be, should then be placed over the bed as tightly as possible and allowed to remain until the temperature reaches about 80 degrees at midday. When the temperature reaches this point the potatoes should be placed as before directed and the bed finished in the same manner as described. Then give the bed a light wetting and cover with sash or cloth. Thermometers should be relied upon to indicate the temperature, which should never rise above 80 degrees at midday. In such an event the cover should be removed temporarily in order to re- duce the temperature. Where sash are used they should always slope to the south, and the north side of the bed should be six to ten inches higher than the south. The time when the seed should be bedded will depend of course on the latitude in which they are planted. Usually they should be bedded about four weeks in advance of the time of planting. The potatoes should be bedded on a warm bright day and not allowed to become chilled. Several days prior to making the first pullings the covers should be removed in order to harden up the plants. This should be done by taking off the covers for a few hours the first day and giving a little more sun- shine each day in order to harden them up gradually. SELECTING SEED. The growing of sweet potato slips for commer- cial purposes is becoming quite an industry in the South. Many millions of plants are shipped each year from Florida into states further north. The growing demand for Florida grown slips is perhaps due to the fact, that the Florida climate is favorable to this crop and the plants grown there produce more From Farmers’ Bulletin 107, Georgia Experiment Station. Figure No. 4 — Varieties of Sweet Potatoes, 1913 — 1. Vineless Bunch; 2. Triumph; 3. Georgia Yam; 4. Jersey Yellow; 5. Enormous; 6. Jersey Red; 7. Providence; 8. Improved Gold- en Beauty; 9. Porto Rico Yam; 10. Southern Queen; 11. Buck Yam; 12. Big Stem Jersey; 13. Pumpkin Yam; 14. Golden Beauty. Bedding Sweet Potatoes Mr. Matchett’s Nancy Hall Sweet Potato Beds at Pinecastle, Fla. FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 25 than those grown further north. As the writer has been in this line of business for many years, and has had a good opportunity to gather some good informa- tion. it might be well to say something in reference to the selection of seed. It is almost a universal prac- tice among both growers and dealers to select the smallest specimens from which to grow plants. This practice is directly opposed to the laws of nature, and why it is the universal practice I am unable to say. It is utilizing the small potatoes which are unsaleable, and this is the only reason that can be given for the custom. There is no question about the degeneration of any plant which is continually propagated from the smallest and most inferior specimens, and the rule will apply to any plant. In my opinion this erroneous practice is accountable for the “running out” of pota- toes and unfruitfulness which we often hear about. In selecting seed each year I make it a practice to select all the largest and best shaped specimens and separate these from the smaller potatoes. Each one of these large potatoes is then split in half and examined. If it does not show the required color or shape it is thrown aside. If it comes up to standard of color, shape and texture, it is taken to a seed stock bed and bedded separately. From this seed stock bed all my next season’s planting are made and by care- ful selection I have greatly increased the yield as well as quality, and I would recommend it to all who wish to grow potatoes for profit. In 1011. I gathered from the “Golden Beauty,” a yellow flesh yam. 756 bushels per acre. This large yield was attributable to a large extent to careful breeding. In bedding stock for seed the large potatoes should be split in half and placed under sash or oiled cloth with cut side up and al- lowed to dry for a week before bedding out. This 26 SWEET POTATO CULTURE drying of the cut surface lias a tendency to prevent rotting. When they are bedded, however, they should he placed cut side down.” FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 27 CHAPTER V. SOIL PREPARATJON. The preparation of the land is a very important step in the growing of nice sweet potatoes. Most authorities say plow deep, even subsoil. My exper- ience is that in order to grow the best sized potatoes for market, do not plow deep, as the potatoes are in- clined to get too long. This, however, is not a se- rious drawback if you raise for your own use and for stock purposes. But it is the fancy trade we must aim at if we ever wish to make sweet potato growing a commercial success in the South. The Jersey and Delaware growers carefully grow their potatoes so as to get as many oval and gradable potatoes as possible. Then, before marketing they make several grades of “choice,” “extras” and “primes’” This is probably the reason that they have the monopoly in the Eastern and Central markets. The soil should be thoroughly pulverized. If you put your fertilizer on broadcast it must be well worked inlo the soil. Just as different kinds of fertilizer effect the color, texture and flavor of the sweet potato, so does the preparation of the soil effect the size and shape of the potato. The writer has proven both these facts to his entire satisfaction by repeated experiments. The Georgia Experiment Station has also demonstrated both these facts in recent experiments, and in their Bulletin No. 107 give exacl conditions of the various plats in which the experiments were conducted rela- tive to determining both the effect of fertilizers on 2S SWEET POTATO CULTURE size, and smoothness as well as upon the flavor and texture of the potato. We give the following article by R. T. DeBerry. Assistant Commissioner of Agriculture for West Ten- nessee. In the first paragraph he substantiates our claims: “Preparation of the soil in the field need not necessarily be very deep, but should be very thorough. As most markets demand a short, chunky potato, the land need not he plowed to a depth of more than four to five inches, a greater depth of plowing tending to produce long, unsightly potatoes, but this broken area 'should be harrowed and dragged until it is as fine as meal if possible. This can be done much more easily and rapidly before any plants are put out than afterward, and where this is done as it should be the labor necessary in cultivating the crop is reduced to a minimum, not much cultivation being needed except to keep down weeds and grass and keep a dust mulch on the surface until the plants make vine enough to cover the surface. The grower must, of course, use his own judg- ment as to what tools will best accomplish this pur- pose. If the ground where the potatoes are to be grown is well filled with humus, use 500 pounds per acre (if desired) of a fertilizer containing 2 per cent ammonia, 8 per cent phosphoric acid and 6 per cent potash. On land not well filled with humus, or where the potatoes are to be dug and sold without storing, the -ammonia should be increased to 4 or 5 per cent in the fertilizer. On lands where the accumulation of nitrogen from legumes or from their having been used as pastures is likely to be sufficient, this element may he omitted from the fertilizer and a potash and acid phosphate mixture alone used. Stable manures should FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 29 never be used for either Irish or sweet potatoes if the application can not be made lung enough befoire starting the crop that the manure will have become decayed and thoroughly incorporated with the soil, as it has a tendency to produce vines at the expense of roots or tubers, and its use also promotes the devel- opment of fungus diseases which may seriously dam- age the yield and quality. “One point which 1 failed to mention was the method of handling the plants when transferring to the open ground. We usually either dip the roots of the slips in clear water, drop and set out as quickly as possible, or we make a puddle of thin mud and dip the roots in this and then set out, always pressing l he dirt firmly to the roots to insure their living. “When you have a lot of slips ready to take off of the bed, but are not ready to set them in the field, they should be pulled off and heeled out in fresh, moist earth, care being taken to spread the slips out thinly so that air can circulate freely among them. Otherwise, your slips may rot off. If the slips are properly heeled out for a few days, they will usually live better than if transferred directly from the bed to the open ground.” RIDGES. It is not advisable to throw up more ridges or rows than used at one planting, it has been my observation that plants set into the rows recently thrown together grew off better and more thrifty from the start and made a better yield. It seems the dirt settles with the plant and acts as a tonic. A certain grower in Florida always pulls up the plant or cuttings, if they fail to get a good thrifty start. 30 SWEET POTATO CULTURE This grower says that this lesson cost him ten thous- and dollars. There is considerable difference of opinion in re- gards to high and low ridges. In some sections the growers make the ridges from a foot to a foot and a half high. These growers claim the potatoes are more easily harvested and that the yield is better. In other sections the plants are set on a level, and good crops are reported. In some sections of the South, a ridge or row is not used at all. The grower takes his field and plants in hills slightly elevated. The yields re- ported from these growers are very good. The writer made an experiment a few years ago on high and low ridges. The yield was practically the same. The soil was a light, porous sand and the potatoes followed the commercial fertilizer and were harder to gather on the low ridges than those on the higher ridges. A later experiment convinced the writer that a ridge about 8 or 10 inches high, unless the ground is low and subject to overflow, is the ideal ridge. This is an especially desirable ridge for a heavy soil. For light, sandy land, deficient in humus, we would surely recommend the ridge at least a foot high. The best thing, however, for each planter, is to follow the best advice obtainable, study conditions, nature of his land, the varieties adapted and keep track of his observations with pencil and book. In this way he will soon learn the best methods, the best potatoes, and the local adaptations of varieties and will certainly become a successful grower of Sweet Potatoes. The following article on Soil Preparation is taken from Bulletin No. 107. Georgia Experiment Station: “The best results are obtained in well pulverized FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 31 soil. This is had by breaking the land broadcast to the depth of eight to nine inches with a two-horse disc plow. Following this, the land should be har- rowed with a disc harrow and laid out into rows four feet apart. Then, after the fertilizers are applied, the land should be bedded out into large beds by running four furrows, two rounds to each row, with a large one-horse turn plow. Following the bedding, a one- horse Acme harrow should be run along the top of each hed. The mule should walk on the center of t lie bed and the man should ride the harrow. In this way. the harrow crushes the clods of soil and tears down the bed, leaving it well pulverized and only a few inches high.” 32 SWEET POTATO CULTURE CHAPTER VI. FERTILIZERS. A very important, item connected with successful Sweet Potato Growing is that of Fertilizers. While some experiments show no appreciative effect on the yield, we are convinced by actual experience that no piece of land will produce a maximum yield of po- tatoes without fertilizers. There are two kinds of fertilizers in common use, being Domestic and Commercial. Many growers show the best results are obtained by using a well balanced commercial fertilizer. We agree with them, but the cost is an item to be considered for it must be borne in mind that a large crop of the tubers is not always dependent on fertilizers alone. The weather condi- tions. time of planting, soil preparation and mechani- cal condition of the land all have an important bear- ing on the yield of the crop. We consider those who have plenty of stable manure very fortunate. In the use of stable manure we would recommend 100 pounds of acid phosphate to each two-horse load of manure. This may be ap- plied at the rate of eight or ten loads to the acre broadcast at least thirty or forty days before plant- ing time. It should be well disced in the land, if well rotted; if not well rotted it should be plowed under. To every acre of potatoes thus planted 50 to 75 pounds of potash should be strewn in the mid- dle of the rows, just before the vines meet, as this will increase the yield and the quality of the potatoes. One grower in South Georgia reports that he used a compost made from wiregrass turf, pine need- FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 33 les, acid phosphate aud black, mucky soil tak- en from the swamps and along creeks. This work can he done in winter or at odd times when at leisure. In this way he gets his fertilizer with a small outlay of money. The results are excellent. He uses about 75 pounds of sulphate of potash, strewn along the mid- dle of the rows when the vines begin to run, and rakes it in with a garden rake. To those who want to try this cheap and efficient fertilizer we will give his method: Build a square pen, out of slabs or poles about 12 feet square, in some handy place back of the barn. In the bottom of this pen he puts two or three loads of pine needles and turf; on this he strews 25 pounds of acid phosphate; then on top of this he spreads two loads of muck, and so on at intervals un- til the pen is filled to a height of six feet. When the time comes to use the compost he opens one end of the pen and chops finely with a hoe and loads on a wag®, and applies at the rate of six to eight loads per acre in shallow furrows; he then throws the ridges to this furrow. In these days of low priced cotton and a time when the farmers of the South are experimenting with diversification of crops, we cannot emphasize too strongly this method of making your own fertili- zer and thus keep your money at home. Another method of fertilizing that costs very lit- tle money and one which brings good results, is that of “cow-penning.” Of course this method presumes that the farmer owns a herd of cattle, as is common in South Georgia and Florida. A temporary fence is built around a small piece of land and cows penned on this piece every night for two or three weeks, when the cattle are moved to an adjoining plat and this piece is then “scootered” and left lay for awhile, 34 SWEET POTATO CULTURE then plowed, ridged and planted. Each successive plat is then treated until several acres are planted, depending, of course, on the size of his herd and the time he begins to pen his cattle. We know of cer- tain new-ground plats thus cow-penned to yield as high as 600 bushels per acre without the use of any commercial fertilizer. Some successful growers strew trashy hay, broom- sage, oak leaves, pine needles, turf, etc., along in a row and then ridge on this, and then plant on top of this ridge. They use a little acid phosphate and pot- ash. The results are very good. Until, however, the South becomes a stock-grow- ing country the majority of the potato growers will have to depend on commercial fertilizers. We wish to call attention to the importance of home mixing of commercial fertilizers. There is no magical secret about it, as some farmers suppose; it is, however, a simple method of protecting him from the unscrupulous fertilizer agent. All that is needed for the successful mixing of fertilizers are the raw materials — a tamp, a shovel, a wagon bed or floor of some shed, and a little “elbow grease.” To all of those who wish to do their home mix- ing we would ask them to send a postcard to Coe Mortimer Co.,. Charleston, South Carolina; Indepen- dent Fertilizer Go.. Jacksonville. Florida; German Kali Works. Atlanta, Georgia, and the Nitrate of Soda Pro- paganda, New York City, and ask for any material they have on home mixing. It is a good plan for a number of the farmers in each neighborhood to group together, where farm or- ganizations do not already exist, and order the mater- ials to be mixed in car lots. There are a number of FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 35 dealers in the large cities who are always glad to sell these materials direct to the farmer. In mixing their own fertilizer the farmer saves from ten to fifty per cent on cost. For an example, let us figure out a formula which covers the kind of 8-2-2 fertilizer, in which the agent sells the farmer from $20 to $27 per ton, depending on the locality and the competition. Such a fertilizer can be made by mixing the follow- ing materials: 1.142 pounds 14 per cent Acid Phosphate. 317 pounds 12 per cent Kainit. 400 pounds 7% per cent Cotton Seed Meal. 141 pounds Filler. The cost of these materials vary in different lo- cailties. Any one, however, can figure the cost to run from $15 to $20 per ton. From these figures it can readily be seen the saving the farmer makes in mixing his own fertilizers. We will give another ex- ample of a higher grade fertilizer which agents ask as high as $50 per ton. The following materials are used in this formula: 1.000 pounds Acid Phosphate 16 per cent. 112 pounds Nitrate of Soda 18 per cent. 472 pounds Dried Blood 17 per cent. 417 pounds Sulphate of Potash 48 per cent. This makes a fertilizer analyzing 8 per cent Phos- phoric Acid, 5 per cent Ammonia. 10 per cent Potash. This material, in normal times, will cost from $35 to $40. Of course, during the war in the old coun- try the potash and dried blood have advanced to ab- normal prices. It is a question whether a high grade fertilizer, like the one just given, is not the cheapest food material for the sweet potato in the end. In 36 SWEET POTATO CULTURE land well supplied with humus we would advise from 600 to 1,200 pounds per acre; and on sandy lands, de- ficient in humus, we would not recommend over 400 pounds of this high grade fertilizer to the acre. One of the largest growers of sweet potatoes in I he South uses from one to two tons per acre of a 1 igh grade fertilizer, analyzing 7-4-8. This grower applied half broadcast before the ridges were thrown up and reports a yield of over 500 bushels per acre. Any one of the following formulas will give good results : 1.000 pounds Acid Phosphate. 250 pounds Nitrate of Soda. 675 pounds Cotton Seed Meal. 300 pounds Sulphate of Potash. This makes an ideal fertilizer and is recommend- ed by the Georgia Experiment Station. The following is also a good formula : 900 pounds of Blood and Bone. 800 pounds Acid Phosphate. 300 pounds Sulphate of Potash. This analyzes approximately 7 per cent Phos- phoric Acid, 3 per cent Nitrogen and 8 per cent Pot- ash. This formula is recommended by the Florida Ex- periment Station and has given excellent results. Where cotton seed meal is cheap and the potatoes are raised for early market, we recommend the fol- lowing formula: 825 pounds Cotton Seed Meal. 775 pounds Acid Phosphate. 400 pounds Sulphate of Potash. The following formula shows a very good fertili- FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 37 zer. analyzes approximately 3-0-10 and contains the following materials: 333 pounds Nitrate of Soda. 857 pounds Acid Phosphate. 416 pounds Sulphate of Potash. This makes a total in pounds of 1,606. You will see that I here is less than a ton in this mixture, yet it contains all the elements necessary in a good fertili- zer. In order to make a ton a manufacturer puts in 400 pounds of ground cinders, road dust, or any other material that will serve as a filler. This, to be sure, does not harm the fertilizer; but how about paying freight on the filler? We hope that the above examples will enable any one to figure out his own formula and thus mix his own fertilizers and save the extra money that is given to the agent. The kind of fertilizer, as we have before stated, to be used per acre, depends on the physical condition of the soil; also upon previous crop grown. We might add right here that there is no crop grown that is so sensitive to the benefits of a crop rotation as that of the sweet potato. No sweet potato crop should be grown twice in succession on the same piece of land. The best crop preceding the sweet potato crop is that of cow-peas, velvet beans or any other legume. Before closing this chapter on Fertilizers, we wish to call attention to Lime — not as a fertilizer but as a conditioner of the soil. On poor land, it assists in re- leasing the potash from the soil and thus make smooth 11 datoes; on new ground it sweetens the laud. Where the freight is not too high we recommend two tons of SWEET POTATO CULTURE ground lime per acre broadcast; and where the freight is high use burnt lime at the rate of 1,000 pounds to the acre. All lime should he applied the year before planted to potatoes. Wood ashes from hard wood — not pine or cy- press — are a good fertilizer in themselves and will give good results if applied at the rate of 1,000 to 2,- 000 pounds per acre. All fertilizer should be applied at least ten days before planted or set out. Some growers throw up a small ridge with a small plow, then strew the fertili- zer on this ridge; then finish throwing up the row with a large plow. Many of the large growers have a fertilizer attachment to their disc harrow and throw up a row and distribute the fertilizer at one operation. The following is a method of applying fertilizer by G. K. McQuarrie. Assistant Superintendent Farmers’ Institute, Gainesville, Florida: METHODS OF APPLICATION. “It is a well known fact that the root system is the foundation on which a crop is made, and the methods of application of the fertilizer determine to a great ex- tent the vigor and number of the feeding rootlets of a crop. Fertilizer applied in furrows, drills or hills tends to make the soil streaked or spotted in its fertil- ity. consequently curtailing the root system because the roots of the crop are not apt to spread through all the soil as they would do if the fertility was uni- formly distributed. Therefore it is recommended that, on all well-prepared soils plowed to a depth of six inches or more, the fertilizer he broadcasted on freshly prepared land and worked into the soil by means of FC R SOUTHERN TLANTERS 39 harrow, weeder or cultivator, a few days previous to planting the crop. On soils deficient in humus, and plowed a few inches in depth, the application of the fertilizer had best be in furrows; but in such a case the quantity used must be small and the crop will be of a corresponding degree, thus making the cost more per bushel, for the labor required is the same in both cases.” 40 SWEET POTATO CULTURE CHAPTER VII. TRANSPLANTING. THE TIME TO PLANT. The time to plant depends on whether you want to. grow for early markets or for home use. If you grow for the early market, the plants can be set oul in the rows as soon as the danger of the frost is over. If set too soon, and the ground is still cold and the nights cool and damp, the plants will not do well and they had better be left in the seed beds. Allow me to repeat that the Sweet Potato is primarily a plant of the tropical country and does not like cold weather. There is nothing like a frost-proof Sweet Potato plant. As to the habit and origin of the Sweet Potato, we ask that you read again the chapter on "Introduction." for it is truly, as a writer on Sweet Potatoes expresses it. “A Child of the Sun.” The writer has frequently received requests from the mountainous sections of the South for the frost- proof sweet potato slips. Some unscrupulous plant grower had gone to the extreme in order to sell his plants, a method entirely uncalled for and unneces- sary as all reputable plant growers have always sold their plants without misrepresentation. Many experiments made by the writer proved that I he best crops are made from plants set out from May 10th to June 25th. We have, however, received many reports from growers who made large crops from plantings as late as July 28th; and one grower states I he best potatoes he ever made was planted the J'irsl week in August, Of course, this grower lived in From Farmers’ Bulletin, 324, U. S. Department of Agriculture. Figure 13 — Transplanting Machine in Operation. From Farmers’ Bulletin, 324, U. S. Department of Agriculture, Figure 11— Setting Sweet Potato Plants by Hands. FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 41 South Georgia where the warm season is longer than in the northern and mountainous sections of the cot- ton states. The man who becomes a successful plant grower will soon learn when to plant — how to plant — kinds of fertilizers — kinds of soil, and how to harvest and store successfully, if he is careful in his observations. We would recommend that every farmer who grows Sweet Potatoes, or any other crop, keep a rec- ord of what he does on the farm. In this way he knows exactly at the end of the year what his crop lias cost him per bushel, or per acre; and he also will be able to find the mistakes he has made the pre- vious year. The most successful farmers of any sec- lion of country, are those who keep a daily record of their work. TRANSPLANTING. The yield of your crop will depend largely on the start the plants take when first set out. The es- sential thing in planting the slips is to get the roots in contact with moist dirt, firmly pressed about the plant. A half-pint of water should be put to each plant unless it is raining at the time of planting. A good test to see if the plant is properly set is to take hold of a leaf and pull steadily; if the leaf tears between (he thumb and finger without pulling the plant loose, the slip is well set. The rows should be three feet apart in high and dry land, and from a foot to a foot and a half high; hut in low. undrained land the rows should be five - feet apart, and from two to two and a half feet high. In fact, no low land, as we have cautioned in a pre- 42 SWEET POTATO CULTURE vious chapter, should ever he planted in Sweet Pota- toes. This precaution is taken so as to drain off all the water during a heavy fall of rain, or prolonged rainy weather. The young potatoes must never be in stagnant water at any period of their growth. If you wish to make large potatoes, set the plants eighteen inches to two feet apart on the rows. If you want to make medium-sized potatoes, plant them from ten to fifteen inches apart on the rows. An acre planted in this way will support about 9.000 slips. Most truckers and farmers order their plants from growers who make a business of supplying slips for the planters. And where the early potato is wanted, and in localities where the potato is hard to keep, this is probably the best plan. Now, a few words in regard to I lie treatment to be given your plants when taken from the express office. If they are already rotten and black from be- ing too long in transit, refuse them. If only the leaves fall off easily and the stems are stout and green, they are all right and will grow off just as well as if they were nice and green with all the leaves on them. If they look reasonably good, take them out of the crates as soon as possible; dip the roots into water and then heel into the ground, in a shady place, until the next day, unless it be raining, when you can plant them at once. Be sure and separate the plants so as to allow the air to penetrate freely. We have always found it pays to use a litfle water when planting, no matter if there is a season or not, as it will give your plants a sure start. Some up-to-date truckers make a mixture of cow manure and clay into a liquid and into this they dip the roots before they set them out. and then add half a pint of FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 43 water to each plant, and as a result they get new potatoes in the course of sixty days, and you wonder why. You wonder where he got his slips; you order your plants next year from the same place and your potatoes are as late as usual. Where the ground is heavy, a hole can be made with a stout lath sharpened to a flat point. The plant is dropped into the hole and closed with the hand or heel of the foot. Some truckers in New Jersey and Delaware use wooden tongs, so as to scarcely bend their back in planting. They grasp the plant by the root and push it into the hole made by the sharp lath and firm the dirt with a kick of the foot. Where the ground is soft, most planters use a cane; rounded out at the bottom and lined with can- vas or leather, and the plant or cutting is laid on the row by a dropper, and the planter presses his cane on flic plant hard enough to set the plant or cutting, and finishes with his foot. By a little practice, one can become expert with these common, homely tools and plant an acre per day without it becoming tiresome. Where large acreage is planted it might be well for the grower to investigate the machinery planters operated by horse power as used by the big Delaware and Jersey truck growers, and lately adopted by some of the big Florida growers. The following method is used in making the ridges and planting the crop, by J. R. Davis, one of the largest and most successful plant growers and truck- ers in the South. “For all soils where slips are to be used I would advise making the rows just in advance of planting. 44 SWEET POTATO CULTURE Many growers prepare the land and wait for a rain to set. This method perhaps saves some expense in setting the plants but the plants rarely ever start off so well as when a little water is used in planting, and the cutting of expense at planting time often proves to be false economy. While I would not advise setting while the ground is very dry. I would pre- fer to set several days after a rain. Plants of all kinds start off better when planted in loose, freshly prepared land, perhaps owing to the fact that more air is supplied to the roots. Where irrigation is used lay off one row straight with hull tongue. Then take a. 14-inch solid sweep, running one furrow to each row, making the ridges 30 inches apart. This throws up a flat ridge about 4 inches above the level. A two- horse disc harrow with the two outside discs removed makes an excellent implement for this purpose and where the ground has not been sufficiently pulverized perhaps this implement is preferable in laying off rows. Where irrigation is not used an ordinary 18- inch disc harrow with three horses is a good tool for making the rows, which should be 3 y% to 4 feet apart. Where land is abundant and the growing season long the latter distance is to be preferred. Presuming that the land has been fertilized and prepared as above indicated, we now come to setting the plants. Where I lie irrigation is supplied by pipes overhead or under- ground. water for setting may be drawn from a tank by using valves at convenient distances. This is a very economical method of obtaining water and all pipe systems should be provided with this convenience. Taking an ordinary hoe handle, making a round point on one end. place this in the hand of a careful man and let him go along just behind the bedding plow and punch a hole about six inches deep and eighteen inches apart. Two hands can easily keep up with one FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 45 plowman, and the plow should never get more than a few rows aheqd of the hole makers. Let boys fol- low placing the plants in the holes thus made. After the droppers comes a man or boy with a bucket of water and a three pound tomato can with rim pulled off and one side bent to a V shape. Pour about one- third pint of water so as to strike the edge of the hole. This washes some dirt over the root of the plant and the job is finished. For twenty-five years I have tried all methods of plant setting machines, and have found the above outlined plan the best and most economical of all. In case of approaching cold weather, plant setting should be deferred until the ground becomes warm. For ir- rigated lands set 30X18 inches, requiring 11,760 plants per acre. For non-irrigated set 48X18, requiring 7.- 280 plants per acre. I wish to call particular attention to the fact that whether plants or vines are used for planting con- dit/ons and treatment should be such as to insure their starting off promptly. Phis is especially true in the case of vines. These are usually set after good rains, and if the weather immediately following should be unfavorable to allowing them to make root within a few days, they should be pulled up and replanted with fresh vines. I learned this fact at a cost of about ten thousand dollars. Always try to set vines durum rainy, damp weather. The atmospheric moisture is very favorable to their taking root promptly. The above article is used by permission of Ihc author on “Sweet Potato Growing in the South.” The following from Bulletin 107. issued by the Georgia Experiment Station by H. P. Stuckey, gives 46 SWEET POTATO CULTURE the method, the time of planting as practiced at that institution. TIME OF SETTING POTATO PLANTS TO THE FIELD. For early potatoes, the draws should be set to the field as early as possible in the spring after the danger of frost has passed. But where the largest possible yield is sought, the very early plantings are not to be recommended. The time of planting to secure the heaviest crop varies from season to season and with varieties. During the past few years this station has con- ducted experiments along this line with the Pumpkin Yam variety. The results are given in the following table. The plats were two rows 209 feet long: FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 47 TABLE 1. EFFECTS OF DATE OF PLANTING ON YIELD OF PUMPKIN YAM POTATO. DATE PLANTED Lbs. Marketable Potatoes Lbs. Small Potatoes Total Pounds Potatoes April 23. 1910... 141 71 212 April 31, 1910.. 160 67 227 May 12, 1910... 250 55 305 May 24, 1910... 182 56 238 June 1. 1910. .. 259 73 332 June 11. 1910 412 63 475 June 21. 1910.. 275 43 328 July 1, 1910.... 314 54 368 July 15, 1910 44 14 58 July 30. 1910.. 0 4 4 May 6, 1911.... 410 238 648 May 16, 1911... 506 271 777 May 26, 1911.. 241 136 377 June 5, 1911 258 148 406 June 15, 1911.. 203 96 229 June 25, 1911.. 185 97 282 July 5. 1911 109 88 197 July 15, 1911 146 85 231 July 25, 1911 ... 23 12 35 May 20, 1913. 346 88 434 May 30. 1913. 272 86 358 June 6, 1913 212 70 282 June 19, 1913... 244 62 306 June 28, 1913.. 0 178 178 July 7, 1913.... 0 106 106 July 17, 1913... 0 34 34 July 28. 1913... 0 0 0 48 SWEET POTATO CULTURE From this data it would seem that the time of the heaviest yields — May 16th to June ilth for the three years — has a variation of twenty-six days. This shows conclusively that year in and year out there is no one best date for planting sweet potatoes. How- ever, the data shows that light yields may be expected in this latiude from plantings made after about July 1st. The latter half of May is about the best time tu plant the Pumpkin Yam type of potato where yield is the primary object to be considered. METHOD OF SETTING POTATO DRAWS. The use of a transplanting machine was imprac- ticable in our work, as the potatoes were grown in plats of limited area for experimental purposes; there- fore, the plants were set by hand. If the soil was suf- ficiently moist at the time of setting, the plants were dropped eighteen inches apart in the row and the roots pushed into the soil by means of a stick with a slight fork in the end. If watering was necessary at the time of planting, one man made the hole with a small hoe, another man poured about a pint of water into each hole, a third man dropped the plants, and the fourth man set them out by hand. This is an ef- fective, but a very expensive, way of setting out sweet potatoes at the present price of labor. Where large areas are to he planted, a planting machine should be used. A very satisfactory trans- planting machine now on the market may he pur- chased for from $40.00 to $45.00. It is drawn, by two mules and carries a tank holding about sixty gallons of water for watering the plants. This .machine is op- erated by three men. One man drives the team while two men ride on small seats to the rear and place plants in the drill. The watering device is automatic and can be regulated to put almost any quantity of FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 49 water in each hill. The machine can he set also to space the hills any distance desired. The mules pull- ing a machine of this kind must he trained to walk slowly where plants are set as close together as sweet potatoes. Under favorable conditions, a transplanter will transplant about four acres of potatoes per day. It re- quires two mules add three men to operate it. Under the same conditions, four men will set only about one acre per day. PLANTS OR DRAWS. The question is often asked whether vines or plants should he used for the general crop. There are many growers who use vines only, who never plant slips. Early in the spring they plant several rows of small potatoes, the large ones being cut into pieces, which they call their seed bed; and as they begin to run they cut off vines from ten inches to one foot in length, and with these plant their general crop. This method seems to do well for those who plant a limited area only; then, too, it is likely that these growers realize that frequent cutting of vines from their gen- eral crop ridges are an injury to the plant. The writer has inade frequent experiments with the Nancy Hall, the Porto Rico and Triumph varieties. The Nancy Hall variety was injured more than half, part of the plat became yellow and blighted a few days after the vines were cut. The Porto Rico variety was injured a little, but not enough to seriously effect the crop; while the Triumph was not hurt at all and no appreciative effect noticed on the yield. It must be stated here, that the last two named varieties were not cut so close as was the Nancy Hall. From these experiments the writer is convinced that cutting of 50 SWEET POTATO CULTURE vines will never be beneficial to the crop, and in cer- tain seasons and stages of growth will be a positive injury. It might be interesting to know that the Nancy Hall is more subject to disease than the other varieties, and having its living power reduced by the cutting of its vines weakened it and thus rendered it an easy prey to its diseases. The rows of Nancy Hall that were not cut at all remained dark green and pro- duced a good crop. The following tabulated experiment by Mr. Stuckey, of the Georgia Experiment Station, supports the theory of the writer. This item is taken from Bul- letin 107: CUTTING OFF VINES REDUCES YIELD. “It is the. practice in a number of localities to pen some pigs near the potato patch and feed them time to time on cuttings from the vines as soon as the vines cover the ground. “To determine the effects of severe cutting of vines on the yield of the sweet potato, a test was made during the season of 1912. Six rows, 209 feet long, were well fertilized and set to the Enormous variety of sweet potatos early in May. These potatoes were given the same culture usually given in growing pota- toes. “By June 14th the vines had completely covered the soil. Those of rows 1 and 2, and 5 and 6 were cut back to one foot in length and removed from the field. A few weeks later, these had grown out so that the entire soil was again covered so that one could hardly tell that any vines had been removed. On October 24th the potatoes were harvested with the following results: FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 51 TABLE III. Rows 1 and 2 680 pounds Rows 3 and 4 1,062 pounds Rows 5 and 6 620 pounds From this it seems that cutting the vines may reduce the yield to nearly one-half. While this re- duction may be less if smaller cuttings are made and the period of cutting extended over a lengthy season, it is doubtful if the practice of cutting vines from the growing potato crop is ever profitable. The leaves of the potato vines are the organs for transforming the plant food into the starch and other elements that com- pose the sweet potato. When we cut the vines, the assimilation process receives a severe shock and so reduces the yield.” From these experiments it would seem the better method for large acreage is to plant draws instead of vines; then again it is so much easier to get the plants than the vines as there are scores of reputable plant growers in almost every state of the cotton belt. One large grower on cultivation says “put your second application of fertilizer in the middle of the rows immediately after you cut the vines for planting.” This strengthens our argument advanced previously in this chapter under subject of vines. He evidently realizes that the plants recently operated upon need a medicine. 52 SWEET POTATO CULTURE CHAPTER VIII. CULTIVATION. On new ground very little cultivation is necessary. The nicest, smoothest potatoes the writer ever saw were raised on a piece of land from which cross-ties were hauled in December and cleared in the following spring and planted in June, and harvested in .Novem- ber. The yield was very good. The only cultivation necessary on new ground is a shallow one to conserve moisture, and to loosen up the dirt about the plant in order to give the roots plenty of air. On sandy land a good garden rake is a very good tool. On heavy lands a garden hoe or scraper is necessary. On old lands more frequent cultivations are nec- essary, in order to keep the crabgrass and weeds out. The crabgrass is to the sweet potato what the tick is to the cow. It should be carefully kept out of the field. The ridges should not be disturbed by a plow. Use a hoe if necessary to scrape off the grass, and pull up the large weeds by hand. In large fields a riding cultivator is a desirable im- plement. One with disc or scrapes will do better than one with hoes or shovels. Laying-by can be done easily with a one-horse sweep filled up with sloping boards. Some growers use a common one-horse plow and go twice through I lie row, throwing fresh dirt to each side of the row. If the grass should get a start of the grower, the best implement is a small turn plow, run down each side of ridge, throwing the dirt away from the plants, and immediately follow with hoes and cut out all FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 53 grass and weeds. In a few days the same plow can be used in throwing back the dirt. Of course, if the plants have already begun to vine and potatoes form- ed. this method must not he used as it will do more in- jury, especially in dry weather, than good. In laying-by the vines should he laid aside so as not he injured by the horse or plow. All grass and weeds should be kept out of the potato patch, as the young tubers should not be dis- turbed when once formed. More crop failures have resulted from grass and weeds getting control than any other cause. The planter must ever be on the alert for the appearance of grass — our best friend and our worst enemy. For the benefit of those who like variety of methods, we produce the following articles- by other growers of experience on sweet potato culture. By the Empire Plant Company: ‘‘For sweet potatoes, select a warm sandy loam well filled with humus, but they will produce a fairly good crop on most any kind of soil, provided it is well drained, and adequately supplied with plant food. Plow the land shallow, as deep plowing produces too many strings and badly formed tubers. Harrow and pulverize thoroughly, and lay off the rows from 3 to 3fA feet apart, and apply in the drill 500 to 1,000 pounds of fertilizer according to fertility of your land. The fertilizer should analyze 8 per cent of phosphoric acid. 3 of ammonia. 6 of potash. Mix the fertilizer in the drill before covering, and cover by throwing a fur- row from each side, knock off the top and set the plants about 18 inches apart. If the soil is dry, make holes with a hoe about two inches deep; set the plants in 54 SWEET POTATO CULTURE the holes, apply about half a pint of water to the hole and cover with dry soil. In working the crop, throw the soil to the plants, so when you lay them by, you will have a good bed.'” The following by a successful Southern grower of sweet potatoes is a worthy article — one that strength- ens our ideas expressed in previous chapters: HOW I MAKE 500 BUSHELS OF FINE SWEET POTATOES PER ACRE. And you can do just as well and probably better. I have my land broken deep in the fall if possible; if not, I flat-break early in the spring, at least thirty days before I commence to set plants. I follow with disc harrow, going over ground from one to three times or until the soil is thoroughly pulverized. About ten days before I expect to set slips. I lay off rows 4 feet wide with 12-inch sweep. In this furrow I put fertilizer, using from 400 to 800 pounds per acre of high orade commercial fertilizer, analyzing Acid Phosphate 9 per cent,, Nitrogen 3:29 per cent and Pot- ash 7 per cent, well scattered. I run small plow in furrow to mix fertilizer well with the soil. I now use. 8 or 9-inch turn plow to list on fertilizer, making plow cut all it will so as to leave a good, wide ridge. I am now ready to set plants, which I proceed to do imme- diately after a good rain. I have the slips drawn from bed and carried to the field in large baskets, distribut- ing in piles at each end and midway of rows. I have man with plank or board attached to plow to proceed dropping slips and partially knock off ridge. This facilitates setting the plants, also it answers as a culti- vation in getting rid nf young grass and weeds that are beginning to put forth. It is very important that there are no weeds or grass left in the drill. Another FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 55 man or boy goes along row dropping slips and another comes along immediately with stick — round one is best, about two to three feet long and one inch through. Place stick near the root end and push straight down, leaving enough plant above ground to insure good growth. Should it be necessary to put out plants when ground is dry. I put out as above described and afterwards watering them, covering the moist dirt around the plant with dry soil to prevent baking by the hot sun. If the ground is very dry T water the plants in the afternoon for two or three times. With- in the next few days T run the spring-tooth harrow through middles to destroy the weeds. About ten days after plants are set I throw two more furrows to row with turn plow and run out middles with a sweep. One week later I run spring tooth harrow, set as side barrow, close up to plants, working dirt to middles. This cultivation is followed by hoes, and I am very careful to get all weeds and grass. By this time vines are beginning to run. T follow the hoes with a 12 to 14-inch sweep, having vines turned ahead of plow. About one week alter I put two furrows to row with turn plow and plow out middles with large sweep. This completes the cultivation if vines are vigorous and have covered the ground; if not. T run the harrow again before a crop of grass gets started, and follow with a large sweep in middles. My observation has been that most farmers neg- lect their potato crop, devoting most of their time to corn and cotton, resulting in the potato ground growing more weeds and grass than potatoes. Then be complains he cannot “make anything” growing sweet potatoes. T have known some of these fellows actually having to burn off the potato patch before 56 SWEET POTATO CULTURE they could get in there with the plow to dig their potatoes. By starting out with our ground well prepared, with strong, thrifty, vigorous plants grown from sound pure, selected seed, with good fertilizer and with frequent cultivation, I find it not a difficult thing to do to realize a yield of 400 to 600 bushels of fine sweet potatoes per acre.” IMPLEMENTS. The implements required in the growing of the sweet potato are very simple. We have known a num- ber of growers to make a good crop with a Dixie plow, part of a broom handle, a garden hoe and a potato hook. In general the implements used in growing other crops can be utilized in the growing of sweet potatoes. To be sure, there are many kinds of spe- cial machinery on the market that make the growing of sweet potatoes much easier. As for example, the two-horse ridger, fertilizer distributor, the two-horse transplanter and the two-horse digger, together wilh the vine cutter. This machinery is used largely by growers of from twenty to one hundred acres or more. It is not necessary for any prospective sweet potato grower to order any of this new machinery until he has learned how to grow a successful crop of pota- toes with the simple machinery found on every south- ern farm. Main Streets of tlie Little Village of Pinecastle, Florida, the Largest Shipping Point of Sweet Potato Plants in the South. From Farmers’ Bulletin, 324, U. S. Department of Agriculture. Figure 18 — Suitable implement for plowing up sweet potatoes, provided with sharp rolling coulters that cut the vines ahead of the plow. FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 57 CHAPTER IX. HARVESTING AND STORING. There is no fixed lime to harvest this crop. Those who cater to the early market will take them up be- fore they are fully matured on account of the good price received for them. If they are to be shipped any distance, handle very carefully and pick out the unsightly ones for the stock or home use. Sell the medium sized ones only and this will be a starter to- wards the habit of grading your potatoes. The majori- ty of the planters do not dig their potatoes until touch- ed by a slight frost. If this happens the vines should all be cut off and piled on the rows; and in addition to this the exposed potatoes and cracked hills should be covered with dirt. If this is done, especially in the lower states, the potatoes can remain in the ground for several weeks and the keeping quality, as well as the eating, w ill be improved. Much depends on when and how the sweet potato is dug from its hill as to its keeping after having been stored away. Therefore, in digging potatoes the ut- most care should be taken to injure as few as possible. The vital essentials to the successful harvesting of the sweet potato, are t lie time of digging, weather condi- tions and methods of digging, and the care of handling. As to the time of digging we give the following for what it is worth. This writer is evidently a strong believer in the effects of the moon upon things on the earth. He says. “The best time for harvesting the sweet potato is immediately after the full moon in October.” and gives the following reasons: (11 “That (lie moon lias to do with weather conditions. (?) The moon has to do with sap. and as the sweet potato is 58 SWEET POTATO CULTURE very sappy it is best to harvest it at a time when it contains the least sap as this greatly determines its keeping qualities. At this particular time wealher conditions are usually favorable and the potato con- tains least sap at this stage of the moon." There are various successful methods of digging the sweet potato, but whatever method is employed it is very important that extreme care be taken that the potatoes are not bruised or cut. In plowing them up do not let the mule or horse step on the bill. And in plowing, a tool should be employed that does not cut the potatoes. A bruised, cut, or frost-bitten potato might destroy the whole bank. After the potato has been plowed from I lie hill, care should be exercised in handling. They should be gathered up by hand, put in basket, and carefully emptied into the potato house or into the bank. When weather conditions will admit it is a good plan to allow the potatoes to dry several hours before storing them away. BANKING. How to keep the sweet potato after you have har- vested it is a serious question. It seems each grower has a separate method for storing, yet it frequently happens that they lose their whole crop. The “old bank” method for storing potatoes we see so much in the Southern states, is a good method provided ventilation is given, and it is protected from the rains, which is the real essential. 1 be writer has kept them in the bank by running slatted troughs up the top of the heap from the center and also from the center of the pile to the sides and by closing the whole heap without any ventilation whatever. As has FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 59 been said, keep the rain out and there will not be so much danger of the crop being lost by rot. The writer will recommend, where there are large quantities to store, and where the regular curing- houses are not used, to adopt the following method: Select a high, dry piece of ground and level off with a garden rake, a bed five feet wide running north and south, cover the ground with two or three inches of pine straw, hay, or any bedding, on this pile your potatoes in a Y-shaped ridge five or six feet high and running along the row the desired length, depending on the amount of potatoes you have to store. We would not. however, put more than a hun- dred bushels on a pile. Some growers put nothing on the bottom of the banks. The best plan is to allow the potatoes to dry in the banks a few days by exposing them to the sun during the day. provided it is not ex- cessively hot, in which event we would cover the heap with sacks, straw or hay. Care should be taken not lu allow any dew. frost or rain to get on the potatoes before banking. At night they should be covered. If il should rain, allow to. dry again in the sun. When reasonably dry. cover the whole bank with straw of some kind three or four inches thick, and over this put four or five inches of dry soil. This makes a nice bank of potatoes and the hav or straw will absorb the water or sweat given off by the potatoes while curing and the dirt holds the straw in place and keeps out the cold; but not the rain. To provide better ventilation the writer lias used poles or rails laid along lengthwise through the cen- ter of the bank. Pile two on the ground and one on lop and allow the ends of these poles' to extend about one foot out upon either end of the heap. This allows 60 SWEET POTATO CULTURE ventilation to follow the poles, and at intervals of five feet slatted troughs running from the center of the pile to the top of the heap were placed. This allows the air to get in at the poles and out at the top of these chimneys. During real cold weather old sacks or straw could be stuffed in these troughs to keep the cold out. To protect against rain is an easy but important matter and should be attended to at once. Take a num- ber of scantling or poles and make a house roof frame, and on this lay four-inch boards with the lap length- wise; or use tar paper or shingles — in fact anything to keep out the rain. If you store your potatoes away in this manner always, to be sure, observing every precaution given to pick out all bruised, cut and frost- bitten ones, by using the proper fertilizer, by prevent- ing them from getting their “feet” wet in stagnant water in the fields, you will have no trouble in keep- ing your potatoes until late in the spring when prices are high. We offer the following methods of harvesting and storing the sweet potato. These suggestions come from men of ripe experience. The following from Bulletin 548. United States Department of Agriculture: • HARVESTING SWEET POTATOES. Careful handling is one of the essentials in keep- ing sweet potatoes, and there is no more important place to practice it than in the field at digging time. The implement used to dig sweet potatoes should be one that does not cut or bruise the roots. One of the best types of diggers is a plow with rolling colters on the beam to cut the vines and with rods attached to the moldboard to free the roots from the soil and vines. After the potatoes are dug they should be FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 61 scratched out by hand and allowed to remain exposed long enough to dry oil'. The digging should be done, if possible, when the weather is bright and the soil is dry. The potatoes should be graded in the field in order to reduce the cost of handling to a minimum. A good plan is to go over the rows and pick up the sound, marketable potatoes in one basket, then gather all of the seed stock in another basket or box, and t lie injured ones in still another. These lots should be stored in different bins. By following this method il will not be necessary to grade the potatoes at the storage house and will thus save time and reduce the cost of handling.” Prof. T. K. Godbey contributes the following on storing the sweet potato : The secret of keeping sweet potatoes is ventila- tion. Now we know that nearly every one that puts up sweet potatoes, makes some sort of effort at venti- lation, but every one that we have seen is either very defective or a total failure. Editors of agricultural pa- pers have visited us and tried to illustrate our method of storing potatoes and have made a failure in show- ing the essential part, ventilation. Bulletins are sent out by the Department of Agriculture showing ventilators that do not ventilate. Nearly every one that puts up potatoes provides a way for the air to get out. but fails to provide a way for it to get in, hence the potato bank is full of dead air that is just right to produce decay. The accompanying cut shows just how the house is ventilated. Make a V-shaped trough long enough to run the full length of bank or house, and project at each end. If lumber is scarce you can use three poles. 62 SWEET POTATO CULTURE Set the inverted trough on sticks of wood laid cross- wise on the ground, so the air can pass out of 1 h f trough and up through the potatoes. If you use poles the air will pass out between them, as they will not lay close enough together to shut out the air. Do not make any floor in the house or put down any straw. hut pour the potatoes on the ground; they keep bet- ter this way. As soon as potatoes are housed they begin to give off moisture and get hot. This heat cre- ates a draft if air can enter at the bottom, and escape at the top as indicated by the arrows in the cut. After the potatoes are housed a month or more, and the weather gets cold, the ventilator can be clos- ed by covering the ends with earth. Potatoes intend- ed for keeping over winter should not be planted early. We begin to plant here (Florida) the first of July, and finish about the first of August, and dig about Decem- ber first. This gives four or five months in which to grow, which is about right. We often dig potatoes in the rain right out of the mud and pile them up drip- ping wet, and, in three days, with our ventilation, they will be dry and dusty. Potato banks can be made any size desired. We usually make ours about 18 feet long, 7 feet wide and 4 feet high, holding about 200 bushels each. We do FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 63 not advise making them larger than this. The banks should be set with ends north and south, so the sun will shine on either side of them. We make 'the ends double by putting up two walls of boards about 8 inch- es apart and filling in between with earth, leaving a hole under the ridge pole for the air to pass out. Cov- er the banks with boards, being sure there are no leaks, and cover with earth sufficient to keep out frost. If this method will not keep your potatoes, they have some defect that we know nothing about.” The method of keeping sweet potatoes as prac- ticed by the Georgia State Sanitarium on their large farm in the southern portion of Baldwin county, op- erated by that institution, has proven a great success. It is as follows: ‘‘Build a tight house, storm sheet it. cover with builders’ paper and weather-board it, coill walls and overhead, leave door in south end. window in north end. Use two doors and double windows in same opening; one opening inside and one outside. This leaves dead air space to keep building warm. Make air shaft in center of roof and open it south with tran- som above the roof. Make slotted shelving each side, beginning about 12 inches from dirt floor, shelves two feet apart made of one-by-four lumber, place one inch apart so air can circulate freely through the shelves. Have aisle in center three feet wide. Build house ten or twelve feet wide and as long as wanted. A house thirty feet long will hold about 2.000 bushels of po- tatoes. A large stove must be placed in the center of the room — if the building is very long, two stoves should be used. The room should be heated to a tem- perature of 100 degrees Fahrenheit after shutting the doors and windows. Open transom and ventilating shaft. It is necessary to have a small vent hole under 64 SWEET POTATO CULTURE the door for intake of air while drying if the building is tight. The stove must he heated as soon as the first potatoes are put in so as to begin drying them at once, before they rot, the idea being to kiln dry the pota- toes. It is highly essential to get the moisture out of the potatoes as promptly as possible. About ten days steady heat with a temperature of 100 degrees Fah- renheit is required to thoroughly dry the potatoes af- ter all of them have been placed in the house. When they are entirely dry. doors and windows should be opened up, after which the stove and room should be cooled off. Then keep it as cool as possible without freezing. Forty degrees will be about the right tem- perature for this purpose. After this no more heat will be needed during the winter. In the event freez- ing weather should prevail the doors and windows should be closed to prevent freezing the potatoes. Ventilation should be given just as soon as the weath- er has moderated. Where this method is followed the percentage of loss will be very slight indeed. Such a house as the above described one may be constructed with lumber, comparatively cheap, no floor being- needed. It is advisable to select a high, thoroughly drained location, as a dry surface is very essential. This house may also be made of brick or stone.” In concluding this very important chapter, the writer would urge that the farmer harvest his sweet potatoes when the ground is dry and the skies are clear, if possible; as the condition of the soil when the potatoes are dug, and of the atmosphere when they are exposed, will greatly determine whether they will keep or not, after having been stored away. Also, ex- ceeding care should be exercised that no bruised or cut potatoes are stored, that they are well protected from the rain, and that the bank or house is properly ventilated. FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 65 CHAPTER X. MARKETING. The disposal of any crop at, a successful profit to the producer is always a perplexing question. There is no doubt that the growing of sweet po- tatoes on a commercial basis in the South will become a great success when properly undertaken. Up to the present time, Southern sweet potato growers have not been able to supply the home markets during twelve months in the year. Frequently during the year the scarcity of sweet potatoes runs the price as high as one dollar per bushel. This ought not to be so. The trouble lies in rushing the potatoes at digging time to the markets, and also to the improper methods of stor- ing, the producer fearing to bank his potatoes feeling almost sure that he will lose them before spring by rotting. One writer claims that fifty per cent, of all the sweet potatoes raised in the South never reach the market, and gives as the cause a lack of knowledge in digging properly and banking so as to keep them. We believe this statement too extravagant. To be sure, many potatoes rot in the banks; but many are con- sumed by the producer at home, both by the family and the stock. It is a fact. thsLt- if the growers all over the South want to learn the essentials in connection with sweet potato growing, that it will only be a matter of a short time until the Southern markets will be supplied; therefore, if we ever hope to make sweet potato grow- 66 SWEET POTATO CULTURE ing a commercial success here in l lie Spilth, we must begin right now to secure new markets. There are many densely populated sections of the United States into which the sweet potato has never been introduced. These are the centers into which we must send our potatoes and thus create a demand. We have the railroad facilities, and the consumers of those large cities are willing lo pay the price for Hie right kind of stock. It is up to the grower to furnish the “Goods.” In order to meet these requirements and to get enough potatoes of some one variety that will fdl the hill, we would suggest community potato growing; that is, let the farmers of any community form a sweet potato club. Let them all set out the same variety of plants, making sure that they are true to name and that the strain is pure. This can be done by all club- bing together and buying pure seed potatoes for bed- ding purposes, from seed growers of good repute; or by ordering pure strain plants of the variety wanted, from reputable plant growers. By thus clubbing to- gether they can save much money in buying commer- cial fertilizers, up-to-date machinery adapted to sweet potato growing, seed and plants. The club could, at stated times, have illustrated lectures by men who are experts, not only in the grad- ing of sweet potatoes but in packing and grading for I he markets. Again, by growing a sufficient quantity of one variety, enough graded potatoes could he se- cured so as to ship in carload lots. A few years ago two carloads of as fine potatoes FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS G7 as ever grown in the South, were sent from Homeland, Georgia, to the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul. The potatoes were graded, in a manner, but they did not meet with the popular fancy of the Northern buyers ; they wanted an “oval” potato, not very large, uniform in grading and a potato with a sugary, mealy texture. The most of the potatoes shipped in those two cars were the Norton or Dooly Yam. an excellent all- round potato and of the best potatoes for home use in the Southern markets; and the Triumph, a potato that suld fairly well, as it filled the bill so far as the quality of the potato was concerned. The experiment with these two cars was not an utter failure for the growers in a financial way. but it was a great success to them in teaching a lesson that life is too short and adver- tising too expensive to change the tastes of fifty mil- lion people. Therefore, it behooves us to grow a po- tato and grow them in such a way as to meet the de- mands of the markets to which we wish to cater. The Jersey types seem to be the best potato thus far for the Northern markets. The South does not yet have a perfect type to suit these markets. The Triumph grows too large and too long; yet we believe, by a proper seed selection of those inclined to be short, oval, light yellow, and smooth texture, it may be pos- sible to breed the Triumph up to a fuller yield of grad- able potatoes. It is possible that the Big Stem Jersey, the South- ern Queen and Yellow Nansemond will be the varie- ties selected to furnish potatoes for the Northern markets. May we not have an entirely new variety origi- nated here in the South which will embody all the qualities of a potato demanded by these Northern buy- 68 SWEET POTATO CULTURE ers? We have a host of plant specialists who are ho th intelligent and capable. What Prof. Godbey, of Waldo, Florida, has done in originating the Triumph, that has admirably tilled the want in the South for a yellow meated. dry, mealy potato, can't lie, or some other grower, perfect a variety that will 1111 the re- quirements? Let us hope for this new potato. A good suggestion right here is for a number of planters throughout the South to grade several nice hampers of the finest potatoes grown and send them to a commission man in the North and ask him to sell them. It is quite likely that the returns will not he much in a financial way, but you might create a per- manent market for carload lots. Another plan is to send a box of your nicest graded potatoes, by Parcel Post, to your friends in the North and ask them to share with their friends, and in this way create a de- mand for our Southern Grown Potatoes. It is a conservative estimate to say that the South ought to be shipping thirty million dollars' worth of sweet potatoes, into the North and Northwest every year. GRADING. All large and small potatoes should be thrown aside and only potatoes of an oval shape, clear skin, and weighing from a half pound to three-quarters of a pound each, selected for shipping. PACKING. Potatoes should be either shipped in barrels or bushel hampers. If barrels are used, we would not put in the heads at all. We would pack the graded potatoes in layers until the barrel was just full; then cover with a sack or cloth, place the top hoop back on and secure fast with small nails. If hampers are used. FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 69 we would pack with the same care as in barrels. In either case we would be very careful not to include a single .bruised potato, nor one bitten in the least by I ho frost. By observing these essentials in grading and packing, il is highly probable that in a few years we will lie shipping I be Northern market and be bringing back into the South many million dollars 'I hat we are sending North every year for hay and other products. 70 SWEET POTATO CULTURE CHAPTER XI. CONCLUSION. In bringing this volume to a close, the writer wishes to emphasize several phases of the work al- ready treated in this book as well as some other points which we omitted. “We learn to do a thing by doing it” is an old adage. Thus by fixing certain details connected with successful sweet potato growing up- on our mind until it becomes a part of us. a “second nature,” success is assured. The authors of this book believe that anyone who can induce a grower to make two dollars where he made one before, is a public benefactor. We believe by applying scientific methods in whatever we do. al- ways keeping a record of what we are doing, and how we did it, that “two blades of grass can be made to grow where but one grew before.” Let us then be systematic. A grower who uses system in whatever he does knows what to expect under normal conditions and what not to expect under abnormal conditions. If he plants an acre in sweet potatoes when a good season is mi. in well prepared land, at the proper time to plant for the best yield in his particular locality, his records will show he has a right to expect a certain number of bushels and should not miss the yield very far. Let us do a little figuring. In an acre there are 43.560 square feet. If he plants his potatoes a foot and a half apart on the row. and four feet between the rows, a plant requires six square feet, and divid- ing 43.560 by six gives us 7,260 the amount of plants FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 71 required per acre; if the rows are put three and a half feet apart and the plants a foot and a half apart on I he row it would require 8.297 plants per acre; if the rows are put 3 feet apart and the plants one and a half feet it would require 9,680 plants per acre. Let us repeat the method of finding out the number of plants required per acre. Multiply the distance the rows are apart by the distance the plants are set on the row. and divide this product into 43.560. the num- ber of square feet in an acre. The answer will be the required number. Suppose a grower wants to set out an acre of land into paper shell pecans, and desires to set the trees fifty feet apart each way. Multiply 50 by 50 and you get 2,500, divide this into 43,560 and the answer is 17. Therefore you will need seventeen trees to fill the acre. Now let us figure a little on the future yield of an acre of sweet potatoes. Suppose the rows are four feet apart and the plants set one and a half foot apart on the row. gives us 7,260 hills of potatoes; figuring two pounds per lull, gives us 14,520 pounds and divid- ing by 55 the number of pounds in a bushel, we get 264. the number of bushels per acre. This is not an extravagant yield. An acre, well planted ought to yield this amount. Every plant ought to make some potatoes and if rightly planted will do so. Of course, there will be disappointments in sweet potato grow- ing as in all oilier things. A few years ago a young- man came from the North and after studying the dif- ferent crops which would make any one rich, he bought a few acres of land and decided to make his fortune on growing sweet potatoes. He figured it all out on paper. His results there were indeed encourag- ing. He planted three acres. He figured on 24.000 72 SWEET POTATO CULTURE hills, and a half peck lo the hill, or 12,000 pecks, or 3,000 bushels at 50c per bushel, would yield him $1,500, for the first year. Now let us see what he did. He planted the pota- toes in an old worn out field devoid of humus, from which (he little trash left on it had been burned the previous winter, lie plowed and harrowed and threw up the ridges and planted. He put about 300 pounds of fertilizer (8. 2 . 2 .) lo the acre. He cultivat- ed as any one should do. Many of the vines never grew a foot long. His harvest came and from the three acres he dug about 50 bushels. His disappointment was great. He decided he would plan! no more sweet potatoes. He decided he would not buy any more land. Now let us look into Hus fellow’s failure. In the first place his land was too poor, no humus, worn oul physically. Then he did not plant the kind adapted to his particular locality and to that kind of soil, and in fact no variety will do well in such soil. He did not give time enough to preparation of the soil, llis fer- tilizer was miserably poor, and lacked the principal elements necessary to a successful crop, namely, phos- phoric acid, ammonia, and potash. Since then, the writer has grown at the rate of 600 bushels of sweet potatoes on the same ground. He planted cowpeas on this land the year before, and used a fertilizer analyzing 6-4-10 at the rate of 80*3 pounds per acre. This was home mixed, and was pul on in two applications. Let us “cut out" the bar- ren lulls of whatever we plant. Let us now mention a few diseases that the sweet potato is heir to in this country. The first is the “root rot” and affects plants grown in hot beds, and Mr. Preston’s Sweet Potato Plant Beds at Pinecastle, Fla. Beautiful Lake at Pinecastle, Florida, from which water is used in irrigating plant beds. Mr. Pitts’ Sweet Potato Plant Beds Near Hampton, Fla. FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 73 is thought to be caused by the ammonia in the domes- tic manure. Plants thus affected should be fed to the hogs. The next disease is the "vine blight” and is mostly a local disease. It happens to vines that have been severely pruned, or to vines grown in land that is sour, or lands deficient in humus. It is caused pri- marily by some physical derangement of the soil. An- other disease, though not common in the South, is the "black rot” that affects the tubers. It occurs most frequently in potatoes kept in storing houses, and es- pecially noticeable in the northern limits of the south- ern states. Some say it is caused by foul air. The cause is not definitely known. One thing is sure, we seldom see it in potatoes kept by the “bank” method. In final conclusion the writer wishes to impress upon the grower the importance of keeping a record of all he does on the farm. Make farming a “business” the same as the merchant. Study the bulletins issued by the State Experiment farms, and the Department of Agriculture at Washington, D. C. A post card will bring what you want. Index these bulletins so you can find what you want in a minute’s time. Study rotation of crops. Co-operate with your progressive neighbors. Take a day off now and then and go way off in the next county and see how they do things. Work in a new crop each year until you have so diversified that cotton becomes a surplus crop only. Make your farm pay. That success may be yours not only in sweet pota- to growing but in every endeavor put forth on the farm for your betterment is the wish of the author. 74 SWEET POTATO CULTURE CHAPTER XII COMMERCIAL SWEET POTATO PLANT GROWING IN THE STATE OF FLORIDA. ‘"The whole State is a plant factory, an immense open-air greenhouse, whose resources have not been scratched so far." This assertion was made not long ago by a newspaper reporter, after having seen the sights of nature's great plant garden as he traveled from one end of the Peninsula to the other. The gen- tleman told the truth. The writer lias just made a complete tour of t lie State of Florida that we might be able to give to our readers the real truth of what is being accomplished in Ibis particular phase of the sweet potato industry, commercial sweet potato plant growing. On this trip we visited practically all the leading plant growers and truckers. From the Georgia line to Tampa Bay we saw it all. and were made to realize that "the half has not been told” of Florida’s wonderful resources. Especially in her adaptabilities to plant growing, no other state in the South, and no other country in the world can be compared to Florida. We realize the magnitude of such an assertion, but we do not think that we are covering any too much territory when we make it. for we have seen with our own eyes and know whereof we speak. In order that our readers may have a better ap- preciation of what is being accomplished in commer- cial sweet potato plant growing, how and by whom such wonders are being wrought, we are devoting this entire chapter to the histories and achievements of the men whose effects are playing the leading part in the growth and development of this modern industry. FOR SOUTHERN PLANTERS 75 PROF. T. K. GODBEY. OF WALDO. FLORIDA, FIRST COMMERCIAL SWEET POTATO PLANT GROW- ER AND ORIGINATOR OF THE FAMOUS TRIUMPH VARIETY. We are glad