Massachusetts Agriculture. Bulletin

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1916 edition. Excerpt: ...potato crop should be harvested and sold without waiting for the tops to become dry. When the early potatoes are of marketable size, and the price is high, it is usually best to dig them at once, even though the weight of the potatoes is no more than the weight of the vines. The increase in the rate of yield is, however, often very rapid after the middle of July, as is shown by the following results of experiments made at the Rhode Island Agricultural Experiment Station: --July 11, first digging, 162 bushels to the acre. July 31, second digging, 338 bushels to the acre; daily gain, 8 bushels to the acre. August 5, third digging, 371 bushels to the acre; daily gain, 6 bushels to the acre. August 12, fourth and last digging, 393 bushels to the acre; daily gain, 3 bushels to the acre. Harvesting The Main Potato Crop. As long as the vines in a potato field remain green and healthy it is certain that the potatoes are growing; hence it is the practice of many not to dig the main crop until the tops are dry and dead, showing that the crop is ripe. This is the ideal stage for harvesting because the skin of the tubers is generally set, and they can then be handled without material injury. If only a few acres of potatoes are grown it is best to dig them by hand or to use one of the many plow types of diggers. These are sometimes of great assistance, but usually require more or less hand work to uncover some of the potatoes that have been buried by the plow. If a grower has a considerable acreage of potatoes it is usually profitable to use a digger of the elevator type, which requires four horses to properly operate it. After digging, it is best to gather the potatoes as soon as they have dried enough to insure that the soil will rub off in o 1. y...