A NEW POTATO PLANTER.

Bush Advocate, Issue 351, 9 August 1890, Page 7

A NEW POTATO PLANTER.

Interesting experiments were made a few days ago on the farm of Mr. W..P. Voßper, C.C. Merafield, Plympton, with the Aspmwall potato-planter. It differs from the few planters already shown in England in having an excellent arrangement for distributing manure. It ia the first of its kind used in England, and is introduced by the Western Counties Agricultural Co-operative Association. Generally speaking, the machine is drawn by a pair of horses, and can be managed by one man. lo the front and on one side there is an attachment which marks out the next row to be planted. Behind this an iron forms a furrow, and to the rear of this is a revolving wheel, on. which several grippers are fixed. T-hesa grippers can be varied in number according t<* the distance allowed between the potatoes. As the wheel turns round it enters a box which. contains the seed, and by the action of some springs the potato isf orced between the gnppera, and carried round until it comes in contact with a lover, which removes the seed and allows it to fall into the ground. Burming through the centre of the seed bos there is a manure holder, and as the potato falls into the ground a thia layer of earth covers it, then the manure is distributed over it, and a couple of iron scrapers in the rear ef the machine covers this with soil. Taken altogether, it is one of the most simpleand perfect agricultural implements ever invented. The various parts are most ingeniously arranged, and, all being self-acting, any ordinary labourer would experience no difficulty in working it. Mr. Vosper, well known- as a highly-successful and enterprising farmer, was much pleased with the results of the trial. The potatoes can be planted to any depth up to 6m., the distance between each seed being regulated from lOin. to 26in , and the rows up to dft. apart. Mr. Vosper considered it the best distributor of manure he had ever seen, aud as a man and a pair of horses could plant about o acres daily when set at the ordinary distdnce, the machine will, no doubt, come into general use, and be highly valued for the ciuantity of work it does, the excellent way in which it » earned out, and the extreme simplicity of its construction.