Potato Growing. TO THE EDITOR.

Otago Witness, Issue 2719, 25 April 1906, Page 9

Potato Growing. TO THE EDITOR.

Sir — "When residing in a country district to iho uorth of Dunedin, I devoted a good deal of time to experimenting with the different kinds of potatoes, and since my transfer to one of the Dunedin suburbs I have continued it on a smaller scale. The results of this year's work will, I think, be interesting to j many of your country readers an& x 1 there- ; fore send them to you for publication in your farm pages.— l vm, etc., IHTEKESTED. i 1. — One pound of Northern Star seed, cut into 24 sets, each with 1 or 2 (not more) eyes. Result, 801b of marketable potatoes ; lib of small ones. 2. — One pound cf Northern Star, cut into seta with only 1 eye on each. Result, 921b ■of marketable potatoes, and 2lb of small ones, i 3. — One pound oJ Northern Star, cut into / 12 sets, irrespective oi number of eyes on each. ; E&sult, 50-b marketable potatoes ; 2£lb small ones. j 4. — One pound of Northern Star, cut as in No. 3. Result, 63!b marketable potatoes; IJlb small ones. 5. — One pound Up-to-Date, cut into eight sets. Result, 391b marketable ; lib sinal:. 6. — One pound Sutton's Abundance, cut into eight sets. Result, 36Ub marketable; ljlb small ones. '; The whole were grown oe land without manure, and on land that was last year used ' for cauliflower and cabbage. » In each case the rows were one yard apart, and the sets 2Jft apart. Nos. 1, 2, and 3 were gTown on the gravelly soil at North Taieri ; Nos. 4, 5, r.nd 6 were grown on the clayey soil at Mornington. Nos. 1 and 2 wers planted the last week in September; Nos. 3, 4, 5, and 6 the last week in Octobar. The <lb of Northern Star thus produced 2Sslb of marketable potatoes and 6|lb of small ones. About 3£lb were found to bt* affected by "wetlot," but in no sage did we find a trace of tho , "blight,' 1 or a potato spoilt by the worm. ! In the cases of the Up-to-Date and Sutton's ' Abundance, though no "blight" appeared, slb weight was rejected owing to '"■wet-rot,"' and fully one-quarter of the lot -were pierced by ihe wireworm. ' Nos. 1, 2, and 3 were sprayed twice — once when Sin high, and again when about a fcot high. N-os. 4, 5. hud 6 were not sprayed at all Another point that cropped up this yeai is that while all my neighbours lost their crops owing to green fly, I did not find a single specimen of the pest. The crops referred to were no! Up-to-Date, Abundance, or Northern Star, for in no case were these attacked. In one case a row of British Queen was completely ruined, while a row of Up-to-Dattv growirg one yard cfi pscaped

The land seWted in West Australia last i month totalled 78,133 acres, representing • 331 applications. Ther-e wer-e also 52 -applications for pastoral leases, aggregating 1.528,343 acres. Reports of Melba's ill-health come from . St. Moritz and Davos Platz, where she has I been seeking relief from the obstinate cough that followed the attack of influenza which interrupted her last engagement at the Metropolitan Opera House. She has never fully recovered her health, and the greatest physicians in Europe have united in sending her to St. Moritz and Davos, where consumption specialists conduct a sanatorium. " The Arbitration Court has served its turn. It is no use to trades unionist. It is not the good thing it was expected to be," Thus a speaker at the social gathering of painters attending the Colonial Conference at Wellington. "It is," shouted som-e and "It isn't," repeated the speaker. *' The court's decisions have been against thf> unionists every time. There are two reprc?entati\es of capital against one Labour msn on ■i'ne court.'' H« urged labourers, to ksep fiom the tribunal.