Occupations > Abercrombie's improved practical gardener; with a monthly calendar for the flower garden

1P4
POTATOE.
sun and air to the roots, which is most necessary
to the free and perfect growth of the tuhers.
Talcing the Crop.
In June and July tubers of the early sorts will
be advanced to a sufficient size for present use,
though still small; a few therefore only should
be taken up at a time as wanted for immediate
use, as they would not keep good more than a day
or two at farthest. In September they will be
grown to a larger size, and may be taken up in
greater quantities, still not in quantities for keep¬
ing a length of time. The main winter crops
should continue in the ground till they are quite
ripe, which is indicated by the stalks beginning to
decay, which will be in the latter end of October
or beginning Of November, when they may be
taken up wholly and stored for winter and spring
use. In forking up care should be taken to clear
the ground both of the large and small ones,
otherwise they will be found troublesome in the
ground the year following.
Preserving through the winter.
The tubers, after they are taken up, may be
preserved through the winter either in some sub¬
terraneous apartment and covered with straw, to
exclude the air, damp, and frost, or in pits, (as
they are called in some parts of the country,)
which is a good method of preserving potatoes
through winter. It is a practice so well known