HOME AND FARM MAGAZINE SECTION
8
No Perfect Potato Seed in U.S.
Standard Strains of Potatoes Rapidly Deteriorating What
Must Be Done.
Of vital interest to potato grow-
era in the Northwest ll the informa-
tion thai in tha entira United State.
': ther. ara no potatoes entirely free
from disease or insect pasta. What i.
? to be dona in combatting these evils
$ ia described in tha following article
'i by C. J. Mcintosh, news editor for
tha Oregon Agricultural College.
!? !$'$'$'3)S
(Special to tha Farm Magazine.)
THAT there are no potatoes grown
In the entire United States
. wholly free from Insect and
disease pests, and that the race of
f puds throughout America is rapidly
deteriorating, were two facts of vast
importance brought out at the emer
' gency potato convention recently
held in Stockton, California. It was
claimed in this connection that some
of the great and standard strains,
nuch as the Burbank in the West
and the Early Rose in the East, are
showing unmistakable signs of deter
ioration. Treatment by formalin and other
fungicides has proven of much prac
tical use in the effort to secure disease-free
potatoes. ' For some of the
diseases it has proven to be a per
fect control, but for others it Is not
of the slightest value. Taken all in
all the main dependence for grow
ing potatoes that are free from all
these pests is to be put In the devel
opment of resistant strains, 'supple
mented by proper cultural methods.
Special Investigation.
A special investigation of the potato-disease
question is being made
by the department of Plant Path
ology. It was in connection with
these Investigations that Professor
Bailey made the trip to Stockton
with the party of potato experts
from the United States Department
of Agriculture and from different
parts of Europe. For this potato
disease condition Is not confined to
this country, but has grown to be
one of the serious production prob
lems in some of the leading potato
countries of the Old World. It is
expected that valuable Information
will be secured in the Investigations
carried on by the Agricultural Col
lege staff of experts, and that much
useful knowledge will soon reach
the growers through their efforts.
To Moot Expense.
When asked how growers are ex
pected to make good on the in
creased cost of producing potatoes
for seed that are free from' pests
and of good quality otherwise, Pro
fessor F. D. Bailey, research assist
ant In plant pathology at the Agri
cultural College, replied that there
are two or three ways in which they
will be recompensed for their addi
tional trouble and expense. In the
first place, California growers offer
a bonus on clean, well grown and
properly inspected seed. While the
amount of this bonus was not stated,
and perhaps cannot be definitely
known until determined by actual i
experience, it will surely be enough
to cover cost of inspection, and to
pay for the extra work in caring
for the crop during its growth and
after it is harvested. Extra effort
and expense will also be rewarded
ill increased production and more
salable potatoes. The system of ro
tation by which alone disease-free
potatoes can be economically grown
should also prove of real value in
the general farming system.
Inspection Necessary.
In view of the rather startling
announcement that disease and insect-free
potatoes of desirable var
ieties and type are not produced
within the United States and that
Immense quantities of such are de
sired for seed in many sections of
the country, competition may be de
pended upon quite largely to ad
vance the price ot potatoes that
meet all these requirements. It will
be necessary in all cases, however, to
have the product Inspected by com
petent authorities who certify to the
quality of the product if It is to
secure the bonus offered by potato
men. This inspection need not be
ery burdensome If generally prac
ticed, and In certain sections ot the
United States the work Is performed
by experts at an expense of not to
exceed one cent a sack, according to.
Professor Bailey.
Northern Seed Best,
One feature of the situation that
Is perhaps not generally known, is
that seed potatoes even for southern
use should be northern grown. Some
of the most successful growers in
Southern California get northern
grown seed as free from pests of ail
kinds as possible and multiply this
seed for general planting the next
year by growing an intermediary
crop on a convenient hill location
near the large delta fields. Mr.
Shlma, the millionaire -Japanese po
tato grower of the California Delta
region, has quite successfully prac
ticed this method of securing desir
able seed for several years. The
fungous diseases that later attack
the plants grown in the low, rich
plains affect the first crop but lit
tle the first year. After that, how
ever, it is necessary to secure a
fresh supply of seed or infection sets
in badly.
In this production, Oregon should
have a large and important part
that would at the same time greatly
stimulate the industry in our own
state. Some of the things that would
go far toward freeing the Oregon
crop from the objectionable features
are field selection of seed and Its
treatment with a good fungicide, the
rotation of the potato fields with
crops that are non-hosts for the po
tato diseases, and a rigid inspection
of all seed bought and sold.
Select From Hill.
In order to select the best home
grown seed the condition of the tops
of the plant and of the ground in
which the crop was grown are mat
ters of importance that can be at
tended to only by field selection. If
selection is made originally from the
bin, good looking specimens ot de
sired type may be selected, and yet
they may have shown serious infec
tion in the plant On the other
hand, those seed potatoes that are
selected in the hill and then exam
ined carefully after being cleaned,
will be almost certain to show symp
toms of pests of any important kind,
if such pests are present
But even though the seed shows
no indications of disease or insect
pests it Is best to make assurance
doubly sure by giving every bit of
it used as seed the standard fungi
cide treatment Some of the disease
spores are very small and yet ex
tremely tenacious of life, and might
be brought Into contact with the
seed while it was stored. Hence the
need of the treatment.
Remove Culls.
In selecting the field it Is not
enough that it was not planted to
potatoes the proceeding year. It ti
lndispensible to success that the colli
of the last crop were removed of
made non-vital, since otherwise they
may have, carried the spores of thaj
worst diseases over Into the ground
where they will Infect the new crop
Where plenty of potato land Is osj
the farm, It might be best to plant 1
potatoes on the same field not oJ
tener than every third year. I
fected ground Is as fruitful a sonrcf
of Infection as Infected seed, and
both must be entirely tree from that
disease It the potatoes are disease
free.
And It Is only potatoes that si
disease-free and ot desirable tyyt
and variety, that tinder the rules of
the Western Potato Growers' Asst
elation are entitled to the bonus.
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