WAUPACA REPUBLICAN

April 7, 1893

 

Cutting Seed Potatoes

 

            Cutting seed potatoes for planting has been a prolific subject for discussion, and many even today hold adverse opinions concerning the size of the pieces for planting.   At the Indiana station there have been experiments conducted for a long time, and the authorities give as conclusive facts the results of their trials.  It was found that pieces about the same size, but some containing more eyes than others, produced almost the same size stalk and number of tubers.  There was really no advantage in increasing the number of eyes to the piece. Increasing the size of the piece of potato, however, gave a corresponding increase in the number of stalks. From this it may be judged that a small piece of potato can nourish only one eye, and increasing the number of eyes without increasing the size of the piece of potato is of no avail.  The eyes at the seed end of the potato act as a single eye, and not as independent ones capable of producing as many stalks as there are apparent eyes.  There is more importance in the size in which the potatoes are cut than in the number of eyes to the piece.  The tubers should be cut uniformly in about 1, 2 or 3-ounce pieces.  This may be done in almost entire disregard to the position of the eyes.  It is uniformity of size in the pieces that produces the most uniform and best crop, according to the experiments conducted at the Indiana station.