THE POTATO A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON THE POTATO, SAMUEL FRASER ILLUSTRATED NEW YORK ORANGE JUDD COMPANY 1911 PREFACE THE literature issued on the subject of potatoes during the past three hundred years would form a large library, many works having been published in the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and other countries. It is safe to say that no plant has aroused a deeper interest than "the noble tuber." Its very existence to-day is largely due to the efforts of enthusiasts. Several of the older writers were keen observers and acquainted intimately with the history and character of the potato, and modern authors include the names of men who are eminent in the scientific world. The vast amount of research and demonstration carried out by the experiment stations of this country during the past ten years, and the fact that every station has done something in this line, show the breadth of the subject and furnish material hitherto unobtainable. The excellent research work now being carried on in Europe, especially in France, Germany, etc., and more recently established in Ireland, indicates a demand for more information about this crop. We feel that the "science of agriculture" is a reality; that, like every past generation, we are on the eve of great discoveries; that something of the laws governing plant nutrition and growth will shortly be revealed, that we may be able to prevent rather than cure the troubles which assail our plants. To be of |