School: O'Brennan, Baile Mhic Ealgóid, Tráighlí

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1. Potatoes - Sowing and Storing (continued)

   

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   pupil has the following account:-

   "The plough is the most common method of digging the potatoes in my townland. My father says that the "digger" harms the potatoes very much, so he began using the plough. We have enough help on our own so we do not employ any outside help to dig and pick our potatoes. My father tackles a pair of horses to the double-board plough and he makes two parts of each drill Then we pick them into buckets and make the pits or heaps near us. After a few days we draw them all to one big pit. We always put the "eating potatoes" into a house. The different kinds of potatoes grown in this district are:- Kerr's Pinks, Arran Banners, Champions, Epicures, British Queens, American Pintons
   The small potatoes & bad ones are boiled for hens or pigs or given to cows or calves in their raw state."

   N.B. The foregoing accounts are typical of others which I have received on this subject: Ridges are also made instead of Drills by ploughing 4 sods together. The sgioltháin are then stuck with spades in the ridge covered with manure and then earthed. Afterwards they are treated as the drills (above). When storing time comes round they are dug with spades, &. potatoes are picked & stored as above. The "Digger" is generally used in the lowlands of this parish

   

   Transcribed by a member of our volunteer transcription project.

   History Edit

   Topics

   1. activities
      1. economic activities
         1. agriculture (~2,659)
            1. potatoes (~2,701)

   Language

   English

   Collector

   Donal Leen

   Gender

   Male

   Address

   Ballincollig, Co. Kerry