School: Paddock, Mountrath (roll number 13173)
- Location:
- Paddock, Co. Laois
- Teacher: A. Ó Dubhlainn
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0825, Page 104
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- XML School: Paddock, Mountrath
- XML Page 104
- XML “The Potato Crop”
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- (continued from previous page)When the stalks appear about six inches above the ground they are wed of weeds be in them. They are then moulded, that is fresh clay is put up to them with a single or double mould plough. In the month of July they are sprayed to kill or prevent the blight. They are then left growing till the Autumn when they are dug out either by spades and digger or by a machine called the potato digger. Some people prefer to dig them out with diggers as the potatoes are then not bruised as they will be by the machine. It takes fewer to pick when dug out with the digger than with the machine.The people (neighbours) generally help at he raising by the machine by picking them,They are picked into baskets generally known as "skebs"(sometimes homemade out of sallies) They are then put in small pits in the potato field and covered lightly.Later on the farmer and his family go to these pits and sort the potatoes(separate the long from the small) Then they are drawn in the farmyard and placed in large pits.
- Collector
- Thomas Breen
- Gender
- Male
- Age
- 13
- Address
- Deerpark, Co. Laois
- Informant
- John Breen
- Relation
- Parent
- Gender
- Male
- Age
- 50
- Address
- Deerpark, Co. Laois
