118 American Horticultural Society. 



Our most successful grower of small fruits in Wisconsin, who has proba- 

 bly grown more strawberries than any other two men in our State during 

 the last twenty-five years, wrote me, December 29, that he " had no very 

 striking records of success, but could show some stupendous failures." He 

 said : " Had I stuck to the Wilson, adding Downer's Prolific and Crescent, 

 and left alone the novelties, I would have been many thousands of dollars 

 ahead now." With his culture " Wilson in the last twenty three years has 

 seldom gone below 5,000 quarts per acre, and often as high as 7,000 quarts, 

 good dry measure," and during that time " has paid a net profit of not less 

 than one hundred and twenty-five dollars per acre." " Last spring, with the 

 destructive frosts of May 29 destroying one-third of his Wilsons and one- 

 sixth of his Crescents, they alone paid a handsome profit." He is still look- 

 ing, like the rest of us, for the " coming strawberry," and continues to plant 

 " pistillate Bobs, Jumbos, and Sally Marias." 



W"e are ever hopeful, ever expectant. We believe in raising strawberries 

 that will yield 1,000 bushels per acre. We have not yet reached that stand- 

 ard, although we have very often had strawberries larger than pumpkins in 

 June. 



Hamline Hodgen picked of Countess in 1881 239 quarts in one day ; June 

 28, 1882, he picked 112 quarts in five hours. H. H. Cowles, from five Cres- 

 cents planted in 1881 and their increase, pirked four bushels i-i 18i2. One 

 hundred plants of any good variety, with their increase, ought to give 500 

 to 1,000 quarts the next season. 



Raspberries have always paid for care and labor bestowed, and while there 

 are so many good paying kinds that are well tried, we do not care to invest 

 heavily in novelties. We know of nothing so sure of a good crop every 

 time unless it is the 



BLACKBERRY. 



We prize Snyder for early, Stone's Hardy for late, and Ancient Briton for 

 shipping. The severitj' of our winters has compelled us to cover the 

 bushes with some protection. At Ripon, Wisconsin, the most extensive 

 blackberry cultivation is successfully carried on by this mode. 



C. H. Hamilton writes me December 80, 1884: "The average crop of An- 

 cient Briton by the acre is from 4,200 to 5,000 quarts, and in 1883 the lowest 

 price was 12.1 cents, and most of the crop brought 15 cents per box; crop of 

 1884 averaged 10 cents per box." 



He says: "The cost of laying down, covering with earth, removing the 

 dead brush, uncovering and putting up in spring and replacing the wires 

 on each side the row will not exceed one cent per bush. Two men will cover 

 one acre per day." 



With this protection we consider blackberries the surest crop of fruit we 

 have. The mode of covering is by loosening the earth on each side the bush 

 with a fork and bending in the root, bending all one waj^; with the uncer- 

 tainty of our winters we tind it pnys to cover even Snyder. 



