BLACKBERRIES AND RASPBERRIES. 395 



them all in the market, and brings more money. Its earliness is its principal 

 Talne. AVitli this variety the blackberry season is lengthened two or three 

 ■weeks, making the period of supplying the market with this frnit nearly three 

 months." 



In the Horticulturist for September, 1867, in an article on "The Black- 

 berry," by Andrew S. Fuller of ^New York, he characterizes it as follows: "I 

 confess to an agreeable surprise with this variety, for it has really proved to be 

 Enperior to the high encomiums which were bestowed upon it by those who 

 first disseminated the plants. The berries are enormously large, far excelling 

 the New Eochelle, being much longer, and nearly or quite equal to it in diam- 

 eter. * * * The extreme earliness of this variety is greatly in its favor. 

 Following closely the raspberries, it fills a space in the season heretofore 

 almost unoccupied, and offers an opportunity to the grower of small fruits of 

 keeping his baskets and crates continuously in use. The berries all ripen in 

 about two weeks, and the entire crop may be disposed of before the later varie- 

 ties begin. The Wilson's Early will doubtless become one of the most popular 

 market varieties." 



In taking leave of this, the last of the varieties recommended by the society, 

 we only add the remark that it seems, at least in Western Michigan, to be 

 assuming a leading position among planters, both for domestic and market 

 purposes. True, it is by no means the equal of the Kittatinny in quality, 

 though it excels both that and the New Rochelle in size. This advantage, 

 however, for market purposes, seldom fails to carry the day as against quality 

 alone; and this fact, together with its superior earliness, and the economy of 

 gathering and marketing, on account of its habit of ripening together, affords 

 a very weighty and conclusive reason for its growing popularity. 



Although there are and have been for some time more recent candidates for 

 the favor of planters of the blackberry, so far no one of these has been able to 

 establish itself prominently in their confidence. In fact, one of the leading if 

 Bot the leading consideration urged in favor of the most of these is their alleged 

 superior hardiness; although some of them, as for instance Hoosac Thornless 

 and one or two others, present the additional recommendation of the increased 

 convenience of handling the plants and gathering the fruits. 



Quite a number of them are recommended to the fanciful planter as amber, 

 red and white blackberries; but so far as proved, all these seem to be lacking 

 in such essential qualities as hardiness or productiveness. 



BLACK CAPS. 



As we have already found occasion to remark, the effort to produce improved 

 varieties of the native Black Cap is of but recent origin ; and, as has been 

 found to be the case with the blackberry, such efforts have apparently been 

 confined to the selection and subjection to culture and artificial management 

 of such wild sorts as seemed most to manifest an improvement in quality. A 

 few varieties, like Purple Cane, Ellisdale, and more recently, and perhaps in a 

 more striking manner, Gauargua, give some indications of a possible origin, 

 by hybridization between the Black Cap ( Ruhits Occidentalis), and the native 

 red raspberry [Rubus Slrigosus), or possibly the European species {Rubus 

 Jdaeus). If, however, such hybridization has actually taken place, it must 

 clearly have been accidL^ntal. Indeed, we have no account of any efforts for 

 the production of improved varieties of the Black Cap by any system of arti- 

 ficial reproduction from the seed. 



