The Bulletin. 



PREPARATION OF SOIL. 



Most of the soils in this State which are well adapted to dewberry 

 growing contain a very small amount of plant food and little or no 

 humus. These soils must be gi-eatly improved if the best results are 

 to be obtained. Plant food and humus must be supplied in some 

 form. If this can be done before the plants are set out, so much the 

 better. In preparing the soil for the dewberry crop it is well to 

 begin two or three years before planting. By a rotation of crops 

 and by using legumes — for example, cowpeas or crimson clover — the 

 land can be very much improved, and if these crops are turned into 

 the soil a large amount of humus is also added. Some of the poorest 

 soils, when treated in this way, will yield good crops of dewberries. 



The land is prepared every season for annual crops. The dew- 

 berry is a perennial plant and occupies the land for at least ten years ; 

 hence, the preparation of the land must be more thorough than that 

 for annual crops, like corn and cotton. Plowing should be very deep, 

 and if the land is underlaid with a clay subsoil which comes near the 

 surface, it becomes necessary to use a subsoil plow to break up this 

 hard layer. This is for the purpose of giving depth to the soil, so 

 that it will supply a greater feeding surface to the roots, will offer 

 better drainage, and during a drought will help to retain the moisture. 

 If the soil is at all rough it should be thoroughly pulverized before 

 planting; this can be done with a heavy roller. Usually, however, 

 this condition does not exist in most of our dewberrv sections. 



PROPAGATION. 



The dewberry is easily propagated, two methods being commonly 

 employed. 



Tip Layers.— This method is generally employed in this State in 

 propagating the dewberry, and usually it is the most satisfactory. It 

 is quite easily performed. The tips of the long vines are covered 

 with soil in the fall, and, as soon as they have formed a good root 

 system, are ready to be cut off from the parent plant and planted in 

 the field, where they are to remain permanently. Usually we have 

 found it very satisfactory to cover them in September, and then trans- 

 plant them in December. This gives a good opportunity for fall 

 planting. Many growers do not transplant them until early the fol- 

 lowing spring — some time during March. In that case it is not 

 necessary to cover them until later in the season — say October or early 

 November. This has the advantage of allowing the vines to grow 

 later in the fall before the tips are covered. 



It is best for this purpose to select good, strong, healthy plants, and 

 from these plants select the strongest vines, and also those freest from 

 disease or bruises of any kind. This will give better results in the 

 new plantation. 



