382 State Horticultural Society. 



as in places where these conditions are more moderate, unless the plants 

 are thoroughly mulched at the time of transplanting. Autumn set plants 

 should be able to make some root growth, before the ground freezes very 

 much, in order to supply the comparatively small amount of moisture 

 which evaporates through the twigs during the winter. Without this 

 root growth plants will more or less exhaust themselves by the evapora- 

 tion and be more likely to winter kill. Plants dug in the fall and held 

 in or stored in cellars or otherwise protected during the winter lose but 

 little by evaporation and by spring will be in much better condition than if 

 planted in the open. If, however, the plants become well established by 

 root growth before the extreme winter season it is nearly always best to do 

 the work at that time, othei-wise it is better deferred until spring. 



Experiments are now in progress at the Missouri Botanical Garden 

 10 find out, so far as possible, the behavior of small fruits and various 

 other plant when transplanted at different seasons of the year. So far 

 as my experience and observation go strawberries taken up from one 

 bed and reset in another without being out of the ground more than a 

 few hours do best when moved in September or October; not later than 

 i^ovember 1. If the plants are to come from a distance, however, early 

 spring is far preferable. Blackcap raspberries are safer planted in spring 

 unless carefully mulched with coarse litter at the time of transplanting 

 in the fall. The other common small fruits, red raspberries, black- 

 berries, currants and gooseberries seem to pass the winter in good con- 

 dition even when planted as late as December 1 and make a better growth 

 the following season than if planted in the spring. It is a safer plan, 

 however, to do the work the latter part of October or first of November. 

 — Prof. H. C. Irish, Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, Mo. 



WHEN TO CUT BACK SMALL FRUITS. 



J. B. F., Scipio, ]Sr. Y. — I am trying to grow small fruits for home 

 use, and don't know just when is the proper time to cut back the new 

 growth on berry bushes, or to what extent they should be cut back to 

 produce the best results on next year's crop. I would, also, like to know 

 something about summer pruning of grape vines. 



