THE SMALL FRUITS OF NEW YORK 195 



" The steins are furnished with a very few small thorns, and trifoliate 

 leaves; the leaflets are about an inch and a half long and half as wide, of 

 a light green color; leaf stem from one to two inches in length and a Httle 

 prickly. 



" The fruit is borne on slender stems two or three inches in length, 

 is shining, jet black, fragrant, sweet and juicy. Most of the fruit in a 

 wild state is imperfect, developing a drupe only here and there over its 

 surface; cultivation of the wild plants does not in the least improve this 

 habit, according to Dr. M. The seedlings to which we now direct atten- 

 tion have not this fault of the wild type, but are fully developed in every 

 case — their size is very large, nearly or quite equalling the best specimens 

 of the New Rochelle blackberry. In quality and flavor they are far superior 

 to any blackberry known, and are verj^ prolific and hardy. 



" The plants propagate themselves by striking root at the ends of 

 the shoots, and never throw up any suckers. 



" The plat of ground which Dr. M. has devoted to these fruits, is about 

 one-eighth of an acre. The plants are set out about five feet apart in squares ; 

 early in the spring a pole or stake is driven down by the side of each plant, 

 standing five or six feet high, arotmd which the fine, long, flexible shoots of 

 the previous year's growth are wound, and fastened by a string, tying them 

 at the top, thus forming a kind of cylinder or cone. By this mode of train- 

 ing, the fruits hang outside, clear of the foliage all around, affording the 

 greatest facility for gathering. The new growth is allowed to trail on the 

 groxind until the succeeding spring. 



"The plants do not occupy much space, and three feet each way would 

 be ample room to allow them. 



"We judged that the plants produced about two quarts of berries each. 



" The two varieties are distinct from each other in fruit and foliage and 

 period of ripening. The early variety is more fragrant and sweeter than 

 the later one, and at the date we saw them (Aug. 5th) was neariy gone, while 

 the other was just in perfection. It will be seen, therefore, that both 

 varieties mature earlier than either the Dorchester or New Rochelle black- 

 berries, which are now (August 20th) at the height of their season. 



"As the originator of these fruits has already parted with some of the 

 plants to different individuals, they wiU probably be spread through the 

 coimtry from several sources, and as no names have been used to distinguish 

 the varieties, it is possible that some confusion may arise in reference to 

 this matter, and we will notice that the edges of the leaves of the early 

 kind are dentate or doubly dentate, while those of the later variety are 

 sharply serrate. 



"We think it desirable that the term Dewberry should be used to desig- 

 nate these plants, instead of Blackberry, as their mode of growth is so 

 entirely different from the high Blackberry. 



