New York Agricultural Experiment Station. 337 



cultivator may run both ways, the gooseberries should stand at 

 least five by five feet apart. If the cultivator is to run but 

 one way the rows should be six feet apart and the plants four 

 feet apart in the row. Strong growing varieties may be planted 

 at greater distances apart than those just given. 



Planting. — In preparing the plants for setting out the broken 

 or bruised parts of the roots should be removed with a clean cut 

 because the smooth surface will heal more readily than will the 

 rough bruised surfaces. The tops should be shortened to corre- 

 spond with the amount of roots. New branches will push out 

 later as the roots develop. When the hole is prepared the roots 

 should be spread out and covered with an inch or more of earth 

 which should be tramped firmly. The hole is then filled and 

 after the earth has been tramped again it is covered with a layer 

 of loose earth to prevent the rapid evaporation which takes place 

 when the hard surface is exposed to the air. 



Pruning. — English writers usually recommend that gooseber- 

 ries be trained in tree form, that is, with a single main stem for 

 each plant, and that method is largely followed in the old coun- 

 try. On account of their neat symmetrical appearance such 

 plants are well adapted to well cultivated gardens. Figure 1, 

 plate XII, is from a photograph of Whitesmith pruned in this 

 way. The bush was planted nine seasons before the photograph 

 was taken. Figures 1 and 2, plate XXII, illustrate a younger 

 bush of more spreading habit before and after pruning. This 

 variety is the Watson. It was planted four seasons before the 

 photograph was taken. A bush grown in this form does not pro- 

 duce suckers and if it is broken off accidentally it cannot be re- 

 newed by letting new sprouts grow, but must be removed and a 

 new plant set in its place. After they have borne five or six good 

 crojjs it is generally best to replace them with new bushes, for 

 they gradually become less productive than plants which are 

 grown in the bush form because the latter may be renewed from 

 suckers whenever it is thought desirable to do so. 



To grow bushes in tree form, it is simply necessary to remove 

 all buds or eyes from the portion of the cutting or layer which 

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