: ld WC EN LSI Ri ORME 4 RICH Dia MTR oN Mare 
' Cini Ph oni Olgs aN : 
190 MINNESOTA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY 
SOILS MOST SUITABLE FOR RED RASPBERRIES 
AND THEIR PREPARATION. 
E. H. SCOFIELD, BAY LAKE, CROW WING COUNTY. 
I believe that the soil best suitedto the perfect developmentof the 
redraspberry,considering flavor,size,firmness and quality,is a sandy 
loam. As I remember the raspberry patches of my boyhood, they 
were in some burnt-over chopping on a sandy soil. I have invaria- 
bly noticed the same thing herein northern Minnesota. Among the 
thousands of acres of wild raspberries growing here, the choicest 
are on sandy soil or some partially shaded northern slope, near bya 
sleepy brook or overlooking some perfect gem of a woodland lake, 
whose quiet waters reflect the giant pines that guard its solitude. 
I should choose a location with as little compact clay in the sub- 
soil as possible and not more than ten or twelve feet above the 
water levelin the soil, that sufficient moisture might be brought 
to the roots of the plant by persistent cultivation during the dryest 
season. I should choose a gentle slope toward the northeast, north 
or east, to avoid as muchas possible the direct rays of our hot, sum- 
mer sun upon the soil, for the raspberry loves the cool, partial shade 
as well as the moisture. 
I should choose a timbered soil, rich in potash and iron, that will 
give vigor to the plant and firmness, color and flavor to the fruit. I 
should choose a place among the lakes, where the hot winds of sum- 
mer would be tempered by the cool and grateful moisture and the 
crop protected from the late and early frosts. Such is the ideal lo- 
cation I have chosen. 
As tothe preparation of the soil: It has been seeded in grass, 
timothy and clover for several years. A heavy stand of timber, 
consisting of pine, oak, hard maple, basswood, butternut, birch and 
poplar, has been cut down and burned upon the land. This together 
with the leaf mold and ashes from the forests of a thousand years 
have laid up in the soil a store of fertility not soon to be exhausted. 
This grass land was ploughed last spring and planted in corn, 
roots and potatoes and kept thoroughly cultivated. Next spring 
the land will be manured with stable manure (to induce 
growth of wood in the young plants), ploughed deep, har- 
rowed and leveled, and furrows running east and west will 
be opened with the plow every seven feet in which to set 
the young plants. A raspberry plantation will stand with 
proper care and cultivation for many years, and for this reason the 
preparation of the soil must be deep and thorough. Stable manure 
is to be used in starting the plantation to promote the growth of 
wood but should never be used upona fruiting plantation, as the 
canes will grow large and soft and the fruit lack firmness and qual- 
ity. Ifa fertilizer is needed, I should use bone meal and ashes and 
some form of potash scattered along the rows and cultivated in. 
I shall set the rows east and west, that the plants of one row may 
protect and shade the roots of the next row and prevent drying in 
summer and freezing and thawing in winter. 
