HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 47 



second, varieties; third, the right kind of cultivation at the proper 

 time; fourth, winter protection. 



Raspberries are adapted to any good, dry soil, high or low, as 

 they blossom late and are not liable to be killed by frost. At the 

 same time they do the best on a clay soil. Previous to planting, 

 the ground should be summer plowed, the last of July_, and a mod- 

 erate dressing of manure applied, and ploughed again and thor- 

 oughly harrowed in September. Mark it out, if convenient, north 

 and south, in rows at least eight feet apart — nine is better. Plant 

 after the 15th of October, three feet apart in the rows, and press 

 the soil firm about the roots. With a sharp knife, shorten the 

 canes within one inch of the ground. No mulching of any kind is 

 necessary when the plants are set in the fall. The following spring, 

 the first season, can be planted between the rows, one row of any 

 kind of a hoed crop, such as cabbage, beans, potatoes, etc. Give 

 the plants good cultivation with cultivator and hoe. Allow about 

 three canes to each hill and destroy all the others. Any time after 

 the first of October, before the ground freezes, the plants can be 

 laid down. The rows should run north and south on account of 

 the prevailing wind in the summer from the west. The laying 

 down is done by loosening the ground about the roots on the east 

 side of each hill, with a spade or fork; then with the hands or a 

 two-tined fork, press the canes as flat on the ground as possible. It 

 is sometimes quite difficult to keep the plants down with dirt. In 

 such cases, place a little marsh hay, or something of that nature, 

 about midway of the plant when down and throw a few shovels of 

 earth on top. 



If the plants are large and bow up and leave an open space 

 between them and the ground, we have, for several years, filled 

 those spaces up to the canes with earth. In this way we protected 

 our plants for several winters and never failed to get a good crop 

 of fruit. Eecently we have been using coarse manure over the 

 roots and lower parts of the canes and find it works well and greatly 

 increases the crop. Either way is good, but the latter is the best 

 unless the soil is rich. The extreme tops of the canes are not cov- 

 ered, as those are cut off with a sharp spade before the canes are 

 raised up. The amount of cutting depends on the length of the 

 canes; usually from sis inches to a foot. When this is done we 

 lift up the canes with a fork that has several tines, placed under 

 them. We do not place them in an erect position but allow them 

 to remain at an angle of about 50 degrees. Never cut or pinch the 

 tips of the growing canes in the summer as this would make the 

 stalks stocky and cause them to throw out laterals which would 

 make it bad about putting them down in the fall. 



As soon as the plants are lifted from their winter protection, we 

 drive stakes twenty feet apart in the rows on the same angle as the 

 plants. The height of the stakes depends on the length of the 

 plants— usually from 2^ to 3 feet above the ground. On those 

 stakes we string a telegraph wire and hold it in its place, on the 

 upper side of the stakes, with staples placed over the wire and 

 driven about half their length into the stakes so that they can be 

 drawn out when the plants are to be put down in winter. Bear in 



