132 ANNUAL REPORT. 



fork in hand sees that all the bushes are held down and covered. la this way two- 

 men with a team will cover about one acre in three days. In the absence of bagasse 

 I should use straw in the same way; or even coarse manure will answer the same 

 purpose. Some recommend cutting the roots on one side of the bush, bending 

 down and covering with dirt, I have tried this with very poor success, as the bush 

 needs all the sap it can get to mature its fruit. I left one patch last winter of the 

 Stone's Hardy without covering, but did not get a, pint of fruit where I should 

 have had a bushel had they been covered. « 



EEMOVING COVERING. 



As it is necessary to mulch your bushes all you have to do is, as soon as freezing 

 weather is done, have two men with forks walk on each side of the row, removinj; 

 the covering from the bushes; raise them up with the fork and place the covering 

 under, or as nearly as you can get it; this keeps the weeds from growing among 

 the bushes and also protects your fruit from being injured by drouth; the rest of the 

 cultivating can be done with a horse. 



TIME OP IIIPENING, ETC. 



We first went into blackberry culture with many doubts. Hence we only set 

 three rows fifty rods long. From this patch we sold last year over one thousand 

 quarts of very choice fruit at twenty cents per quart, and estimated over five hun- 

 dred quarts on the bushes when the frost of September 1st harvested the balance. 

 We have so much faith in blackberry culture that we have now three acres, and 

 shall double that amount as soon as we can get the plants. I should have said our 

 rows were not full, and we now have bushes enough on the three rows to double the 

 yield of 1885. 



As to the time of ripening of the three kinds above described, I would say, that, 

 we commenced picking Snyder August 1st; Stone's Hardy August 10th; Ancien 

 Briton August 20th. September 1st, Snyder all gone; Stone's Hardy had but few 

 berries left; Ancient Briton had not yet reached their best. 



QUALITY OF FRUIT. 



We had many visitors and with but few exceptions the verdict was in favor of 

 Stone's Hardy. Any of these varieties are good enough for me. 



A paper on Grape Culture, by Silas Wilson, President of the Iowa 

 State Horticultural Society, was then read by the Assistant Secre- 

 tary. Following is the paper: 



GRAPE CULTURE. 

 By Silas Wilson, Atlantic, Iowa. 

 Mr. President and Members of tJie Minnesota State Horticultural Society: 



By the kind solicitation of your Secretary I have been induced to prepare a short 

 essay on the grape. 



Grape vines are among the most variable plants. Even in their wild state, in 

 climate, soil, shade, humidity, and. perhaps hybridization, have originated such a 

 multiplicity and such an intermixture of forms, that it is often diflScult to recognize 



