210 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST. 



BLACKBERRY CULTURE. 

 The home of the blackberry is in a 

 deep sandy soil, not over-rich, the 

 climate cool and moist rather than hot 

 and dry. In such a soil the roots are 

 safe from V»e influences of the weather, 

 as they penetrate deep, the water in a 

 wet season passing olf readily, and the 

 heat and drouth not reaching them to 

 seriously affect them./ unless unusually 

 severe, then only checking the growth 

 and shrinking the berries. Thickly 

 mulching the ground in such case is 

 a great help, using some vegeiabie 

 material, like muck or leaf mold, which, 

 worked afterward into the soil, is of 

 great benefit. Partial shade from 

 shrubs, or occasional trees, or other 

 means of preventing the direct heat of 

 the sun, is an advantage in our drouthy 

 climate.^' Better still is a northern in- 

 clination of the ground, as it favors 

 moisture arid secures a more uniform 

 temperature, having also the whole 

 TDenefit of the soil. The only danger 

 would be from a great growth of stalk 

 in a moist, growing season, the wood 

 not sufficiently maturing to withstand 

 the cold of winter, especially if severe. 

 This is readily avoided by pinching off 

 with thumb and finger, the tips of the 

 canes, which is best done when a height 

 of three feet or more has been reached, 

 depending upon the thickness of the 

 stalk, as stockiness is required to sus- 

 tain the weight of the fruit, thus dis- 

 I)ensing with stakes for support. This 

 diverts the growth into the side shoots 

 or arms, which in like manner must be 

 stopped when the proper length has 

 been reached, which may vary from 

 fifteen to eighteen inches. These late- 

 rals make an unequal growth, some 

 reaching the proper length for stopping 

 sooner than others ; hence frequent at- 

 tention is required, so that no unneces- 

 sary loss of wood results from excess of 

 growth. If any are tardy and threaten 

 to make too late a growth to stand the 



winter, pinch them back whatever their 

 length to give the wood a chance to 

 harden. In this way the whole plant 

 becomes fortified against the cold, and 

 is the better able from its increased 

 stockiness and shortening of length to 

 bear its fruit, the size and quality of 

 which will also be improved. In this 

 operation there is nothing rash, the 

 plant receives no shock from severe 

 pruning ; only the direction of growth 

 is somewhat changed, favoring the parts 

 that most need it — the laterals, which 

 bear the fruit. 



One of the faults in blackberry cul- 

 ture is an excess of growth or too high 

 manuring, favoring a tendency to pro- 

 duce stalk and leaf growth at the ex- 

 pense of fruit. But while less push is 

 required for the canes, more is demanded 

 to round out the growing crop of fruit, 

 the two principles, unfortunately, being 

 in antagonism. The only course is the 

 medium, which produces a good cane 

 and a fair to good crop of fruit, the 

 lack to be made up by planting closer, 

 which the lesser growth will allov/. 

 Rank manure should be discarded, stir- 

 ring lightly the surface of the ground 

 and mulching with fine vegetable ma- 

 terial to be finally worked into the soil, 

 is better treatment — well-rotted stable 

 manure, if needed, preceding the mulch. 

 The time for applying the manure is 

 after the fruit is set, or at the blossom- 

 ing period, or, if the soil is quite poor, 

 earlier still, which will push the canes, 

 that can then bear it, and improve the 

 fruit. The manure mostly exhausted, 

 the canes will grow more leisurely and 

 slowly, thus getting a chance to ripen 

 their wood and favor the formation of 

 fruit buds. Treated in this way the 

 largest and finest berries and greatest 

 and most profitable crops are grown. 

 Otherwise, with the too general treat- 

 ment, the berry will be small and seedy, 

 and lacking in flavor. The excellence 

 of the blackberry, as of other berries^ 



