;}a4 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



May lo 



lake a look at it. lie did not come, l)ut sent 

 me the following: 



Dear Mr. A'oo/.— Your letter of the 13th is at hand. 

 I am delighted to know that Mr. Ten Hroek has 

 made svu-h a success with tlie .Northey berry. The 

 only enemy it has seems to be the thrips. These are 

 driven ofT by free use of tol)aeco. which should be 

 used either in powdered form or in liciuid extract 

 form just as they begin to bloom. We have a fair 

 stock, and can supply a good many for next winter. 

 I'lie pot-grown plants, of which we have quite a 

 number, may be set tiny time. 1 shall be pleased to 

 give you some plants, .lust say how many you 

 ^vant. K- N- Rkasoner. 



Onecp. Fla., April 14. 



Of course I got neighbor Rood to go over 

 and look at it. He agreed with me in regard 

 to this wonderful tropical fruit, and I believe 

 he also agreed that it w^as the most delicious 

 berry he ever tasted. 



Now, if I should drop this account right 

 here, would it not be a magnificent adver- 

 tisement for the Northey blackberry? I 

 found by inquiry that the berry had been 

 known for some years. It very much re- 

 sembles what our California friends call the 

 Logan berry. I ate quite largely of them 

 some four or five years ago when on the 

 Pacific coast; but, so far as I can recall, this 

 Northey berry has a most exquisite and pe- 

 culiar flavor that the Logan berry did not 

 have. After the originator of the fruit died, 

 the plant was neglected for some years. Then 

 Mr. Reasoner got hokl of it and put it in his 

 catalog, and has sold plants to a considerable 

 extent. My neighbor, Mr. Rood, put out 

 quite a little plantation a year ago or more; 

 but for some reason they did not thrive on 

 his land like the one big plant I have men- 

 tioned. Mr. Rood cautioned me a little 

 about making an extravagant write-up. He 

 said, so far as I can remember, something 

 like this: 



"Neighbor T. used to have a garden right 

 here where that plant stands, and I think 

 he had gotten the ground up to a pretty 

 good degree of fertility. Another thing, the 

 ground seems to be a little springy on that 

 spot. Right near the plant is an old well, 

 and the water stands within two or three 

 feet of the top of the ground almost the year 

 round. That spot seems to enjoy a sort of 

 natural sub-irrigation." 



.lust one thing more: Over almost all the 

 State of Florida, the weeds and the commons 

 get burned over almost every year or of tener. 

 Some claim it is better for cow^ pasturage. 

 Well, Mr. Ten Jiroek has never permitted 

 his ground to be burned off or i)astured off. 

 The luxuriant tropical growth has been com- 

 ing up and dying down or rotting down 

 every year for fifteen or sixteen years with 

 little or nothing taken away. The conse- 

 quence is, it has become covered with a lot 

 of humus and vegetable growth, making it 

 in good condition to growalmost any thing. 

 That is why these berries are so much ahead 

 of mine. 



You will notice, from Mr. lieasoner's re- 

 marks above, that he speaks of thrips; and 

 I think it is those same thrips that hinder 

 Mr. Rood's Northey berry from bearing, 

 'i'liere are no thrips nor signs of them on 



Mr. Ten Brock's i)reniises. I can not tell 

 why unless it is V)ecause of the exceedingly 

 strong thrifty growth. 



Mr. Ten Ikoek has no i)lants for sale. 

 When 1 si)oke about writing it up he said I 

 should say to you all that he did not want to 

 be bothered with corresi)ondence on the sub- 

 ject. Mr. Reasoner, however, will probably 

 be able to give you |)lants enough to test it 

 in most localities. I have quite a lot set 

 out near my Floritla home, and am going to 

 give it a trial here in Ohio. Perhai)s it 

 might save you trouble by saying that Mr. 

 Reasoner's catalog price for ])otted plants is 

 25 cts. each. 



I have given this Northey berry a write- 

 up because I feel it is going to be a blessing 

 to humanity. One such mound of berries 

 as I have described ought to be worth ten 

 dollars to a family where there are several 

 children. Yes, there is one other difficulty. 

 It is not a " thornless blackberry," as you 

 will soon discover if you get it to grow on 

 your premises. But you know there is 

 scarcely "a rose" — that is, a real nice one — 

 "without a thorn." 



SELLING SECRETS, ETC. 



The following, from Prof. A. A. lirigham, 

 of the College of Agriculture of South Da- 

 kota, exi)lains itself: 



Mr. A. I. Jioot: — Confirming your criticism in 

 CiLEANiNGS, page 276, concerning a cheap and sure 

 (§1.00) method of exterminating lice and mites, let 

 me refer you to page i:W of " Progressive Poultry 

 Culture" for the hydrocyanic-acld-gas treatment, 

 and to the previous page for brimstone fumigation, 

 these methods being given, not as "secrets." but as 

 plans in use. The book (of which you have a copy) 

 has been published nearly three years. These meth- 

 ods were published often before that. If needed I 

 can tell of experiences of mine where the hydro- 

 cyanic treatment proved ervensive and iiiisatis/acto- 

 ry. while the old-fashioned "hell-fire" proved ecu- 

 noinical and effective in destroying the pestiferous 

 parasites. The former ca.se was that of a brooder- 

 house 40 feet long that had stood empty for over a 

 year, and yet was swarming with mites. I will not 

 biu'den you with the recital, however, unless you 

 wish it. 



1 desire to thank you for your earnest exposure 

 of .so many frauds and fallacies of the present day. 



Brookings, S. D., April 27. A. A. Brioham. 



In view of the above, does it not seem as 

 if the PostofTice Department at Washing- 

 ton should refuse to deliver mail to men or 

 women who deliberately go into this kind 

 of graft — charging a dollar for a simjile i)ro- 

 cess that they have copied from some print- 

 ed b<x)k or journal? 



In turning to the page mentioned above, 

 I found the i)rocess given in detail. Thanks 

 to Prof. Rrigham for having called our at- 

 tention to it. I should like to have him 

 tell us all about banishing the i)ests from 

 that forty-foot brooder-house. 



KIND WORDS FOR THE HOME DEPARTMENT. 



1 have been reading a few numbers of (ii.EANiNt;s 

 with profit on general subjects; but If you could 

 know the great help which I have received from 

 Our Homes it would cheer your heart and fully re- 

 l)ay you for all that you have given In that depart- 

 ment. Let the good work continue. 



Cu.shman. Ma.ss. A.sA \'. Snow. M. 1). 



