S48 



GLEANINGS IN U£E CULTUHE. 



May 



you would find yourself in the midst of happy faces 

 and bright dresses. You could not go far without 

 seeing a group of young: men and women playing 

 battlor'pcr and shuttlecock. They always have a 

 box of Japanese black ink, with which they paint 

 the faces of those that miss. You would also see 

 young men, and even old men, flying kites beside 

 the little boys. Every one is out in his good cloth- 

 ing. Flags and decorations arc on every side. 

 There are many happy faces, and the little babies 

 beside the other children usually have a piece of 

 candy or a toy in their hand. 



I must not forget to mention the Japanese cus- 

 tom of making New-Year's calls. They try to visit 

 :ill of their friends by the 3d of January; but if 

 that is impossible, by the Tth. Japanese call it an 

 almost unpardonable rudeness if all of their friends 

 have not been to their house by the Tth. 



Tokio, Japan, Jan. 2, 1885. Ada Krecker. 



HOW TO RAISE CRANBERBIES. 



WHITTEN BY ONI 



)VR 1.5-YEAH-OLD .JUVEXILES. 



TTNCLE AMOS:— As you say you are going into 

 LI the cranberry business, and want some ad- 

 wA vice how to prepare and set out a bed, I will 

 ^^ tell you what I know about it, for my pa (L. 

 C. Seaton) planted a bed in Minnesota, and I 



helped him, so I have some knowledge how it 



should bo done. 

 The most important part is the selection of a site. 



A peat-bog, or a mucky slough, that is so situated 



that it can be drained or flooded at will, is a proper 



place. 

 Alluvial formation is the only one in which the 



cranberry can bo successfully cultivated; but you 



want to avoid gravel, daj-, and loam, as detrimental 



to its growth. 



Foot gate— 



sft. 



Dr ain 

 This S feet wide 



This space 4 feet wide. 

 Inside of dam. 



-Head gate 



' I Inlet 

 I Drain 



I)IAGI{AM OF CK.VNBEKUV-UEI). 



This lK!d can bo any size desired, but the drains in 

 dry land must be only about 8 feet apart; but if the 

 land is pretty damp they can be further apart, even 

 10 to 16 feet. It is best to All in the inside of dam 

 with sand; it will hold water better, also prevent 

 weeds from growing on inside of dam. 



If you have a peat-bog, you want tf) take a sharp 



spade or grub-hoe and cut off the bogs or uneven 

 places, and make It just as level as a floor. If your 

 bog has a suflicient depth of miick to support the 

 vines, say 16 inches deep, then the pieces cut oflf to 

 level down the bed can be placed around it to help 

 form the dam (for you will need a dam 2 feet high 

 all around your bed to hold the water to flood your 

 vines during winter). 



Now cut a ditch about 8 inches deep and 8 inches 

 wide on the top, and 4 inches wide on the bottom, 

 running zigzag the whole length of your bed, as 

 shown in the diagram. 



The object of this ditch is to drain and water your 

 beds. If your beds are made in a springy place it 

 j will drain it; but if in a dry place you can water it 

 I through these ditches. By keeping the water con- 

 stantly flowing through them at a depth of 3 inches 

 i it will soak through the beds and give your cran- 

 ' berries the proper amount of moisture. 

 I Now, this bed wants to be covered 3 or 4 inches 

 I deep with pure clean sand, free from foul seed; 

 this wilfkeep down grass, weeds, etc., and is just 

 what the cranberries require to give them a healthy 

 growth. If jou have no peat-bog, but a slough cov- 

 ered with water, then drain it, level otT as before, 

 cover with sand, and you will have an everlasting 

 bed that will grow better the longer it stands. If 

 you have neither requisite, then you must dig a 

 trench 13 to 16 inches deep, the size you wish your 

 bed, and flll with muck or peat, and cover with sand 

 as before. 



When one has plenty of water at liand, a pretty 

 good cranberry bed can be made on a bed of clear 

 sand, but the trench through the beds must be 

 closer together, and water kept constantly running, 

 and thoroughly flooded from one to two feet deei> 

 through winter. 



If cranberry -vines are planted in too rich soil they 

 will all grow to vines, and not bear well; hence the 

 necessity of sanding and flooding. The Cape Cod is 

 the best variety to plant for general use. The vines 

 can be planted at any time during spring, when the 

 beds are prepared, by cutting the vines into pieces 

 about 4 inches long, and planting in the sand, leav- 

 ing the ends sticking out an inch or so. The closer 

 together they are planted, the sooner they will mat 

 the ground, which they must do before they become 

 good bearers. 



Some have run their vines through a straw-cut- 

 ter, and sowed them like oats, and dragged them in, 

 and had good success with them; but in a small bed 

 the best way is to take a gurden-trowel or small 

 hoe, and strike it into the ground at an angle of 45 

 degrees; lift the sand up, drop 2 or 3 vines in the 

 hill, replace the sand, press down with the foot, and 

 the work is done. 



I have already written more than I intended, yet 

 I have said nothing about the proper time for 

 flooding and draining otT water in spring, etc. 

 ; J. D. Se.\ton, age 15. 



Ellcnsburg, Kittitas Co., Wash. Ter'y. 



Many thanks, my yonng friend. Your 

 account is given excellently ; and even 

 though we should not go into the business, 

 it is worth something to know how such 

 things are done. ]>y tlie way, it seems to 

 me tnat that system ot irrigation woukl pro- 

 duce splendid results witli many other kinds 

 of vegetation. I should think that it would 

 be (luite troublesome having so many open 

 ditches, especially if one were going to use a 



