June, 1914 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST 



147 



the trees averaged six quarts to the bush, 



while the other one which is in the sun 

 [averaged three quarts. 



English varieties are not propagated 

 [to any extent in this country, the main 

 Ipart of them being imported, as nur- 

 [serymen find that they can do this cheap- 

 |er. American varieties are usually grown 

 I by mound laying, which consists in 

 Ithrowing up the earth in June when the 

 lyoung shoots are a few inches long. 

 sThey root in this and are left on the 



stools for a year when they are planted 

 j out in the nursery rows for another year. 

 i English varieties may be propagated in 

 fthis way, but they are usually left on the 



stools for two years. 



Cuttings six or eight inches long, tak- 

 [en in August or September, and stored 

 I as currant cuttings will succeed with 

 •American varieties and with English 

 i sorts in England but stronger plants are 

 Eproduced by the layering methods. 



Gooseberries require the same cultiva- 

 tion as the currant. It is important that 

 tit should be shallow and frequent. Some 



people use a mulch system claiming that 

 ■they can obtain good results and also 

 I prevent mildew to a large extent. Plan- 

 stations thus treated have borne large 

 Icrops for twenty years. The mulch 

 Iwhich is usually straw should be at least 

 ■six inches deep and may be thrown on 



the bushes in the winter and placed in 

 the spaces in the early spring. It con- 

 serves moisture, prevents weeds and 

 keeps the fruit clean. Its chief advan- 

 tage is the prevention of mildew but its 

 use has largely disappeared on account 

 of improved methods in spraying. 

 PRUNING 



Gooseberries bear on two-year-old 

 wood and canes should not be allowed to 

 remain after they are five years old. The 

 young bushes do not require much prun- 

 ing for the first three years except to 

 cut back about half the new growth each 

 year. This encourages the development 

 of fruit spurs all along the branch in- 

 stead of having them situated mostly at 

 the ends. Low branches and those which 

 have been injured should be removed as 

 well as superfluous new wood. 



When pruning we have to keep in 

 mind that the bearing canes or branches 

 will not last forever, so young shoots 

 should be saved to take their places. For 

 English varieties leave five or six bear- 

 ing branches and as many more young 

 shoots. More branches may be left in an 

 American variety on account of their 

 smaller size. 



The idea of thinning out the bush to 

 admit sunlight is altogether wrong, as 

 the crop may be severely injured by the 

 hot rays of the sun. 



The Culture of Raspberries and Strawberries 



Jos. Frappe, 



TO make a success of growing small 

 fruits one should not do things 

 f simply because others do. There 



r should be a good clear reason back of 

 everything. The more thought and in- 

 telligent workmanship one puts into any 

 work the more pleasant and agreeable it 



Stirling, Ont. 



becomes ; and this is abundantly proved 

 in the culture of berries. There is a 

 pleasure in the great windrows of lus- 

 cious fruits, the work is light and agree- 

 able, and the profits to the painstaking 

 are often large. 



For the little care and work that are 



A Well Sprayed Apple Orchard 



In this orchard, owned by W. J. Owens, Duiitroon, Ont.. flft<K!n pounds of lime to the barrel 

 was used. This gave th« trees their white appearance and assisted in the making of a 



thorough .I'oh. 



required, no farm house or even village 

 home with a small garden should be 

 without an abundance of the most whole- 

 some, delightful and fragrant of foods — 

 the delicious strawberry and raspberry. 

 They are far better than medicine, for 

 with ripe fruit in the home sickness often 

 becomes a stranger. The little toil re- 

 quired in setting out, caring for, and 

 picking is repaid a hundred fold in health 

 and happiness. 



It is better to have the soil for straw- 

 teries rich with some good fertilizer, as 

 barnyard manure. On poor soil the same 

 amount of work is required, with only a 

 quarter the crop. 



If the giT>und has been cleaned by a 

 summer fallow or some hoed crop, such 

 as potatoes, it will save a good deal of 

 labor. Weeds grow fast in strawberries. 

 The ground must be well drained. Berry 

 plants "cannot stand wet feet." A place 

 well sheltered so that snow is likely to 

 remain long on the ground is favorable. 



For ordinary cultivation the plants are 

 set out in rows four feet apare and eigh- 

 teen inches apart in the row. Some place 

 the rows as closely as three feet, and if 

 they are kept narrow enough by trimming 

 the ends of the runners the plan is good. 

 But it is never wise to have the rows too 

 wide or matted, as besides giving weak 

 plants it interferes with the picking. 



For a small patch dig small holes with 

 a hoe, make a small cone shaped mound 

 in the centre of each, and over this place 

 the plants, letting the roots hang around 

 the cone, but deep. Then cover and 

 pack tightly. This enables the moisture 

 to rise by capillary action. Lastly cover 

 with a loose layer of earth. This keeps 

 the moisture from escaping. 



Avoid planting too deep, or too shal- 

 low. Large patches may be set out by 

 using a spade, trowel or better a dibble. 

 .■\n opening is made, the plant inserted 

 the proper depth, the roots shaken well 

 out, and then the earth is pressed tightly 

 against it with the hand or foot. 



In the spring after the leaves are nice- 

 ly started I go through and trim off the 

 ends of the branches, cutting off a third 

 or a quarter of the length, and remov- 

 ing dead wood. The remainder will do 

 much better if this is done. 



Directions given for the strawberry are 

 also applicable for the raspberry. Land 

 sloping gently to the north is favorable 

 to the raspberry as the changes of tem- 

 perature are not so sudden. This location 

 also more nearly approaches the state of 

 the wild strawberry. What is termed 

 "winter-killing" is more properly .spring 

 killing. 



Plants are goneraly set in rows six 

 feet, apart and three feet apart in the 

 row. If the .soil is go<xl a row of carrots 

 or other vegetable may be grown in the 

 intervening spaces the first year. 



