1 888. 



POPULAR GARDENING. 



217 



l)y .1 few growers. Tt does not K've promise 

 of great yields and the berries ai'e very dark 

 and the quality superb. As a general 

 marlvet berry I do not think it will pay, but 

 wlieii one has a regular set of customers 

 who buy by representation and not by looks, 

 and who are willing to pay for a good 

 thing, this should .suit, and it cannot be 

 excelled for home use. 



.Jiiirll has not been satisfactory with me. 

 I have fruited it two seasons, an.l although 

 it has given a few very large and fine look- 

 ing berries, the greater portion are small, 

 often very knotty, quality poor, and there 

 has been quite a tendency to <lecay on the 

 vines before fully ripe. 



Ciihwiiiif. Fruited this season for the 

 first time, and the earliest berries were 

 quite large but e.xtremely hard and knotty, 

 and the later ones small. 



CovcJ's- Eiirlij is possibly a day earlier 

 than Crystal City and appears to produce 

 more berries in number, but smaller, hard 

 to divest of the hull and poorer in quality. 



Acme was received from Baltimore as a 

 very valuable extra early variety. In fol- 

 iage and fruit it does not materially ditfer 

 from Crystal City; they are identical. 



.Si/Hi7«/t (fdrf A'o?-)Hnii are both large and 

 showy berries, which I have fruited this sea- 

 son and do not find them worth growing 

 here, as the foliage rusts very badly. 



WALKS AND JOTTINGS. 



BY A. M. rURDV, PAUIYRA, N. Y. 



One of the best fields we have for small fruits 

 is a entdile-stone piece. 



Plant Sweet Corn now and y(i\i will have the 

 luxury on your table this fall. 



After Raspberries have borne two or three 

 crops, it does i>ay to throw asliovelfulof manure 

 around them. 



Oreen Sawdust. Don't put it onto plants or 

 land. Throw it in barnyard, or mix it with the 

 course manure, and throw the whole over a few 

 times lM?fore using:. 



Deep versus Shallow Culture. If Strawberry 

 lx?ds have been deeply <idti\ ated previous up to 

 freezing time, then deep culture in the spring up 

 to blossoming season is tx'notieial, for if cultiva- 

 ted deep the roots have nin deep, Imt if, as is 

 generally the case, cultivation cea-ses in August 

 or September, the surface ground will be tilled 

 with tine roots, and these, if ground is cidtivated 

 deeply, will be l)roken off and crop proportion- 

 ately damaged. 



Changing Bearing Year, The idea that trees 

 can be permanently changed so that half will 

 bear one year and half the next is all bosh. So 

 long as late spring frosts hold off it may he done, 

 but as soon as one of these cuts the blossoms or 

 fruit of the trees bearing that year, don't you 

 see they will l)ear the next season, or at the same 

 time the others are t^j l»ar. This too accounts for 

 trees set at different ages soon all yielding their 

 fruit the same season. A frost comfcs and evens 

 them up. 



How rich must it be. If the land will grow a 

 fair crop of Potatoes or ('orn it is not necessary 

 to put on any fertilizers to secure a good crop of 

 Strawberries from the plants next season, as the 

 compost or phosphate can be put on lute in the 

 fall or the ne.\t spring— in fact we would prefer 

 to get the land in good tilth, set the plants and 

 give them good cultivation, and as time can be 

 had after they are set and before winter sets in, 

 scatter a little phosphate around each plant, and 

 in the fall put what fine manure you can get 

 around them. If land Is very poor, i)low furrows 

 where plants are to come and scatter in bottom 

 of the.se furrows the phosphate, .saiy a x^int or a 

 quart to a rod, and over this set the plants. 



Thin out the Orapes. Say every alternate' 

 bunch where they are thickly set, on a branch or 

 one vine, and see the difference in the size of the 

 bunches that are left i>n this fall when they riv>eu 

 than those on vines and branches not trimmed, 

 and too take a pair of fine jxiiuted scissors and 

 thin out the fruit on bunches, and .see the differ- 

 ence in size of fruit on the bunch this fall. If 

 you want a few bunches of grapes for some 

 extra occasion, or to surprise your friends, or to 

 lay on the show table at your County or State 



fair, try this practice of thinning out. fi rapes 

 grown thus will sell for a good pric«, when onli- 

 naryi; rapes will "go begging" for customers. 



Transplanting large Fines. Pine trees (1 inches 

 diainet*T at the base and 2.1 feet high can be 

 moveil if sullieient root be taken out, and to ilo 

 this cut back the tree some both at top and ends 

 of branches, and In August or September dig a 

 trench around the trees, say four or the feet 

 from lioily, and digging below the roots, cutting 

 tlicm off. I,ea\e the trees until the ground is 

 thoroughly frozen in mid-winter, (having how- 

 ever, holes dug for their receiition before winter 

 .sets in) and Uwn dig under and raise them out 

 with Uners onto st.one tjoats and transplant, 

 packing grinmil solidly around them. 



DON'T sl'KEAI) OVER TOO MUCH GROUND. 



The trouble with many new beginners is, 

 they try to do too innch and cultivate too 

 much ground at first. 



We know of many small fruit growei-s 

 who have five to ten acres of ground in small 

 fruits that are actually making more money 

 than others who have twice to three times 

 the amount of grouud. 



First. Because the right sorts are most 

 largely planted and depended upon. Second. 

 Plants are set in good season and closely 

 together, and thus form perfect rows. Third. 

 The ground is well prepared, being deeply 

 ploughed, and a subsoil plow, that does not 

 turn the subsoil to the surface, Init that stirs 

 it up to a depth of 20 inches, used, and if 

 water lays near the surface, the ground well 

 underd rained. 



It is a fact worth considering, that rows 

 which are not well filled with plants require 

 more work to keep the weeds down than 

 those rows well and perfectly filled with 

 plants. And in rows that are well filled up, 

 the surface is kept moist by being shaded 

 by the foliage. It is far better to grow an 

 acre of Strawberries and obtain 200 bushels 

 of fruit than two acres for the same amount. 

 " Yes; 1)ut how am I to get 200 bushels from 

 one acre," you ask. Easy enough. We will 

 suppose your ground good Corn or Potato 

 land, and in good, tillable condition. Plough 

 it this fall, following the plow with a sul)- 

 soiler that will loosen down at least 18 to 'M 

 inches. Scatter over the acre eight to ten 

 good two-horse wagon loads of well rotted 

 manure this tall. Plough again in the spring 

 and put on the surface as many uu^re loads 

 of manure, and plant it out in rows 4 feet 

 apart and plants 10 to 12 inches apart in the 

 row, with Crescents, Windsor Chiefs, and 

 Wil.sons, in alternate beds of 4 to li rows of 

 each. Keep well cultivated and the ground 

 stirred up as deep as possible, causing roots 

 to run deep, and you may rest assured that 

 you will get from '300 to 300 bushels to the 

 acre, especially if just before ripening the 

 rows are well mulched with straw or hay. 



The same ploughing and manuring and 

 setting close of black or red Raspberries, 

 and kept well cut back so iis to form a per- 

 fect hedge, and you are certain of 100 to l.'iO 

 Inishels, while as a rule over the country 40 

 to .50 bushels is the ordinary yield. 



HOEING STRAWBERRIES. 



It hardly seems necessary to go over the 

 Strawberries again so soon, but we have had 

 dear bought lessons in the past, one of 

 which is to put off hoeing so hmg as weeds 

 are not "getting the start of plants." We 

 have now reversed it and mean to give 

 plants start of the weeds, and it is then easy 

 to keep them ahead. The fruit crop is soon 

 coming on and our attention will be taken 

 up with that, and if those .Strawberries are 

 all run over now no weeds will start for 

 weeks. 



We have discarded the plan of allowing 

 Red Raspberries and Blackberries to sucker 

 and grcjw all over and between the rows, 



and now keep the cultivator running through 

 them every two weeks, cuttingolTall suckers 

 that come up between the rows and giving 

 plants in rows double the chance. 



(:Ai;DEXlN(i ON oiiR HOUSE tops. 



Kvery family that loves .Strawberries can 

 raise their own, if they will but give a little 

 finu- to the culture of this luxury. 



Many an Apple box that is so readily con- 

 verted into fire wood can be filled with the 

 rich scrapings of the street, and first boring 

 a few holes in the bottom of the box for 

 draining, they can plant six good pl.ants in 

 each box, filling the box two-thirds full of 

 earth and then carefully planting the vines, 

 spreading the roots of each vine star like, .so 

 as to allow them to bed upon the soil. 



One dozen boxes of this kind upon the 

 roof or balcony of a house would give a 

 luxurious dish often to a family, and from 

 the new kinds of Strawberries with proper 

 care we believe every person can raise speci- 

 mens of this fruit which would astonish every 

 grower. The new kinds now offered are said 

 to produce fruit from H to 12 inches in cir- 

 cumference. Those that feel interested in 

 this system of culture, if they will call at the 

 Farmer office we will lead them to a very 

 successful experiment of this plan, where 

 this fruit is now in bloom, giving great 

 promises of paying well for all care and 

 trouble.— California Farmer. 



We remember being invited to the hou.se 

 top of a boarding house in New York City 

 to "look at the flowers," and there around 

 on the roof were scores of boxes and pots 

 filled with flowers. Radishes, I,ettuce, etc. 



How many of our city readers might have 

 fresh fragrant Strawberries and other dain- 

 ties with but little care or trouble. 



But, says some, " the rain water would be 

 filled with dirt." No, not if properly growTi, 

 that is, by setting the pots or boxes holding 

 the plants in pans or boxes that are water 

 tight. 



Fifty plants of Strawberries would give a 

 family of four to five persons a nice dish 

 daily for two weeks. Fifty pots of annuals 

 like Petunias, Balsams, etc., W(mld make a 

 show that would be beautiful and well repay 

 all trouble. Try it readers. 



MANURING STRAWIiERRIES IN SUMMER. 



.1. .1. K., South River, N. .J., writes; I set 

 out some plants this .spring (Strawberries, 

 Blackberries and Raspberries). I did not 

 manure them, but they arc growing nicely. 

 I have read that manure can be applied in 

 .luly or August. I have some fine barnyard 

 manure, please tell me how to apply it. 



Very much depends on the amount of 

 land to go over and the condition of the 

 land, and the amount of manure you have. 

 If you have it so that you can put on at the 

 rate of four or five wagon loads to the acre 

 we would advise scattering it along in the 

 Strawberry rows at once freely, and follow- 

 ing with a fork potato hoe and working up 

 the soil, and the manure into the soil, as 

 much as po.ssible. If scarce, a very good 

 plan is to dig a hole down alongside of each 

 plant with a trowel, and drop in a handful 

 and cover it over. 



As to Blackberries, if the plants have a 

 good healthy appearance and growing nicely 

 we would not give them any manure, as it 

 has a tendency to force them into a late fall 

 growth, so that they are easily winter-killed. 

 If, however, they have a " sickly " look and 

 grow slow a quart of well-rotted manure 

 scattered around each hill and worked in 

 the soil will start them up. As a rule we 

 advise against manuring Blackberries, es- 

 pecially the first two or three years. Rasp- 

 berries, if set last spring may be manured 

 by throwing a quart of the comp(jst around 

 each hill and working it into the soil. 



