198 FLORIDA FRUITS SMALL FRUITS. 



the finest berries obtained, yet if this, the closing opera- 

 tion, is carelessly performed, all the previous work is 

 thrown away, and a report of "arrived in bad condition, 

 not salable," will be the ultimate result. 



Never pick the berries when they are wet ; always gather 

 them when they are half or two thirds colored, and, if 

 possible, leave an inch, or better still, two inches of the 

 stem attached to the fruit, they will keep fresh and firm 

 much longer. 



Inspect every berry yourself, don't trust this important 

 work to others or you will deservedly suffer for it ; there 

 will most certainly be some fruit too ripe to pack, and if 

 not thrown out great injury will result to the rest. 



Pack in neat strawberry boxes, not loosely, but so as to 

 prevent shaking about ; and you will find it pays to place 

 the top layer stems downward, so as to show the bright 

 red color of the berry to best advantage. 



Ship always by the quickest route, and, wherever possi- 

 ble, in refrigerator cars or boxes. 



In order to find how many plants are required to set 

 an acre at any given distance apart, multiply the width 

 by the breadth in feet, and see how many times this num- 

 ber is contained in 43,560, which is the number of square 

 feet in an acre. For example, plants set 1 x 3 feet, each 

 plant would occupy three square feet ; therefore, by divid- 

 ing 3 into 43,560 the number required would be given. 



BLACKBERRIES. 



Why this luscious berry has not already come more 

 "to the fore" in Florida we are unable to see, except on 

 the well-known principle, that "we always overlook our 

 nearest blessings." 



The blackberry grows wild in abundance here, as it does 

 in almost if not quite every State in the Union ; and just 



