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diseases once get a good foothold they will quickly put one out 

 of business. Thus it is absolutely essential at the start that 

 we obtain clean, healthy, vigorous stock. Such raspberry 

 stock may be obtained from reliable nursery concerns, or, 

 better still, direct from the growers. However, in regard to 

 blackberry stock we are not quite as fortunate. To be sure, 

 blackberry stock can be obtained, but to get good vigorous 

 stock, true to name and free from disease, is another matter, 

 and right here, I believe, is one of the greatest dangers to the 

 future of blackberry growing, — the way in which blackberry 

 stock is being produced. To-day it is almost impossible to find 

 a nurseryman propagating blackberry stock; in fact, the ma- 

 jority of the stock is produced on berry farms. Here in many 

 cases the plants are taken from the sides of the fruiting rows, 

 without particular regard to disease, age of plantation, etc. 

 We all appreciate that this is not the best way of obtaining 

 plants, and the longer this practice is carried on the more our 

 varieties of blackberries are going to degenerate, and I firmly 

 believe that that is the cause of more than half of the poor 

 results with the blackberry to-day. Here, I believe, is a need 

 for some one to propagate the blackberry, producing fine, 

 healthy, vigorous stock true to names, etc. Not only should 

 this be done to improve the growing of the blackberry, but 

 experimental work, on testing and originating new varieties, 

 suited to our conditions should be taken up. 



Further, it is not a wise policy under present conditions to 

 buy large quantities of raspberry and blackberry stock to set 

 direct into your fruiting fields. The chances of introducing 

 diseases are too great. On the other hand, it is far safer to buy 

 smaller lots of stock, put the same in a nursery or propagating 

 field, and grow your own plants from them. Then if disease 

 develops in your nursery you can much more easily eradicate 

 it without much loss. Other advantages are that you will 

 have the stock on hand, in ideal condition when ready to set, 

 and you can produce the type of plants to give best results. 

 With the red raspberry best results can be obtained by the 

 following method: in the spring, when the new green shoots 

 are coming up, dig them up carefully and set them close to- 

 gether in nursery rows for one year. This will give fine vigor- 



