60 STATE POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



labor and can be raked between the rows in the spring, checking 

 the weeds and keeping the ground moist. This covering is not to 

 protect from the cold, but the alternate freezing and thawing that 

 injures the ten'^er rootlets near the surface wh ch are to do the work 

 when spring opens. 



PROFIT IN STRAWBERRIES. 



I believe there is money to be made in fruit-growing and especially 

 in strawberries They do not require a heavy outlay of money and 

 give quick returns on labor and capital, desirable features in any 

 business. I have no very remarkable reports of my own expei'ieuce 

 for the best that I have done on anything of a large scale is at the 

 rate of 175 bushel crates to the acre or 125 bushels on three-fourths 

 of an acre. This with about the same amount of dressing I would 

 use for a crop of corn. If I had had the manure I should have used 

 the amount I mentioned in this paper. Probably we put about twice 

 the work on the piece that we should, had it been planted to corn. 

 I sell my berries at the farm at an average of $3.50 a crate, giving 

 $612 50 value of the beriies at the farm for an acre. This looks 

 like small business beside Mr. Augur of Connecticut and Barnard 

 of Massachusetts, who get from four to five hundred bushels to the 

 acre. Taking the medium. 450 bushels at twenty cents a basket, 

 which I understand Mr Barnard gets under contract and what does 

 it give? Fourteen thousand four hundred baskets at twenty cents 

 gives $2,880 for the product of one acre. Do not think these 

 results are accomplished by any haphazard work. It is science 

 applied to fruit growing. The best I have ever done was to get 

 twenty bushel crates from nine square rods This would be 355 

 bushels to the acre. I thought this a remarkable yield, and it was 

 for Crescent and Sharpless under matted row system. For this is 

 considered the poorest method for great results, yet the most con- 

 venient because of less work. 



RASPBERRIES. 



Next in succession comfs the raspberry. This is a very easy 

 fruit to rai<e. It does best in lighter soils than strawberry. Pre- 

 pare the ground about the same and set plants three by six feet for 

 matted row, six by six for hill cidlure. The roots of this plant run 

 quite near the surface and after the plantation is well started give 

 a liberal manuring and mulch heavy enough to choke weeds. This 



