POPULAR GARDENING. 



October, 



Every mineral was In the soil in abundance, 

 but the soil itself was without lite or chem- 

 ical action. It wanted carbon (humus), and 

 the usual acids resulting from the oxidation 

 of organic matter, which not only renders 

 the mineral soluble, but presents an absorb- 

 ing substance to hold mechanically the air, 

 carbonic acid, ammonia, etc., found in the 

 falling rains and condensing dew, for which 

 mere sand and clay have no attractions. 

 Besides this, the decaying vegetable mat- 

 ter attracts heat, keeps the soil warm and 

 hus promotes growth." 



Anthrax may prove of benefit in destroying 

 cut worms, they are not without precedent, 

 as the group to which the species belongs, 

 is,according to Osten Sacken, known to prey 

 normally on the pupa? of Ijepidoptera, e.s- 

 pecially Noctu». In number of species of 

 this group is about equally represented in 

 Europe and this country. 



Strawberry Notes. 



L. J. FARMER, OSWEGO CO., N. Y. 



The most crying want in the Strawberry 

 business to day is a reliable, perfect-flower- 

 ing variety. We have plenty of 

 good pistillates. There is the 

 Haverland, with its immense crop 

 of fruit, just the berry wanted for 

 farmers' families, and not too par- 

 ticular near markets. But it 

 Qtj won't bear alone. We wonder if 



Anthrax Bypomelas; a, Lai'va; c, Pupa; (i, Perfect Insect. 



Many of our best farm writers, in com- 

 paring the values of stable manures and 

 concentrated fertilizers, leave this phase of 

 the question entirely out of consideration. 

 The carbon, which composes the bulk of the 

 stable manure, is not counted. Of course 

 there are cases were the carbon is notneeded. 

 So are there cases where the potash or the 

 phosphoric acid is not needed. 



Wherever any one of these plant foods is 

 already in the soil in abundance, we need 

 not take the pains to apply it. Muck land 

 or other soil well filled with decaying vege- 

 table matter, can be kept in first-class state 

 of fertility by the use of mineral fertilizers 

 alone, and this will in most cases be a 

 cheaper way than to accomplish it by means 

 of barnyard manure with its large amount 

 of carbon and nitrogen, both substances 

 which the soil already has in sufficient 

 quantities. Garden lands that have been 

 treated to composts for many years, need 

 no further application of such fertilizer, but 

 may get along very well for a time with 

 simple rations of nitrate of .soda. 



But the worn-out land must have carbon; 

 and for such the carbon contained in stable 

 manures and composts has certainly a money 

 value. For this reason, and for such pur- 

 poses, we must consider the valuations of 

 stable manures given by the stations, and 

 by writers on agricultural chemistry, valu- 

 ations based on the percentages of potash, 

 phosphoric acid and nitrogen alone, much 

 too low practically, when compared with 

 the valuations of chemical fertilizers. 



An Insect That Kills the Cutworm. 



The bee-fly shown in the accompanying 

 illustration is a friend of ours, and deserves 

 our love and protection. Itsname is authrax 

 bypomelas (Macq.), and its services to us 

 consist in the free use it makes of the cut- 

 worm chrysalis as a breeding place, thus 

 destroying great numbers of these our 

 dreaded enemies. Several related species 

 of the Anthrax have the same satisfactory 

 habit. The perfect insect, shown at d, was 

 one of a number bred last summer by Mr. 

 F. M. Webster, the Indiana agent of the 

 U. S. Department of Agriculture, from the 

 pupie of a cutworm, which proved to be 

 Agerotis herilis. Prof. Gillette of the Iowa 

 Agricultural Experiment Station, has also 

 bred last summer specimens of these bee- 

 llies or Anthrax of another species (A. scro- 

 bibulta L(ew) from cut worm larvie. 



Though these are extremely interesting 

 occurrences, says Insect ].,ife (where we find 

 the original illustrations of the Anthrax 

 bypomelas) and show that some species of 



the Parker Earle, which resembles 



it in size, shape and color, will 



prove a fitting companion? The 



noble Bubach as a medium late 



variety is almost perfect in the 



essential points for a market 



berry; but there is no berry that 



presents the same appearance 



when packed in the same basket. The Burt 



blossoms profusely at the same time, but it 



is entirely difl'erent in appearance, being 



smaller and more regular. The .lessie will 



pack best with Bubach, but it is darker and 



it is badly wanting in productiveness. 



There is no pistillate and staminate variety 

 that will pack so well together as Warfield 

 and Wilson. They present nearly the same 

 appearance in the basket, although Warfield 

 holds its size better to the close of the .season. 



The five best varieties fruiting with us 

 this year were Warfield, Bubach, Haver- 

 land, Eureka and Daisy. I am sorry to say 

 they are all pistillates. I shall grow Burt to 

 fertilize Eureka till I find something more 

 desirable. I shall try Crawford next year, 

 as they are quite similar in appearance, both 

 being late. Pearl is quite productive, and 

 may be used to fertilize Daisy. Both are 

 regular in shape and of the same color. 

 While we must try to secure the best, I don't 

 believe a perfect flowering-variety will ever 

 be produced that will equal a pistillate, 

 properly fertilized, in the one most essen- 

 tial point, productiveness. 



The Cloud. I notice by the reports of 

 numerous correspondents that the Cloud is 

 not generally popular at the north. The 

 same has been my own experience. The 

 plants made a fine growth but failed in pro- 

 ductiveness. Had I not seen it imder other 

 circumstances I would be likely to condemn 

 it as an undesirable variety. When Straw- 

 berries began to ripen I had occasion to visit 

 a fruit grower of the next town. I there 

 saw the Cloud in all its glory. The plants 

 were literally loaded with fruit. The ber- 

 ries were firm, of good size and color; and 

 borne on strong stalks. This man had a 

 row 400 feet long that spread fully ten feet 

 wide. From this one row men picked 400 

 quarts of fruit after having taken up l:i,000 

 plants for resetting. The soil on which the 

 plants grew was a stony upland, the strong- 

 est soil to be had hereabouts. No manure 

 was applied before the plants were set out, 

 and only a small application made to the 

 row last fall. The plants were well distrib- 

 uted over the surface, not crowded, and the 

 soil was moist. 



This shows how much varieties will vary 

 under difl'erent circumstances, and forever 

 proves that the Cloud Strawberry is not 

 without value, even at the extreme north. 

 My plantation of Cloud was on soil of the 

 same character, but it was heavily manured. 

 The plants did not blossom freely, but every 

 blo-ssom developed to a nice berry. 



The Cloud is a firm berry, equalling the 

 Wilson for shipping, and having the same 



dark color when fully ripe. It is very en- 

 couraging to cultivate a variety that is in- 

 clined to grow like the Cloud. We can 

 almost see them grow. I think it will pay 

 growers to try this variety on good soil with 

 no manure. Remember to avoid manures 

 that make a flashy growth of vines, even if 

 you put them in poor soil. 



Small Fruit Notes. 



GRANVILLE COWING. 



The last Strawberry crop in this region 

 was a variable one — in some cases good, in 

 others unprofitable; average price about 10 

 cents per quart. Blight prevailed in some 

 patches while others were free from it, and 

 produced large and perfect berries. Of old 

 kinds, Cumberland, Crescent, Kentucky 

 and Jersey Queen were the best. On my 

 ground .Jersey Queen has for two seasons 

 been more productive and profitable than 

 Cumberland, and in size and appearance the 

 berries are hardly inferior to those of Logan 

 and Bubach. It ripens later than Gandy. 

 Of new varieties, Bubach, Logan and Hav- 

 erland seem much the best. They are so 

 vigorous in growth, so free from rust and 

 so productive of large and handsome berries 

 that they cannot fail to displace the best of 

 the old varieties. 



I have seedlings from Bubach grown from 

 seed this year, which are now making run- 

 ners, and I believe not a trace of rust is to 

 be seen on any of them. The existence of 

 such a fine Strawberry as Bubach will make 

 greater improvement in the Strawberry an 

 easy matter. 



Gandy is not sufficiently productive, and 

 is subject to rust. Warfield blighted badly 

 in some cases and was worthless; in others 

 it was free from disease, wonderfully pro- 

 ductive, and its berries very large and fine; 

 too variable for profit. 



I have long regarded Burr's New Pine, 

 Sterling and Duncan as the most delicious 

 of all Strawberries, but one of my seedlings 

 (Brunette) excels them in that respect, and 

 has qualities as a market berry which none 

 of them ever had. I am having it tested at 

 experiment stations. 



The Raspberry crop was the poorest ever 

 known in this region. Plants were generally 

 injured or killed by the peculiar weather of 

 last winter and spring. Blackberries never 

 seemed in better condition when they 

 bloomed, but in consequence of persistent 

 drouth yielded but few berries — three, 

 fourths of them shrivelling on the bushes. 

 Nearly all the best berries were furnished 

 by Snyder. It is by far the most profitable 

 Blackberry for market purposes grown here. 

 Taylor stands next to it, but is too late to 

 command the best prices. I have grown 

 Stone, Wallace, Early Harvest, Aga warn and 

 Ancient Briton for many years, but have 

 not found them profitable, although they all 

 have some desirable qualities. 



Selling Crapes to Advantage. 



BY "TRAVELER." 



In October of last year I passed by rail 

 through the State of New York. The night 

 train on which I travelled reached Syra- 

 cuse in time for breakfast, for which purpose 

 a halt of twenty minutes was made. At the 

 station there was exposed on the fruit stand 

 to tempt the eyes of passengers a large stock 

 of Grapes done up in packages, more at- 

 tractively than anything in this line I ever 

 before had met. 



The Grapes were of several kinds, includ- 

 ing dark and hght ones, of which the latter 

 were the beautiful golden Niagaras. They 

 were done up in light, white wooden bo.xes 

 of the style and size shown in the sketch, 

 and which had convenient wire handles for 

 carrying. The lid slid in from one side, and 

 on this was pasted the white paper label, 

 which 1 removed from a box there pur- 



