214 THE FRUIT GROWERS GUIDE. 



placed 10 feet apart, and straining pillars at the ends. Raspberries are highly produc- 

 tive on this system, and form admirable screens between the flower and vegetable depart- 

 ments in small gardens. The management is shown in the engraving : t, the fruited 

 canes to be cut away soon after the fruit is gathered ; u, young canes shortened to the 

 upper wire. Hedges are sometimes formed by cutting the canes to different lengths, 

 some at the first wire, others at the second and third, and the strongest left the full 

 height of the trellis. This secures a fence of fruit-bearing branchlets from the ground, 

 and the succession of fruit is extended considerably in a hot, dry season, while strong 

 canes are secured for succession. 



The chief points in raspberry training are the securing of sturdy, short-jointed, well- 

 ripened canes. These can only be had by thinning the suckers, pulling up the super- 

 fluous when 6 inches in height, and removing the old canes after the crops are 

 gathered, instead of leaving them to the winter pruning, taking care not to break the 

 leaves of the current year's canes. This admits additional sun and air, greatly enhancing 

 the ripening of the wood, which is seen in the canes being less damaged by severe frost, 

 and their increased productiveness as compared with those badly matured. Another 

 point of importance is the shortening of the canes and the time. This has already been 

 alluded to, but it may be reiterated that it is a mistake to have the bearing canes too 

 long, for a considerable part of their length from the top is full of pith and is better 

 removed. If the canes are well ripened they may be shortened in the autumn ; strong 

 pithy canes are better left at their full length till February, for the severe frosts and 

 re ins of the winter are apt to injure such when pruned in the autumn. 



Pruning Autumn-bearing Raspberries. These are not permitted to bear, like the 

 summer-fruiting kinds, on the previous year's wood, but all the canes are cut down 

 level with the ground when leafless, usually in February. This causes vigorous growths 

 to push from the base in the spring. It is necessary to thin these whilst small, reserving 

 the sturdiest and best-placed at about 1 foot apart. These summer canes must not 

 be topped, as it is on the crown of the current year's shoots that the finest raspberries 

 are produced in the late summer and autumn. The canes are self-supporting, and give 

 an immense crop of fruits in October and onwards in favourable seasons. 



ROUTINE OPERATIONS. 



Summer Treatment. This consists primarily in preventing the appearance of weeds 

 by timely hoeings, which conserve the moisture aiid nutrient elements in the soil for 



