ONE HUNDRED THOUSAND FACTS FOR THE PEOPLE. 519- 



hoeing, and also permits the pickers to get 

 among the plants more readily. 



Trimming the raspberry was formerly 

 done only in the winter, and consisted in 

 shortening the canes, and removing the 

 old dead wood, and the surplus feeble 

 shoots, so as to leave from two to four 

 on each plant or hill. This was done at 

 any mild time between October and Feb- 

 ruary or March. Fall pruning, if done 

 too early, may prove very injurious, if fol- 

 lowed by mild growing weather that 

 causes the buds to grow, and thus de- 

 stroys a portion or the next year's crop. 

 Of course, it is understood that all the 

 varieties and species of this genus, Rubus, 

 including the raspberry and blackberry, 

 produce shoots one year that become the 

 bearing canes of the next summer, and 

 then die ; an apparent exception exists in 

 the autumnal bearing raspberries, which 

 produce blossoms and fruits upon the 

 shoots the season of their growth. 



Summer pruning is now practiced by 

 all good cultivators. This is a very simple 

 operation, and consists in pinching or cut- 

 ting off the shoots as soon as they are two 

 feet high, which causes them to branch 

 out with strong laterals, and these are to 

 be cut back, according to their strength, 

 in the winter. By this means the plants 

 are made more stocky and bushy ; they 

 resemble little trees, and are able to bear 

 enormous crops. At the same time, all 

 redundant branch shoots are to be cut 

 away. This method also obviates the ne- 

 cessity for any kind of support, such as 

 stakes or trellis, since the sturdy plants 

 are able to stand alone. 



We have two American species of eat- 

 able raspberries, the Strigosus, or red 

 fruited, and the Occidentalis, or thimble- 

 berry, the black caps. Besides these, the 

 European species, the Idazus, furnishes 

 many delicious raspberries, most of which 

 are tender and need winter protection. 



Blackberries.— The blackberry, though 

 abounding in most parts of the country, 

 is entirely deserving of care and cultiva- 

 tion. In the garden it is under our con- 

 trol, and may be allowed to reach perfec- 

 tion, by hanging until perfectly ripe, which 

 is not the case that must be yielded to 

 the " eminent domain" of any vagabonds 

 who may come along and trespass on our 

 farmers, and glean the fruit from our ne- 

 glected fields and fence-corners. 



Any rich, deep soil, well plowed, will 

 suit this fruit. The plants should be al- 

 lowed plenty of room, and may be set 

 every four feet, in rows eight or ten feet 

 wide. The ground should be well culti- 

 vated, or deeply mulched, and the suckers 

 must be kept down, by cutting them with 

 the hoe whenever they appear between 

 the rows, and these should not be crowd- 

 ed — one stalk to every two feet will be 

 sufficient. This being only another spe- 

 cies of the genus Rubus, or bramble. The 

 remarks as to the habit, and pruning of 

 the raspberry are applicable to this spe- 

 cies, and need not be repeated, except 

 that the summer pruning should be prac- 

 ticed a little higher, say from three to four 

 feet, according to the vigor of the plants,, 

 and the redundant shoots must be cut 

 off. 



Currant, the. — In almost every log 

 cabin garden we used to find this health- 

 giving fruit, which offers its agreeable acid 

 in the heats of summer as an antidote or 

 preventive of the bilious effects of our tor- 

 rid season. And yet the currant is a sadly 

 neglected fruit, and in many parts of the 

 country there is not enough for home con- 

 sumption. 



This being a northern plant, it is thank- 

 ful for a partial shade or protection from: 

 the scorching sunshine (in lat. 40 or south- 

 ward). For this object it is well to plant 

 the bushes on the north side of a fence or 

 building, and even in the shade of young 

 orchard trees, where they sometimes suc- 

 ceed very well for a long period, even 

 after the apple trees have occupied and 

 shaded the whole surface. 



The currant delights in a deep, rich 

 loam, and will thrive even where the soil 

 is somewhat moist. The bushes should 

 not be crowded, as they require about four 

 feet space, each way. 



Trimming is to be done in the fall or 

 winter, as the buds swell very early in the 

 spring. It should consist in shortening 

 two or three of the strongest young shoots, 

 cutting away all the weaker ones, and re- 

 moving only the oldest and exhausted 

 bearing wood. Unlike the raspberry, cur- 

 rants do not fruit on the young shoots, 

 but upon little spurs that appear only on 

 branches that are two or more years old. 



The plantation must be kept clean, and 

 free from grass and weeds. After cultiva- 

 tion in the spring, it is a very good plan. 



