EXPERIMENTAL WORK WITH CRANBERRIES. 61 



rounding bog being carefully noted each year, the general result being 

 that no distinct advantage was shown for hand picking, from the stand- 

 point of the quantity of fruit obtained. 



The Station Bog Crop. 

 The bog bore a heavy crop this year, averaging about 100 barrels to the 

 acre. This was probably largely due to the rest which the vines obtained 

 because of last year's light crop. More water was pumped for irrigation 

 this year than in 1912, but on the whole the bog was nevertheless run 

 fairly dry throughout the season, the ditches not being held full of water 

 for more than a day or two at a time. There is probably a limit beyond 

 which a bog may become too dry if it is not irrigated. It seems probable 

 that the wisest course to pursue, in irrigating a bog during the growing 

 season, is to try to be sure that it has what water it needs, but that it is 

 not given moisture much in excess of its needs. It is probably better to 

 give a bog a good wetting occasionally and then draw off the surplus water, 

 so that the ditches shall be fairly empty, than it is to keep the ditches fuU 

 for any considerable period of time during the growing season and so run 

 the risk of injuring the root system. The year's observations have con- 

 firmed those of last year in showing that the higher and better drained 

 portions of a bog usually produce more fruit than the low portions. Blocks 

 of vines from different parts of flowed and diy bogs were cut out during 

 the season, and their root systems were washed out and examined, it being 

 discovered from this that, while on dry bogs there is often a well-developed 

 root growth running deep into the peat, the root system of flowed bogs is 

 apparently always confined for the most part to the sand above the peat. 

 It seems likely that this condition on the flowed bogs has been brought 

 about by root drowning caused by holding the water table too high during 

 periods of root growth. A mere examination, therefore, of the amounts 

 of fruit borne by high and low portions of a bog is probably not sufficient 

 to justify any certain conclusion concerning the causes of differences noted 

 in the amount of fruit produced, for while a season's drainage is one possible 

 important factor, the development of the root system, brought about by 

 the conditions of previous seasons, is perhaps as Hkely to have a powerful 

 influence on the abifitj^ of the plant to withstand drought, and therefore 

 produce fruit under extreme conditions. 



A Needed Investigation. 

 We are coming to understand something of the factors bearing directly 

 on the portion of the cranberry plant which is above gi'ound. While it is 

 important to understand these more easily observed agencies bearing on 

 the welfare of the plant, it seems certain that some of the most important 

 things which influence cranberry growth and fruiting have been almost 

 entirely neglected in our studies up to the present time. A knowledge 

 of the special physiology of the plant, especially of the development and 

 activities of its root system, seems to be very greatly needed. The sea- 



