18<J1 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



507 



is to-day. Here is a race of hybrids, then, of 

 twenty years" standing, that have neither gone 

 back to "the Italian nor the black bee. More 

 than that, when they "get down to scratch 

 gravel " they can pile up as much honey as any 

 bee that was ever hatched. They were not 

 originated by "long yeai's of careful selection,"' 

 nor by "lying awake nights," but by neglect 

 and mismanagement. J. P. Iskaei.. 



Sumac. Cal., May 23. 



[After friend Israe]"s candid confession in the 

 first paragraph to the above, it became some- 

 what of a question as to whether we had better 

 use his article or not. We have, however, de- 

 cided to take the chances; and if Gleanings 

 should get the spring dwindling in conse- 

 quence, we will try to nurse it through till 

 summer time. Friend I.. I am inclined to 

 think you liave given us some important /acts 

 as well as some bright glimpses, from that rare 

 gift of youi's in the way of pleasantry. Go 

 ahead. I do not believe it is (iltogcther owing 

 to your contributions that so many bee-papers 

 have had the " dwindles."] 



FRIEND TERRY'S STRA"WBERRIES AT THE 

 PRESENT TIME. 



THE MAY FROSTS IX HIS LOCALITY, ETC. 



Friend Root: — You may remember that, when 

 you were here about a year ago. asking me why 

 I did not put out five or ten acies of strawber- 

 ries, and get I'ich. I did not make much reply; 

 but in your report'in Gleanings you told what 

 you thought passed through my mind about 

 spoiling the piivacy of my home. etc.. all of 

 which was almost word fur word what I did 

 think. I was surprised that you could I'ead my 

 tlioughts so perfectly. Hut there was one 

 thought that you did not get hold of at all. that 

 flashed through my head. It was this: This is 

 not a safe locality for growing strawbei-ries 

 largely. One could make a great deal of money 

 from five acres, perfectly tended to. of fine large 

 berries, put into Cleveland when just right for 

 eating, and only two or thi-ee hours from the 

 vines, if the late spring frosts did not interfere. 

 Last year they did not. and our success was all 

 we could ask for. This year our half-acre 

 went into winter in perfect shape. No pains 

 were spared to give every plant the best chance 

 possible. We mulched them heavily to keep 

 them back; but. alas I the fi'eeze of May Kith 

 killed all the blossoms and many of the buds, 

 and most of the leaves, and many of the plants 

 themselves. The earth fi'oze here from one to 

 two inches deep. I actually dug up pieces of 

 fi'ozen soil in the morning, two inches thick. 

 The Bubachs and Haverlands are just about 

 ruined; all suffered severely, but. as usual, the 

 Sterling stood the frost best. They are alto- 

 gether the safest berry for our farm. I suppose 

 in that one night we lost §200 worth of berries. 

 The frosts early in May hurt us little, as our 

 berries were mulched so heavily they had not 

 started much. This loss does not trouble us, 

 because we expected it sooner or later. We are 

 liable to killing frosts until June, and even then 

 feel a little unsafe until a week has passed. We 

 were growing that half-acre of strawberries 

 largely for the pleasure of doing our best on a 

 little land, and not as a source of income. Now. 

 do you not see that, if we had made a business 

 of it. and had five or ten acres, we should have 

 been hurt badly? I know these conditions to 

 exist here, and have no right to put out a crop 

 that it would cripple me to lose, and then 

 blame Providence for bad luck. All these 

 points have been studied most carefully. Our 



crops of potatoes, wheat, and clover, are almost 

 perfectly safe. They have never failed to pay 

 us. I could make more money from strawber- 

 ries, if they were as safe; but they are not, 

 here. There are places where they are. With- 

 in a mile is a hill of rich, mellow, moist soil on 

 which I would not hesitate to put out straw- 

 berries largely. As it is. one does not like to 

 work hard for nothing half the time, and we 

 shall set out only plenty of strawberries for our 

 own use in the future. We decided on this be- 

 fore the frost, knowing well the chances, and 

 set out this year only what should bring us, say, 

 20 bushels in a good year. We will do our best 

 to succeed in what we undertake; and then, if 

 failure comes, it will be no fault of ours. Spe- 

 cial farming is not very popular, but we will 

 grow what nature has best fitted our farm for. 

 We want safety and almost certainty with as 

 little of luck and lottery as possible. 



Now. this is the idea that went through my 

 mind, friend Root, when you asked me why I 

 did not put in many acres of strawberries. I 

 wish I had brought it out more fully in our 

 little strawberry-book. Being rather set up by 

 success then. I hardly made as plain as I should 

 this point of going against nature. But still 

 that book was intended mostly for farmers, 

 who raise bei'i'ies only for their own use, and 

 this I would do in any locality, however unfa- 

 vorable. By setting out the varieties that 

 stand frost best, and by heavy mulching, and, 

 best of all. by setting out a great plenty, berries 

 maybe almost a certainty; and if not particu- 

 larly piofitable some years, it will not matter 

 on a small patch. 



Like yourself, friend Root, the writer must 

 have something to work over between times. 

 Desiring to get something less risky than berry- 

 growing, it is a barrel of Freeman potatoes this 

 year, which we planted by hand and cut so fine 

 as to spread them over 1% acres. I am just 

 spreading myself to see how many I can grow 

 from that barrel. 



When I get to writing yon I don't know when 

 to stop. There are many things on my mind. 

 For one. your recent' reference in Gleanings to 

 corporations having souls, and to the use of fer- 

 tilizers, calls to mind this incident: The great 

 fertilizer firm of W. S. Powell & Co.. of Balti- 

 more, asked me some time since to write an ar- 

 ticle on wheat culture for them, to be published 

 in their pamphlet, sent out as an advertisement 

 of fertilizers. I replied that I could not con- 

 scientiously say any thing in favor of fertilizers. 

 I know tliey pay "sometimes; but I believe on 

 the W'hole. in our locality, they have not paid 

 our farmers. Their answer was, " We do not 

 care a snap whether you recommend fertilizers 

 or not. If you can give us something on wheat 

 culture that will be a benefit to our farmer 

 readers, we want it." It seems to me that such 

 a reply as that from a great fertilizer firm is 

 worthy to go on record. Some corporations 

 have souls. In fact, I believe they usually do 

 about as we outsiders would if placed ill their 

 position. Take the great W. P. Southworth 

 corporation, of Cleveland, where we do our 

 trading in the grocery line. I think they sell 

 their goods for exactly what they are. If you 

 want adulteration you can buy it. For exam- 

 ple, strictly pure Arabian Mocha coffee is 3.5 

 cents a pound, or was when I was in there one 

 day; extra Rio. strictly pure. 28; choice Rio, 

 8(3 "per cent coffee and 14 percent English chic- 

 ory. 2.'> cents ; Rio. (5.5 per cent coffee, 2.5 per cent 

 English chicory, and 10 per cent rosted peas. 

 20 cents, and so on. Granulated sugar they sell 

 in lots of 25 lbs. or over, at only J^ of a cent a 

 pound above wholesale barrel price. There is 

 certainly soul in thitt corporation. These cor- 

 porations and trusts do wrong sometimes, like 



