124 THE HOME ACRE. 



I should next scatter over and about them one or 

 two shovelfuls of old compost or decayed manure 

 of some kind. If the plants had been set out in 

 the fall, I should mound the earth over them be- 

 fore freezing weather, so that there should be at 

 least four inches of soil over the tops of the stems. 

 This little mound of earth over the plants or hill 

 would protect against all injury from frost. In the 

 spring I should remove these mounds of earth so 

 as to leave the ground perfectly level on all sides, 

 and the shortened canes projecting, as at first, six 

 inches above the surface. During the remainder 

 of the spring and summer the soil between the 

 plants chiefly requires to be kept open, mellow, 

 and free from weeds. In using the hoe, be care- 

 ful not to cut off the young raspberry sprouts, on 

 which the future crop depends. Do not be disap- 

 pointed if the growth seems feeble the first year, 

 for these foreign kinds are often slow in starting. 

 In November, before there is any danger of the 

 ground freezing, I should cut back the young canes 

 at least one third of their length, bend them gently 

 down, and cover them with earth to the depth of 

 four or five inches. It must be distinctly remem- 

 bered that very few of the foreign kinds would en- 

 dure our winter unprotected. Every autumn they 

 must be covered as I have directed. Is any one 

 aghast at this labor? Nonsense! Antwerps are 



