The Small Fniits. 177 



coarse sand and muck, or a layer of pure muck, with coarse 

 sand above or below, is the ideal soil. Pure muck produces 

 an excessively rampant growth that is not fruitful. In 

 New Jersey and Massachusetts, the muck is commonly 

 covered with a layer of coarse sand. 



The cranberry requires moisture always near the surface, 

 but this water must not be stagnant. On true cranberry 

 ground, the soil rarely becomes dry more than half an 

 inch below the surface. 



271. Preparing: the marsh for planting:. Drainage first 

 requires attention. A main ditch is commonly cut about 

 two feet below the surface of the muck layer, wide enough 

 to contain so much of the marsh water that the surface 

 will not be flooded after heavy rains. The bushes are next 

 piled into heaps in a dry time and burned, and it is well if 

 the turf also burns. The remaining turf is next cut into 

 blocks and removed. These blocks of turf are sometimes 

 used for fencing the marsh or for making dams. The 

 stumps are then cut off even with the surface of the muck, 

 and a sufficient number of branch drains cut through the 

 marsh to drain the whole to the depth of 12 to 18 inches. 

 The earth removed from the branch drains is commonly 

 spread over the surface. Where sanding is practiced, a 

 layer of sand is next put on, of a thickness proportional 

 to the depth of the muck. When the latter is 1 to 2 feet 

 thick, the sand layer should be 2 to 3 inches thick, 



272. Planting. The cranberry is propagated from cut- 

 tings of the young wood, which are planted in place. 

 These should be taken from plants that produce freely of 

 large, well-colored and good-keeping fruit. To procure 

 the cuttings rapidly, the vines from a well-matted marsh 

 are often mown off close to the ground with a scythe, and, 



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