PREPARING THE GROUND 35 



Portions of some cranberry meadows are impregnated 

 with oxide of iron, and where this occurs, the soil has a 

 tendency to form long, perpendicular crystals of ice in 

 winter, which lift the roots of the vines entirely out of 

 the ground. 



These places are objectionable ; for, although the heav- 

 ing may be prevented by continued flooding in cold 

 weather, it is quite common to have the water accidentally 

 drained off, thus requiring young vines to be replanted, 

 and seriously injuring those more matured. 



Pure muck, also, has the same objection ; it will heave 

 the young vines out during the process of freezing and 

 thawing, unless covered with water or sand. Hence an- 

 other advantage of sanding such bottoms; even one or 

 two inches being sufficient to keep the plants rooted. 



Coarse or flakey mucks are not good to retain moisture, 

 neither do they absorb it from below in dry times; conse- 

 quently, without irrigation, soils of this character suffer 

 more from drouth than sand itself. They also have a ten- 

 dency to crack open in summer (unless covered with sand), 

 much to the injury of plants growing upon them. 



CHAPTER 



PREPARING THE GROUND. 



Having selected a location, combining water, sand, and 

 muck, in proper proportions, the next step is to prepare 

 the ground for planting vines. And as the modus ope- 

 randi is varied for the several locations, swamps, savan- 

 nas, and mill-ponds, we will describe the manner of pre- 

 paring each separately. 



