146 



POPULAR GARDENING. 



April, 



Packages for Small Fruit. How One 

 Grower Does. 



E. H. CDSHMAN, CUYAHOGA CO., O. 



For wholesaling berries in Cleveland the 

 two-bushel four-drawered crate is the most 

 popular, where quantity rather than quality 

 of fruit is the obiect. It has been in use for 

 years, and grower, dealer, and the average 

 buyer seem to unite against any other pack- 

 age. For the first two the crate is the best, 

 for the consumer it is not. 



Pickers prefer the four qiiart basket to 

 the little quarts, and the grower in empty- 

 ing these basket into the trays can more 

 easily detect poor picking, at the same time 

 he can make his fruit appear to Its best ad- 

 vantage by putting a few of the largest, 

 brightest berries on top. The crate is a 

 heavy, awkward package, but there are 

 usually two to handle them. The grocery- 

 men in purchasingexchange empty crates for 

 the ones with berries in. At their place of 

 business they are spread out to view so the 

 person buying can see just what he is buy- 

 ing: big berries he sees first, and first im- 

 pressions have power. These drawers give 

 the idea to buyers that there is nothing to 

 conceal, while quart baskets in a case have 

 the air of deceit. 



Too often berries shoveled out of a drawer 

 are gritty, mashed, bleeding and unfit for 

 consumption. After eating of such fruit is 

 it any wonder that the appetite for berries is 

 dulled, and we hear the expression. Oh! 

 could I have the berries of my childhood, 

 etc. Whether this state of affairs will ever 

 be changed I do not care to speculate upon. 

 That I sell some berries in this way I admit, 

 but I must say it is with a feeling of protest. 

 I have often let berries remain at home that 

 would have been called fair stock on the 

 market. 



There are a few fancy growers and grocers 

 who handle their berries in one, two and 

 four quart baskets. The fruit in these pack- 

 ages is usiaally of the best, commands the 

 highest figure, and is bought by people who 

 will have the best at any price. I retail 

 nearly all my fruit direct to the families. 

 Living ten miles from the center of the city 

 and being a small grower, I can do this in 

 a very satisfactory manner; there are others 

 who do the same. I aim to grow from a 

 quarter to a half acre of each of the small 

 fruits, and try to have these of the very best. 

 Strawberries are in greater demand than 

 any other variety of small fruit. They are 

 well mulched, for cleanliness is my motto 

 from the time the berries are in blossom 

 until they are delivered to the consumer, 

 for which purpose I have always used two 

 aud four-quart baskets, bxit hereafter shall 

 use two's only. These are new at the be- 

 ginning of the season and I never use a 

 soiled one. The berries are carefully packed 

 into the baskets and placed in a covered 

 wagon in the field; at the close of the pick- 

 ing the wagon is run into a fruit house where 

 it stands over night. The next morning at 

 five I start for the sale of my fruit, usually 

 reaching my first customers at H..3U o'clock; 

 selling is continued until berries give out or 

 I have served my fifty or sixty patrons. In 

 this way the berries receive very little hand- 

 ling and are always fresh and nice. 



It is a pleasure to sell direct to people who 

 know and appreciate good fruit. It gener- 

 ally takes me about four hours to sell from 

 six to eight bushels of berries; if I have any 

 left from my retail trade the commission 

 houses get them at market prices. I have 

 sold my fruit in this way for 13 years, and 

 have on my list now many to whom I sold 

 in the beginning. They have told me re- 

 peatedly that it was better economy for 

 them to buy my fruit at highest prices than 

 to purchase cheaper stuff on the market, 

 because there was often no waste but a sat- 

 isfaction in knowing the fruit was clean. 



When I started in this trade I purchased 

 a new wagon with white canvass top. I 

 had my name, business, and place of resi- 

 dence, nicely lettered on this top, the same 

 as any other business man does. This 

 wagon is kept clean, well painted and var- 

 nished. The horse and harness are in cor- 

 responding condition. I always try to be 

 tidy and never let an opportunity pass to be 

 accommodating. These are some of the 

 points which have brought me success. 

 There are the same opportunities all over 

 this land for my brother fruit grower. " Seek 

 the way and enter therein." The basket is 

 the best for such a local fancy trade, the 

 crate for the million. 



Garden and Other Notes by Judge 

 Miller. 



To Begin the Season's Work. The time 

 is here to prepare for work. Most garden- 

 ers know that such as Peas, Lettuce, Rad- 

 ishes, etc., will come into use much sooner 

 if got into the ground as early as possible. 

 After the frost is all out of the ground the 

 freeze of an inch or so on top at night mil 

 keep the soil too wet to work well, but some 

 morning when thus frozen the shell can be 

 laid aside, and the earth beneath will be 

 found in just the right condition, mellow 

 and fine, the surplus of moisture having 

 gone up into the frozen crust. 



Seeds that need a depth of only about the 

 thickness of the crust can be put on the 

 surface, after the ground has been dug and 

 mellowed to the proper depth. Cover with 

 the crust and the work is done. Peas, of 

 course, must be put much deeper. These 

 seeds will soon swell and be ready to grow 

 as soon as the groimd gets warm. Lettuce, 

 Radish and Beet seeds can lay in the ground 

 all winter and grow as well as if kept in the 

 house, and one often finds volunteers far 

 ahead of what are planted. It is to get even 

 with these that the early planting 

 should be done. 



Red Beets and Ashes. Two summers 

 ago I left a packet of Beet seeds on a little 

 pile of ashes, by an oversight, which got 

 torn open and the seeds scattered. Some of 

 the seeds sprouted in the almost pure ashes 

 (of course somewhat leached) and in the fall 

 I took up Beets therefrom, of usual size and 

 smooth as glass, also very highly colored. 



As Ye Sow so Shall Ye Reap. This old 

 saying is true now, as it was when first 

 expressed. This is to show us that if we 

 sow good seed and plant good trees and 

 plants we may look for a just return if we 

 do the proper thing in the way of preparing 

 the ground and give good cultivation. It 

 one wishes to purchase good seeds he can 

 hardly go amiss by ordering direct from any 

 of our popular seedsmen. Don't go to some 

 store, where there may be old seed offered 

 cheap, for you will most likely be disap- 

 pointed. Most seeds will be sent you by 

 mail at less cost than at the retail stores 

 through the country. 



As to trees, shrubbery and small fruit 

 plants that you may need, send to some 

 responsible nursery and don't fear the 

 freight, for the tree agent, if you patronize 

 him, will charge such prices as will make 

 your bill much higher than freight and all 

 the other way. Again, if you order from 

 the nursery direct you may expect what 

 you ask for, while from the latter your 

 chances are three to one that you will be 

 disappointed, and no chance for redress. 

 Don't be fooled by the exaggerated pictures 

 they show you, for even if the true kinds, 

 you may never raise such specimens as 

 they represent. 



Russian Apricot.s. Last season my trees 

 bore for the first time, and the fruit was 

 watched closely but some one else got them. 

 They were small but this may be on account 



of the small trees. They had no name but 

 now I have six varieties that are named 

 which will soon show what they are. They 

 are hardier than our old varieties. 



Japan Plums. I once wrote that it 

 would be best to grow these in large pots or 

 boxes so as to put them in a cellar, but this 

 seems not necessary as last winter they 

 stood in the nursery at 14° below zero at 

 Morrison and bore fruit, but when nearly 

 grown the fruit fell oft. This winter I have 

 grafts of both Kelsey and Botau of one 

 summer's growth and they are both sound. 

 It is possible that two of the most difficult 

 traits in the Kelsey here may be overcome. It 

 seems hardy and our long warm autumns 

 may ripen it. C K. Meyers, of Illinois, 

 tells me that it can be worked on the Dwarf 

 Almond and then easily laid down and 

 covered in winter. This is a new wrinkle to 

 me and shall be tried. I know that the 

 Peach will work on the Almond for I once 

 saw a monster Peach within six inches of 

 the ground on such a tree. 



What Variety to Plant. If one is not 

 acquainted with the popular fruits of the 

 day let him go to a fruit grower in his 

 neighborhood and ask his advice. There are 

 many valuable varieties that thrive in some 

 localities while in other places they are a 

 failure. Just here in a variety of soils some 

 of the Bragg Strawberries are of no accoimt. 

 Sharpless, Old Iron Clad and Piper have 

 proved a failure, while Columbia, Captain 

 Jack, Windsor Chief, Crescent, Harte, 

 and Minnesota never fail. 



Among the new ones Jessie and Bubach 

 No. 5 are at the head while Gaudy and 

 Mammoth promise well. While I would not 

 advise going largely into any of the new 

 varieties offered at high prices I would rec- 

 ommend the procuring of a dozen each, if 

 one can afford it; give them good (but not 

 extra) cultivation, so you can learn their 

 merits. Don't give them such high culture 

 as you never gave your old ones, or it is not 

 a fair test. I will lay a wager that it the 

 same care was bestowed on the Captain 

 Jack that some of the new crops receive, 

 it will match the best of them yet. 



But this thing of putting out a new Straw- 

 berry at «!3 per dozen seems to me to be 

 unreasonable although it may be legiti- 

 mate. Where a new one promises well the 

 owner should hold on to it until he can 

 well afford to send it out at $1 per dozen, and 

 this any one feeling an interest in it will be 

 willing to pay, but $3 is more than I intend 

 ever to pay for any new Strawberry, and 

 many prominent fruit growers have told me 

 that it was their idea also. The reason why 

 I advise getting the new ones at a decent 

 price is so that if they prove valuable you 

 will have a good start of it, while if not on 

 hand we feel disappointed. I would sooner 

 try six varieties and have five of them fail, 

 if the other one is good, than not to 

 have that one. 



The New Grapes. The improvement in 

 this fruit is very encouraging and if the rot 

 can be overcome (which there is hopes of) 

 we will soon have plenty of superior quality. 

 Among the white ones I will name Moore's 

 Diamond, Empire State, Niagara and Pock- 

 lington, all hardy, productive, healthy and 

 vigorous in vine and in quality as named 

 above. Diamond best and and Pocklington 

 fourth in quality, though even this is a good 

 Grape. These can be grown to nearly 1 lb. 

 to the bunch, and if such won't bring a 

 paying price after deducting the expenses of 

 sacking, one man has made a miscalculation. 

 Young Trees in Old Orchards. That 

 this is not advisable as a rule is true, and 

 is usually condemned, yet if properly done 

 may prove successful. Twenty-one years 

 ago, when I came in possession of this place, 

 there was an old orchard of about fifty 

 trees, most of which had seen their best 



