38 



about the bush in sprino; and allowing it to remain there until roots are 

 thrown out from the base of the branches. Some of the English sorts 

 will requii'e to be left in this condition for two years before being suffi- 

 ciently rooted for the branches to be cut off and set out Ijy themselves. 

 The American varieties will form roots readily, and can be cut into 

 separate plants the following spring after being mounded 



They may also be propagated by ordinary lajering, bending a branch 

 down and covering it with soil until it roots. 1 his is less convenient 

 than the other method and not so generally practised. 



Afler-ctiUure. 



Frequent, thorough, but shallow tillage is all that these fruits demand. 

 The roots of these plants are readily injured bj^ implements which run 

 dee]) and their use should be avoided. 



The use of a cover-crop is as applicable to currants and gooseberries 

 as to raspberries and blackberries. Several rows of currants on our own 

 grounds had an excellent stand of mammoth clover during the past 

 winter and spring. This was cultivated and hoed out with some dilfi- 

 culty after making a good start this spring. It has been noted that these 

 plants are now making an vinusually good growth. How much of this 

 is due to the influence of the clover we are unable to say. Certainly no 

 injury has resulted from it. 



Pruning. 



The pruning of currants and gooseberries is simple. When first 

 jilanted, if the growth has been rapid, the branches may be shortened 

 back at the spring pruning but under ordinary conditions the pruning 

 consists chiefly in thinning out su])erfluous stalks or branches. For the 

 first year or two the young wood may be removed, after that it is chiefl}' 

 a question of removing the older parts to give place to young growth. 

 The best fruit is always borne on the young wood. It is well, therefore, 

 to keep a perpetual process of renewal underway, so that at no time 

 shall there be any parts of the bush which have begun to weaken with 

 age. As with the brambles, this spring pruning is the fruit thinning 

 process and the amount of wood lett should determine the probable 

 amount of fruit which the plant is to bear. For exhibition purposes it 

 may be practicable to thin individual fruits or clusters, but under general 

 conditions thinning is done wholly by the pruning. 



Harvesting aiid Marketing. 



In harvesting currants for market ])urposes a particularly close watch 

 must be kept of the })ickers. The stem of each cluster should be grasped 

 above the fruit and removed from the bush without crushing or loosening 

 any of the berries. Only careful pickers will do this. It is so much 

 easier to grasp the cluster of fruit as a whole and pull it away than it is 

 to take hold of the stem alone with the thumb and finger. For this 

 reason a variety which attbrds more space between the branch and the 

 first berries of a cluster possesses an advantage. Fay is a good variety 

 in this respect. AVhile currants will stand shipment well if sound, they 

 will quickly spoil when torn from the stem, and the skin broken. 



(iooseberries are among the best of all our fruits to shi]), since they 

 are nearly always marketed green. They can be handled like so manj' 

 beans, and will always stand up well under ordinary shipping conditions. 

 They are, however, ditficvilt to pick, since the ])lants of all of our good 

 varieties are thorny. These thorns are stifl'and strong and particularly 

 troublesome to the pickers. One method of picking sometimes practised, 

 which obviates the diftlculty in part, is to wear gloves and strip the fruit 

 from the bushes into trays or dishes. They are then run through a fan- 



