No. 4.] SMALL FRUITS. 233 



is also the most perishable. In the home garden it can be 

 grown to perfection and l)e put upon the grower's table in a 

 perfectly ripe condition, in wdiich condition it would be im- 

 possible to transport it even to a near market, and in this 

 condition it has an aroma and freshness seldom found in the 

 fruit purchased in the market. 



' The Soil. 



The best soil for the red raspberry is a deep, sandy loam, 

 that is not seriously aftected by drouth. In thin soils 

 mulching or irrigation must be practised to insure a crop in 

 seasons of drouth. On a light soil the canes mature better 

 than on a heavy one, and are less likely to be injured during 

 the winter. This injury is prevented by laying down the 

 canes in the autumn before the ground freezes. 



Planting, 



The fall is the best time to plant the raspberry. The 

 canes should be cut back to six inches before planting, and 

 then one or two shovelfuls of soil or manure banked over 

 them. 



The raspberry is grown in rows where the cultivator can 

 be run but one way, or in hills where it can be run both 

 w^ays. Both methods give good results, the distances being 

 four by six or three by five feet, according to the vigor of 

 the varieties. 



Fertilizers. 



As with the strawberry, a liberal supply of plant food is a 

 necessity, and bone and potash are equally valuable for the 

 raspberry, and about the same quantity must be used. If 

 the soil is very light, one hundred to two hundred pounds 

 of nitrate of soda per acre will be found valuable. 



Cultivation. 



No fruit is more benefited by frequent cultivation. This 

 keeps the soil cool and moist, the condition under which it 

 grows the best. In this work the only care needed is not to 

 cultivate too deeply, or to destroy too many of the new 



