io8 



popular remedy for erysipelas. Thus we see how valu- 

 able the cranberry is, not only as food but as a medicine. 

 That the cranberry is a favorite luxury is abundantly 

 proved by the high price which a good, and not un fre- 

 quently an inferior article will command in the markets. 



That it is easy of cultivation, and that there is an abun- 

 dance of land now lying waste which is just adapted to its 

 growth, is perhaps not so generally known. There are 

 hundreds of acres in Essex county of meadow and swamp 

 land that might be converted into profitable cranberry beds 

 that are now lying waste and almost worthless to the owner, 

 and this healthful and delicious fruit would become still 

 more popular if larger quantities were raised for more 

 general use ; and when you come to the profit of raising 

 cranberries, there is hardly a farm crop that pays so well, 

 surpassing even the orange culture of Florida. 



Some of the worthless farms in the county that hardly 

 pay for cultivating, have upon them boggy meadow land 

 which, with a little enterprise, and not a large expenditure 

 of money, could be converted into a well paying investment. 

 A most important consideration in selecting a cranberry 

 meadow is its location. This should be, if possible, below 

 the surface of a natural or artificial pond or reservoir, from 

 which the meadow may be filled, and the vines covered in a 

 short time, if necessary, and at the same time have the ad- 

 vantage of being easily drained, so at a proper time the 

 water may be rapidly withdrawn. In such a location the 

 vines can be readily protected from frost, which often gives 

 scarcely an hour's notice of its approach, and also without 

 the danger of scalding, which arises when water is suffered 

 to remain about the vines, through the bright sunshine 

 which sometimes follows a September frost. 



In such a location the whole surface can be flowed in the 

 winter to such a depth as to secure the roots from injury 

 through the heaving of the soil, and the flowing can be 

 continued at such a depth and to such a time in the spring 

 as in the judgment of the grower it will be necessary for 

 the destruction of the cranberry worm. 



