208 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book 



crushing. In such cups blackberries have been sent with 

 complete satisfaction from the Puget Sound country of 

 Washington to Chicago. 



Winter Protection 



In regions of severe winters, such as from northern 

 Missouri northward, tender varieties, such as Early Har- 

 vest, will need to be protected to prevent winter killing. 

 In northern Iowa and Minnesota it is advisable to protect 

 all varieties of blackberries in the winter to keep the canes 

 from being killed. This winter protection is usually done 

 by bending the canes over and covering them with soil. 

 Begin at one end of them and bend the canes over to the 

 north or west, as they will then hold the snow better. 

 Cover the tips with soil to hold them down. Bend the 

 next hill over this, shingle fashion, and weight down the 

 tips. Then when all are bent over, mulch them well with 

 straw. For such practice better results can be obtained 

 by growing the plants in hills rather than in solid rows. 



Currants 



The currant is essentially a Northern fruit as in the 

 Northern states, where the weather is cool during the sum- 

 ers, it reaches its best development. In the Middle and 

 Southern states it produces fair crops of fruit when placed 

 in a semi-shaded position, as on the northern side of a row 

 of trees, or a fence. The currant enjoys a cool atmosphere 

 and thrives in the climate of the northern portion of the 

 Mississippi valley. 



The cultivated varieties have come from a number of 

 wild forms, mostly natives of Europe, and because of the 

 diversity of the types from which these varieties have 

 originated, we have in cultivation several kinds of dif- 

 ferent colors, such as black, red and white kinds. These 

 all differ quite markedly in flavor, and the red and white 

 varieties are most extensively grown. The black forms 

 have a flavor which does not appeal to many persons and 

 are grown but little outside of Canada. 



