Propagating and Planting 211 



Soils 



The wild plants are found growing on sandy or other- 

 wise well drained and rather impoverished soils. This may 

 be because it is crowded out of the better locations by 

 other kinds of plants, and can maintain its existence only 

 on those soils which are too poor to support other kinds 

 of vegetation. Under cultivation it does well on a great va- 

 riety of soils, and locations which are suitable for black- 

 berries do well for the dewberry. 



Propagation and Training 



Dewberries are propagated from rooted tips, as are the 

 black raspberries, and also from root cuttings. The plants 

 are set in rows 4 to 6 feet apart and 2 or 3 feet apart in 

 the row. The best system of culture is to train the vines 

 on a trellis or tie them to stakes. Some growers allow the 

 vines to run over the surface, and are pruned just enough 

 to Keep them in hills. 



Where the winters are so severe as to make it neces- 

 sary to protect the plants during the winter, they can be 

 most easily handled when placed on a trellis or tied to 

 posts. 



The trellises are made by running two wires along the 

 row on posts about two feet high, bearing at the two ends 

 a cross arm twenty inches wide. The wires are fastened 

 to the ends of these cross arms and the canes drawn up 

 over them. About a dozen canes can be allowed to form 

 in each hill with this style of training. Where single posts 

 are used there can be no more than half a dozen canes 

 from each hill, and they are tied to the post and allowed 

 to fall over the top. 



The culture of the dewberry is similar in every detail 

 to that of the blackberry. When given good care they are 

 very productive but when neglected the iruitfulness is vari- 

 able. Young plantations need to be kept in clean culti- 

 vation until the plants are well established. In cold cli- 

 mates the canes will need to be covered in the winter to 



