328 Fertilizers 



spring rather than make partial applications of nitrate of 

 soda ; and others prefer to use nitrate of soda alone at the 

 time of setting and supply the minerals as a top-dressing 

 during the summer. If a complete fertilizer containing 

 available nitrogen is to be used as above suggested, 400 to 

 600 pounds of the formula given on page 313 would give 

 excellent results. 



Raspberries and blackberries. 



Raspberries and blackberries also require a soil well 

 enriched with the mineral elements, which insure an abun- 

 dant and strong growth of canes. The need for nitrogen, 

 while apparent, is less marked than in the case of the straw- 

 berries, and the slower-acting forms serve a good purpose, 

 provided they are not applied in too great quantities, so as 

 to encourage a late growth of plant, which does not fully 

 mature. The main object is to obtain strong, well-ripened 

 canes, and this can be accomplished with the slowly avail- 

 able nitrogenous substances, provided an abundance of the 

 minerals is present. An annual application in spring of 

 500 pounds to the acre of basic formula No. 2 (p. 313) will 

 furnish sufficient food on soils of good character, though on 

 lighter soils additional nitrogen should be supplied, pref- 

 erably in forms not too active. The practice of applying 

 quick-acting nitrogen early in the spring, after plants 

 have blossomed, has been followed with great success, 

 particularly upon the lighter soils, as it encourages a 

 more complete development of fruit, though it should 

 be used with caution, since the fruit canes of both the 

 present year and those which provide the plant for the 

 next year naturally grow in the same bed, and the young 

 canes may not mature properly if too heavy applications 

 of nitrogen are made. 



