THE STRAWBERRY-RASPBERRY 147 



soms, which are followed by "large, sweet, glossy, 

 golden, semi-transparent berries," which ripen in ad- 

 vance of strawberries. It appears to have developed 

 little value as yet. Thus far we have not succeeded 

 in making it live in Nebraska. 



The Straivberry - Raspberry . This peculiar fruit be- 

 longs to a species found wild in Japan, China and the 

 East Indies, and known to botanists as Rubus roscefo- 

 lius. It has been commonly referred to in horticultural 

 literature under the name R. sorbifolius, but this ap- 

 pears to be only a synonym of the older name rosasfo- 

 lius. The double form of this same species has been 

 long known as a greenhouse plant, cultivated for its 

 flowers, though apparently but little grown. As re- 

 cently introduced from Japan under the name straw- 

 berry-raspberry, it is of interest chiefly as a curiosity, 

 and may be worth growing for that purpose or as an 

 ornamental plant. It is herbaceous in our climate, 

 dying down to the ground each winter and springing up 

 from the roots in spring. It throws up innumerable 

 suckers, making a perfect mat of bright colored foliage. 

 The leaves have a central stalk with five to seven oppo- 

 site narrow leaflets, and are really very pretty. The 

 mat of plants is so dense that it will keep down nearly 

 all weeds, and the plants continue to bloom and fruit 

 throughout the greater portion of the season. The 

 blossoms are white, pretty and sweet-scented, and the 

 berries bright and showy, a clump of the plants making 

 an attractive bed. It is unproductive, and the fruit 

 in its fresh state is rattier unpalatable, varying from 

 sour and insipid to somewhat bitter. When cooked, 



