24 Bush-Fruits 



thrusts against the plant a foot or so above the ground, 

 and by pushing on the fork and stamping against the 

 roots with the foot, the plant is laid over in the direction 

 from which the earth was removed. The third man now 

 covers the plant with earth or marsh hay. Earth is 

 mostly used, and if the variety is tender the whole bush 

 is covered two or three inches deep. Hardy varieties may 

 be held down by throwing a few shovelfuls of earth on 

 the tops of the canes, thus allowing the snow to fill in 

 amongst the tops. If the grower lives in a locality where 

 late spring frosts are not feared, the bushes should be 

 raised early in the spring; but if frosts are anticipated, they 

 may be left under cover until corn-planting time. If the 

 buds become large and are bleached white under cover, 

 they will suffer when exposed to the atmosphere; and one 

 must watch the bushes in spring, and raise them before 

 the growth starts. This method of laying down black- 

 berry plants costs less than $15 an acre, and the slight 

 breaking of the roots is no disadvantage. Some growers 

 dig the earth away on both sides of the row, and still others 

 bend over the canes without any digging. Whatever 

 method is employed, the operator must be careful not to 

 crack or split the canes. The method may be varied 

 with different varieties, for some bear stiffer canes than 

 others." 



The same author writes 1 again as follows: "The tops 

 of plants may be laid down for the winter. Fig. 4 shows a 

 method of laying down blackberries as practiced in the 

 Hudson River Valley. The plants were tied to a trellis, 

 as the method is in that country, two wires having 

 1 " Manual of Gardening," p. 138. 



