The Red and Hybrid Raspberries 169 



a point of interest in the history of the raspberry. Some 

 forty varieties can be definitely placed in this class. 

 Among those too little known to permit of classification 

 some doubtless also belong here. The group includes all 

 variations between the red and the black raspberry. 

 Nearly all propagate by tips, like the black-caps, but a 

 few propagate by suckers, though sparingly. This is 

 true of the Philadelphia and its numerous seedlings, which 

 are much more like Rubus strigosus than Rubus occiden- 

 talis, being practically red raspberries of a slightly darker 

 hue. 



Whether plants of this intermediate character should 

 be considered hybrids or recognized as a distinct species 

 was long an unsolved problem. So much experimental 

 work in breeding raspberries has now been carried on, and 

 so many artificial hybrids produced, and their behavior 

 and characters are so well known that there seems no 

 longer any reason to question the belief that all these 

 forms are primarily of hybrid origin. 



Hybrids often lack vigor and are unproductive. This is 

 true of some Rubus hybrids, but the red and black 

 raspberry are so nearly akin that hybrids between them 

 do not necessarily follow this rule. Shaffer and Co- 

 lumbian are among the most productive varieties in 

 cultivation. 



The history of the red raspberry as found in the old 

 herbals and other ancient writings, as well as its develop- 

 ment in our own country, is interesting. The following 

 account, with quotations from some of the older writers, 

 was at one time contributed to "The American Garden" 

 by the writer. 



