280 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. 



Crystal White. This seems, as Mr. Lovett says, "a 

 veritable albino," a white Black- 

 berry, a novelty as rare as a white 

 crow or a white blackbird among 

 birds. It is of clear, translucent 

 white, very sweet and pleasant 

 in flavor. Well worthy, from its 

 novelty, of a place in the fruit 

 garden. It is less hardy than the 

 black kinds, requiring the same 

 protection as raspberries (tig. 98). 



Fig. 98. CRYSTAL WHITE. 



CURRANTS. 



The Currant is useful both for dessert and for preserv- 

 ing purposes. An immense weight of fruit is obtained 

 for the space it occupies, and the ease of its culture 

 makes it common in every garden. The red and white 

 varieties may be planted three or four feet apart each 

 way, the black at four or five feet apart. Pruning is 

 done in the fall by cutting off about a third of the young 

 growth of the previous summer, and thinning out old 

 shoots when the plants get too thick. All are trained in 

 low bush form, the whites and reds usually from three to 

 four feet high and wide, and the black four to six feet. 

 They can also be grown trained against fences or walls 

 like grape vines, and will, in such positions, attain eight or 

 ten feet in hight in five or six years from the time of 

 planting, if the soil is deep and rich. Grown in this way, 

 if care is taken in training, the fruit is larger, and when 

 ripe, particularly if the black, white, and red varieties 

 are placed in contrast, they form very attractive orna- 

 ments for the garden. In many places, where the area 

 for garden operations is limited, they can easily be 

 trained against the fences. 



An insect known as the currant worm is often very de- 



