SMALL-FRUITS AND THE GRAPE 211 



the variety. The trailing kinds, grown on a trellis or other 

 forms of support, are usually kept cut back to ten or twelve 

 feet in length. 



312. Pollination. Most of the blackberries are self -fertile 

 but a few varieties are self -sterile. 



313. Cultivation. Blackberries require frequent cultiva- 

 tion. Some growers plant cover-crops between the rows 

 where the climate is humid, or an abundance of irrigation 

 water may be obtained. Cultivation of blackberries should 

 be shallow so as not to injure their roots. Injured roots 

 produce large numbers of suckers, which become troublesome. 



314. Picking and shipping. Blackberries picked green do 

 not ripen well in shipment. The best quality of fruit is that 

 picked ripe for local use. In picking, packing, and shipping, 

 care is necessary. Unlike most fruits, blackberries do not 

 ripen in storage. Blackberries may be eaten fresh, canned, 

 or dried; or the juice may be extracted and used as a drink. 



315. Winter protection. In cold climates, blackberry 

 vines are protected from freezing during the winter by being 

 bent over and covered with soil in the fall. In the spring the 

 covering is removed and the vines straightened out. 



316. Special varieties of blackberries. The evergreen 

 blackberry, popular on the Pacific Coast, is said to be un- 

 usually resistant to disease. It is a trailer propagated by tip- 

 layering. The Himalaya blackberry bears a late crop extend- 

 ing over a considerable period of time. It is a rampant grower 

 and produces abundantly, but is adapted to certain sections 

 only. The dewberry is a trailing variety of blackberry. It 

 does well on almost any type of soil. Like the common black- 

 berry it may be propagated by root-cuttings, or like the ever- 

 green blackberry, by tip-layering. The loganberry was origi- 

 nated by J. H. Logan, of Santa Cruz, California. It is large, 

 shaped like a blackberry, and colored like a red raspberry, 

 and has a distinct and pleasant flavor of its own. This fruit 

 may be canned or dried and its juice makes a very fine 



