THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST. 41 



RANDOM RASPBEREY NOTES. 



BY T, C, ROBINSON, OWEN SOUND. 



I have not given the raspberry a fair trial, and so place little value 

 on my experience as a test of the value of the berry as a market crop. 

 But I have had a partial trial of a good many varieties of this delicious 

 small fruit, and as my experience of the relative value of these 

 varieties may be of some assistance to those who seek for something 

 better than the commonest kind, I give it for what it is worth. 



Varieties of the raspberry as well as of the strawberry can readily 

 be had that will grow on any kind of soil, and will, with or without 

 any kind of culture, produce, a supply for the family that will be a 

 welcome innovation on a diet of unmitigated pork and potatoes, so 

 that no man who owns a rod of land has any excuse for being without 

 these natural preventatives of disease. But if any man thinks to grow 

 either raspberries or strawberries without manure on land so poor that 

 it will scarcely sprout white beans, and hopes to make money by 

 selling the crop, he has got a hard row to hoe. My land was not 

 so bad as that, but it was decidedly too sandy for success without 

 abundance of manure; and without experience, as I was, it took several 

 seasons, with* their attendant bitter lessons, to awaken me to the fact 

 that I must fertilize the ground or give up the idea of profits. 



Starting on this sandy soil with the Wilson Strawberry and the 

 Philadelphia and Franconia Raspberries, I set out to find by experiment 

 varieties as productive as the first tM^o, and at the same time possessing 

 greater advantage as to size, color and flavor. Of course I have not 

 succeeded as yet, and may never do so. Nature is not given to 

 combining all possible excellencies, either in individuals, or articles 

 in the vegetable world, but the search is as fascinating as ever, and I 

 hope before long to find a variety of raspberry much ahead of the 

 Philadelphia for market. 



Among the first that I tried was the Turner. I am very fond of 

 this fruit. Of fine bright color, good flavor, excellent bearing qualities, 

 with the plant . as hardy as I desire, it makes quite an effort to " fill 

 the bill." It seems to be about the size of the Philadelphia, but looks 

 a little tame beside Franconia ; besides, it is not much firmer than 

 the Philadelphia, and is considered behind that old standby in 



