The Canai>ian Horticulturist. 369 



nil clTc-(ti\e remedy. OiIkt Liiowcrs syringe tlie hushes wiili soft stjaj) and soda 

 and water. 



.Sprinkling with powdered hellebore, or using it in solution, is practised by 

 some, but not nearly so generally as in the United States. Hellebore is regarded 

 just as dangerous a poison as London purple or Paris green, and most growers 

 will not apply it after the fruit is set. When used, the powdered hellebore is 

 generally applied with a soufflet or hand bellows, which useful apparatus costs 

 about seventy-five cents. — W'li.i.i \\i R. Lazknijv, in Country Gentleman. 



I'OINrs ON BLACKBERRIES. 



The main ])()iiit with l)lackberries is soil. This, if possible, should l)e cool. 

 loamy and rich ; but I never allow any. application of barn manure. Fertilize 

 with soil, rotted chip .soil, or whatever will mulch and cool the soil. Our chief 

 danger with blackberries is a dry spell when the berries are approaching maturity. 

 Of the berries now in cultivation my choice for (|uality is Taylor and Agawam. 

 Erie has not killed l)ack this winter, as it sometimes does ; but it is not with me 

 <i good cropper of fine berries. Snyder is always reliable, but of good quality. 

 Wilson, Jr., I see, is still spoken of as hardy, but here it is hopelessly a failure. 

 It kills down always, and even in the winter when peach buds escape. Kitta- 

 tinny is a noble fruit, and I get a crop from a small field by bending down the 

 canes. Wachusett's Thornle.ss does not differ largely from Snyder,s and is 

 entirely hardy. Few berries are badly affected by dry weather. On the svhole, 

 the key to success is cool, moist soil, not wet. If j)lanted on high land, either 

 mulching must be resorted to or frequent use of the cultivator. The Lucretia 

 Dewberry is tender and must be laid down for winter and covered with leaves. 

 In the spring I lift mine and tie to trellises. It will not pay to plant large fields. 

 The demand for the dewberry, is, however, unlimited, but few persons are willing 

 to incur the labor of cultivating it. The fruit is enormously large, very rich, 

 and two weeks earlier than the high blackberries. It will not ship to a distant 

 market. — L. P. Powell, in Fruit Grower's Journal. 



Pk KiN(; Grapes. — To pick and pack grapes for market, wait until the dew 

 is off the vines and the cluster, then cut the stem with a sharp knife or shears, 

 and deposit carefully in the basket, not crowding or heaping them therein, and let 

 them be taken to the packing house, without much exposure to the sun. 

 especially if well ripened, but give thorough ventilation until the next day, with 

 as little handling as possible, and it will then be found that the stems are soft 

 and easily bent, and the grapes still plump, but adhering to the stems more 

 closely than when first gathered. Now they may be carefully packed in the five 

 or ten -pound baskets without danger of crushing or heating, if properly handled- 

 A partial covering with a green leaf not only shows well against the color of the 

 fruit, but has a tendency to keep it brighter and firmer. 



