164 The Canadian Horticulturist. 



of sap. It pays to take care of your trees ! As the foregoing hints are 

 applicable to standard trees, I will say a few words about 



SMALL FRUITS 



before closing this paper. Small fruits may be profitably grown in northern 

 localities, where the larger varieties will fail. Hence the argument for 

 setting forth their treatment, and commending them especially to the novice 

 in the work of fruit growing. You may with impunity venture on small 

 fruits, when you might be timid about apples, pears, plums, cherries, etc. 

 Besides an acre of ground will afford ample scope for your efforts in grow- 

 ing small fruits, while the risk in outlay for stock is not so great by far as 

 for large varieties, raspberries, blackberries, currants, gooseberries and 

 strawberries may be grown with success, with but little previous experience. 

 Obtain a nurseryman's catalogue and look over the varieties, and if he has 

 reputation for reliability, you can depend upon his descriptions of sorts and 

 make your selections therefrom. Stock purchased, to be delivered by mail 

 or express, can be had cheaper than from travelling agents, and as a rule is 

 fully as safe a plan as the other. Choose your ground with reference to 

 drainage and protection if possible, and lay out your fruit garden regularly, 

 both for convenience and beauty. Plant your raspberries, blackberries, 

 currants and gooseberries in rows six feet apart and four feet apart in the 

 row. This will leave a privilege for cultivating and hoeing, a work that well pays 

 in growing small fruits. If you do not care for laying out too much money 

 at first, you can get a dozen or two of several best varieties and take time to 

 propagate from them, thereby gaining by experience of your own, and risk- 

 ing less at first. I would advise this plan as a rule, unless you have plenty 

 of money to risk. If you make a wise choice of older grown varieties, you 

 will be surprised how fair a start you can get with an outlay of fift}^ or seventy- 

 five dollars. Raspberries and blackberries propagate very fast, and cuttings 

 from currants and gooseberries, if cut in the fall and kept in a damp place 

 without freezing, will be ready to set in the spring. In setting cuttings, put 

 at least two buds under ground with one or two above, and if your location 

 is inclined to moisture you may expect a fair share of success. Straw- 

 berries do best set early in the spring as they get well rooted and winter 

 through with greater degree of success. Some fall planted froze out with 

 me the past winter in spite my efforts to save them by careful covering. 

 But as this paper is growing tedious I will defer until next time further 

 hints. 



Nepean, Ont. L. FOOTE. 



