THE RASPBEREY. 



571 



Dutch have recently added three varieties to 

 our former list, namely, the Long-fruited Ant- 

 werp, Round-fruited Antwerp, and the Yellow- 

 fruited Antwerp. The French seem to have 

 contributed none until we recently received the 

 Franconia, and Belle de Fontenay, and the Yel- 

 low French of Lawson's Catalogue. There is not 

 oven a French synonym given to any raspberry 

 in the "Fruit Catalogue of the Horticultural 

 Society " excepting two, sufficiently conclusive 

 that little progress is making in that country in 

 the improvement of this fruit. England has 

 been active of late years in their production, as 

 the names in the following list will show. It 

 may be here remarked as something rather 

 strange, that considering with what facility both 

 currants and raspberries are produced from seed, 

 so few new or improved sorts should have been 

 raised, and this the more so as so many goose- 

 berries are annually produced. A curious hybrid 

 has been produced by Mr Rivers, which he calls 

 the Black raspberry, obtained by crossing the 

 raspberry vrith the common bramble. The fruit 

 produced is a dark purple. No doubt the 

 bramble might be much improved if crossed with 

 the raspberry ; we do not think, however, that the 

 raspberry would be improved to the same ex- 

 tent by the same means. This recalls to mind a 

 reminiscence of our early days — the humble peti- 

 tion of the Rvhus chcememones to the members 

 of the Caledonian Horticultural Society, pray- 

 ing that it might be transplanted from its dreary 

 mountain abode and taken under their foster- 

 ing care, or that it might be allowed to enjoy 

 the nuptial embrace of the raspberry, its near 

 kinsman, with the view of elevating its condi- 

 tion and admitting the progeny (if any) to 

 appear amongst the fruits of the garden. The 

 petition is written in the Ossianic style, and 

 highly creditable to the author, Mr Archibald 

 Gorrie, both as a poet and early hybridiser ; 

 for in those days little was known of the myste- 

 rious working of nature, in changing the condi- 

 tions of fruits particularly. 



The Americans have originated none from 

 our common origin, but they have taken into 

 cultivation three of their indigenous species of 

 Rubus — namely, Rubus slrigosus of Mioheaux, 

 their American red or common currant, the 

 Ohio Everbearing, and the American black 

 {Rabus occidentaZis Lin.), all of which are pro- 

 bably better fitted for their climate than any of 

 ours. Mr G. Lindley, in " Guide to the Orchard," 

 enumerates twenty-two sorts, the "Fruit Cat. 

 of the Hort. Soc." only fourteen as worthy of 

 cultivation ; and the more recently-published 

 fruit-catalogues of Peter Lawson and Son, and 

 Dickson and TurnbuU, Perth, present us with 

 fourteen and eight sorts respectively. 



Propagation. — By seed, when new varieties 

 are desired, which should be sown soon after 

 the fruit is fully ripened, washing away the 

 pulpy matter, drying the seeds, and sowing them 

 in pans or pots, in light rich soil, placed in a 

 cool frame or pit. In spring they will vegetate 

 in the ordinary temperature of the climate, or 

 they may be placed in a mild heat to further 

 their growth. When about 4 inches high, 

 transplant them into a nursery-bed, about S 



inches apart : the season following they may be 

 planted out in lines in rich moist soil, and many 

 of them will produce fruit the same season. 

 They do not propagate readily by cuttings, but 

 as they send up an abundant supply of suckers 

 from the roots during summer, these, when 

 stock is required, should be preserved, and 

 taken early in autumn and placed in their per- 

 manent situation. The strongest and best- 

 formed suckers should be selected for immediate 

 planting, the smaller reserved and headed back 

 to 6 inches and planted in nursery lines, where, 

 by October following, they will be sufficiently 

 strong for planting out. Either way they wUl pro- 

 duce some fruit the first year after planting, and 

 will be in great perfection the season following. 



Soil and situation. — The raspberry requires a 

 deep, rich, and humid soil, abounding in decayed 

 vegetable or humic matter. An enriched peat- 

 bog, thoroughly drained, is the best soil of any, 

 and next to that a deep, well-trenched, rich 

 garden soil ; if it can be irrigated during the 

 growing season of the plant,.so much the better. 

 In light, shallow, dry soils the plants are weak, 

 the fruit scanty and small. Partial shade is 

 suitable also, and hence many plant them in 

 the borders behind northern walls; but this 

 must ever be at a sacrifice to the trees growing 

 against them, as the raspberry roots descend 

 deep and spread widely, and would rob the 

 other trees of their due share of nourishment. 

 They also require shelter, as the young wood is 

 liable to be broken by high winds. An outer 

 slip, if well sheltered, even should it be partially 

 shaded by trees, provided they do not hang 

 over them, is the best position for them in a 

 garden. Let the soil be at least 3 feet deep, 

 and at trenching bury in the bottom a copious 

 supply of undecayed manure. The ground 

 between the rows should never afterwards be 

 dug by the spade during the existence of the 

 plantation : the surface may be slightly loosened 

 annually with a fork, and all manurial applica- 

 tions applied by top-dressing or in a liquid form. 

 There are two sorts of roots to the raspberry, 

 the one going down to a considerable length in 

 search of food or moisture, the other running 

 horizontally very little below the surface. It is 

 from these latter the young plants or suckers 

 proceed. When young plants are not required, 

 all these suckers should be destroyed ; the 

 nutriment necessary for their formation will 

 then be thrown into the fruit of the present 

 year, and also into the canes which are to pro- 

 duce the succeeding crop. When their surface 

 roots are deprived of their suckers, they then 

 become ^food-colleoting roots, and that is the 

 reason why they should not be disturbed. 



Planting. — Raspberries, like all other hardy 

 fruit-bearing plants, should be planted in 

 October or early in November. If in single 

 rows, the plants should be set 6 feet plant from 

 plant, that there may be room for training 

 the shoots sufficiently apart to admit sun and 

 light to the fruit while ripening ; for although 

 the raspberry thrives and grows luxuriantly in 

 shady situations, still, during the ripening of 

 the fruit, air and sunlight are highly important, 

 thus leading to the conclusion that portable 



