Sometimes our labors seem as lost 



And all our j/earnings seem i>i vain, 



And blessings that we pri^e the most 



Are biffwn in winds or dropped in rain. 



Rubus phoenicolasius was described in the Gar- 

 dener's Monthly, January, 1880, from an English source. 

 Trying to "prove all things" as we do, a plant at 

 length came to us, but under the name of R. Hoffnieisteri- 

 ana, which we supposed a synonym, and which cer- 

 tainly agrees in every respect with the cut and descrip- 

 tion, pp. 204 and 205. I enclose a twig. We have ad- 

 mitted it into our collection of ornamental shrubs from 

 its reddish hairs, but so far as pushing it as a fruit, we 

 never should have thought of it ! — Thomas Meehan. 



[The specimen sent is undoubtedly Ritlnis phanico- 

 lasius. — Ed. ] 



Fruit Packages. — D. W. Wiley, before Saugatuck 

 (Mich.) Pomological Society: "We are making amis- 

 take by using too many styles of packages. The fac- 

 tories cannot manufacture as cheaply as they could if 

 only two or three styles were used, and we lose the 

 benefits that would come from uniformity, when fruit is 

 offered for sale on the market. The handled basket, 

 either splint or climax, now so much in use in this sec- 

 tion, is an expensive package for the grower, because it 

 costs more to pack fruit in, and yet cannot be sold for 

 more money than the old round basket. Still, if the 

 majority prefer this package, we ought to use it to the 

 exclusion of other styles rather than have the market 

 filled with a miscellaneous lot of boxes and baskets, as 

 it now is. We cannot expect reliable quotations and 

 fair returns unless our side of the deal is conducted in a 

 business-like way. Another point that we need to look 

 after is the honest packing of fruit. Michigan's reputa- 

 tion is bad in this regard, and the competition from new 

 southern districts, and that already experienced with 

 California fruits, will capture the best of our trade. 

 We must send better fruit in uniform packages, and 

 then devise some plan for guaranteeing the quality in 

 the package, so that buyers can rely on getting what 

 they bargain for." 



Strawberry Culture for Women. — New employ- 

 ments present themselves to women every year, and 

 there are ten-fold more to-day than there were ten years 

 ago. Women in the rural districts are giving their atten- 

 tioH to horticulture, which is more healthful than the 

 close confinement of city employments. 



A woman in Medici, Kansas, decided to cultivate 

 strawberries. She purchased three hundred Captain 

 Jack plants. The second year, from her own plants. 



she set fifteen hundred more, and from the fruit the fol- 

 lowing year she cleared one hundred and twenty dollars. 

 The second year, the yield of the third setting, of little 

 less than two acres, was about seven thousand quarts, 

 and netted a profit of five hundred dollars. Last year 

 she set six acres of strawberries. 



Fruit growers assure us that strawberries will grow 

 in any soil that will raise good wheat or corn. A heavy 

 soil with considerable clay in its composition is said to 

 raise better berries with less labor. There is not as 

 much danger of late frosts injuring the crop if planted 

 on upland. The ground should be very rich. Manure 

 from the cow stable should be used liberally. Save all 

 the leaves in the autumn in a compost heap, and use in 

 the garden. Wood ashes are very valuable for straw- 

 berry culture when spread and spaded or plowed in. 

 The late Marshall P. Wilder, when asked: "What is 

 most necessary for successful strawberry culture ''" re- 

 plied : "A great deal of water: in the second place, it 

 needs more water : in the third place, I think I would 

 give it a great deal more water." 



The strawberry is such a delicious berry that it pays 

 well to cultivate it for home use. Plants set in the 

 spring yield a larger crop of berries the coming year 

 than those set in August. They do well set in double 

 rows, with plants ten inches apart, with a space of 

 fifteen inches between the rows. Do not let them bear 

 the first season, if you wish strong plants. 



Unless there is a good body of snow to cover them 

 well, it is better to mulch them lightly with straw or 

 coarse manure in December, after the ground is frozen, 

 to keep it from thawing. 



In April, as soon as the weather is suitable, uncover, 

 and when the soil is dry enough, make the ground mel- 

 low with a fork. Keep the weeds out and all the runners 

 cut off until the fruit is ripe — Mrs. M. J. Ashton. 



A New Red Raspberry — The Merkel. — The Merkel 

 raspberry is wholly distinct from all other varieties, and 

 possesses several very valuable qualities. The great 

 peculiarity about it is, that it does not throw up any 

 suckers or root sprouts, as the other red varieties so ob- 

 jectionably do. The plants form very large, tree-like 

 bushes that are perfectly hardy and exceedingly pro- 

 ductive. The berries are firm and of excellent quality, 

 having a remarkable currant flavor, which gives them a 

 pleasant, sprightly taste. In color, they are somewhat 



