14 
R. M. KBLLOGG'S 
GREAT CROPS OX 
let the runners take root the weeds were all 
gone. We now put on the Planet Jr. cultivator 
with two inch tooth, going first time close to 
the plant, throwing the runners around and 
the next time tar enough away to form the row 
at the proper width. Let the front tooth make 
the mark for the tip of the runner to fall into 
to be covered about a half inch deep with the 
hind tooth so the runner will at once take root 
and make large plants by fall. A little prac- 
tice will enable you to do this very skillfully. 
If the runners are allowed to remain on the 
top of the ground and it should continue very 
dry it will sometimes be weeks before they 
will take root, and during this time they live 
on the mother plant instead of having their 
own roots for support. New runners will 
rapidly form and come out between the rows. 
Remove the plow from your Planet Jr. lawn 
edger go ahead of the cultivator, cut- 
[Fio. 8.1 
ting off every runner, turning the cutter out 
wherever the plants are not thick enough. 
Keep the cultivator going till it freezes in the 
fall. In many instances the plants will form 
too thick even then, but we go over them and 
pull them out, treating them as we would 
weeds. They should not stand nearer than 
«ight inches from each other. 
Every runner cut off causes a new crown 
and fruit stem to form. It is the most 
profitable work you can do to go over the 
ground at short intervals and remove the run- 
ners. Of course this involves considerable 
labor, but not so much as you would think, if 
you go at it in time and learn to do your work 
with the fewest possible motions. 
Cnltivatiii;!; vs. Miilcliiiig'. 
We do not hear so much about mulching of 
late years as we did formerly. We have dis- 
covered that the most economical mulching we 
can find is the soil itself. When kept frequent- 
ly cultivated to the depth of two or three 
inches about the plants there is nothing better 
and in many respects it is superior to any 
artificial covering, as it does not prevent the 
warmth of the sun from penetrating the earth 
and is much more economical, besides it also 
admits the air to the roots to prepare the plant 
food. The man who cultivates frequently is in 
fact mulching on a large scale, and the more 
frequently he cultivates the more successful 
will his mulching prove. It not only keeps the 
soil moist and mellow, but breaks up the 
capillary passages between the soil beneath 
and air above. It covers the ground with a 
soft blanket that checks the rising vapor and 
Holds the Water 
where it will do the most good. If however 
cultivating cannot be done it is absolutely 
necessary in many cases that the surface 
should be covered around trees and plants by 
some coarse litter. This should always be 
done after plants are watered during a dry time 
to keep the ground from baking. 
Fljfhtiiig the Drouth. 
Did you ever notice the great drops of water 
collect on a pitcher filled with ice water? 
Where do they come from? The atmosphere 
of course. Then we are to understand the 
atmosphere is always loaded with moisture and 
readily condenses when it comes in contact 
with anything colder than the air. Heat will 
also draw moisture. At the close of a hot day 
when the top of the ground is heated and 
about the time the air is charged with the 
falling dew we start the cultivator, turning the 
hot dirt down to draw the moisture from the 
subsoil, as it will do, and bring up the cold 
earth for the atmosphere to circulate through 
and condense its moisture during the long 
hours of the night; we can save our crop rain 
or no rain. 
We always cultivate our blackberries every 
night while picking during a drouth, (we pick 
twice per week) and have never failed of a 
splendid crop. Try it. It works like a charm. 
Spring Cultivating-. 
When the ground is mulched we do not dis- 
turb the soil until after picking and burn- 
ing, but if the field has been left without 
mulching in order to get early berries we go 
