E. W. HEID'S NURSERIES, BRIDGEPORT, OHIO 
RATHBUN AND ELDORADO BLACKBERRIES 
BLACKBERRIES. 
Culture. — The culture of these is about the same as that of the raspberry, but if the soil is not very rich, 
plants may be set 5 by 2 feet in the row; on rich soil, 6% by 3 feet. It requires about 3,000 plants per acre. They 
should topped 2 feet from the ground for laterals; do not let moro than three canes grow to the hill. The last 
season has proved to us that there is as much profit in Blackberry culture as in any other branch of fruit-growing. 
We gathered enough fruit from vines this season to almost pay for the ground they grew on — getting $4 per 
bushel for fruit at a home market ! The culture of Blackberries is not so general as the profits would justify, the 
demand being always good in the larger cities. 
RATHBUN. This is a new fruit that we offer with the utmost satisfaction. It is admired by all who have 
seen it, and no one has been able to discover a weak point about it. To those who are accustomed to only the old 
varieties it will seem like a new kind of fruit. It has already established a high reputation in the vicinity where 
it originated, and the fruit brought a much higher price than any other Blackberry in the market at that time. 
The fruit is simply enormous, far larger than any other variety. A large proportion of the berries will measure 
from I I-4 inches to I 1-2 inches in length, and the whole crop is very uniform. The fruit of the Rathbun, 
unlike most Blackberries, has no hard core. It is soft, sweet and luscious, with a high flavor. It Is superior 
to all varieties in cultivation for quality. It is sufliciently firm to ship and handle well, having been sent a 
distance of 3G miles by wagon and rail, arriving in fine condition, and selling at a considerably higher price, in 
preference to the best of other varieties. The Rathbun was severely tested for hardiness during the winter of 
1895-9G, when for several days the temperature was 20 degrees below zero. Plants of Minnewaski and Erie Black- 
berries on the same ground were so badly frozen that it was impossible for them to produce fruit, but the Rathbun 
bore a very good crop. The plant is a strong, erect grower, and, unlike most varieties, it produces but few 
suckers. It sends up a strong main stem, which branches freely. These branches curve over and bend down- 
ward till the tips touch the ground. Late in the season they send out roots from the tips of the branches and 
thus propagate themselves, in the manner of a blackcap raspberry. It is not a dewberry, nor is there the least 
evidence of the admixture of dewberry blood. It is purely a Blackberry with tip-rooting habit. Ripens about 
the samb time as Wilson. Price, tips, 75 cts. per doz., $4 per 100, $30 per 1,000. Strong, 1-year plants, $1 per 
doz., $5 per 100, $40 per 1,000. 
ELDORADO. This is undoubtedly one of our finest Blackkerries. Its large size and delicious quality 
put it far in advance of any of the standard varieties. It is the hardiest Blackbeny in cultivation; 
have never known it to winter-kill, and it will stand the climate of Minnesota uninjured. It has been very 
productive, and has not failed to ripen a crop since its introduc- 
tion, so we have confidence in recommending it as far superior to 
anything we know on the market. We are confirmed in this by 
endorsements of nearly all the agricultural experiment stations, and 
the U. S. Department, Washington, D. C., which has tested the va- 
riety and reported it as follows: "Sweet, rich and very good. It is 
certainly far superior to the Snyder, and we have never tested any- 
thing to equal it.” It has been cultivated 15 years, and, under care- 
ful tests at different experiment stations for years, has never winter- 
killed or failed to produce a full crop of the finest fruit. The vines 
are very vigorous and hardy, enduring the winierb of the far north- 
west without injury, and their yield is enormous. The berries 
are very large, jet-black, borne in large clusters, and ripen well 
together ; they are very sweet, melting, and pleasing to the taste, 
have no hard core, and keep for 6 or IO days after picking with 
quality unimpaired. 50 cts. per doz., $2.50 per 100, $15 per 1,000. 
AGAWAM. Fruit of fair size, jet black, sweet, tender and melt- 
ing to the very core; for home use it has no superior, being sweet 
as soon as black; it is extremely hardy and healthy, and very pro- 
ductive. As an eminent small-fruit-grower says: "It stands at the 
head for hardiness, fruitfulness and sweetness.’' No -well-regulated 
fruit garden should be without this excellent variety. 50 cts. per 
doz., $1.50 per 100, $10 per 1,000. 
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