r* vt- 
> f tlie currant worm, and other drawbacks. 
It won’t be all sunshine and fair sailing by 
anv means. Yet. I consider it safe to say 
«/ 
that from eight to ten acres, favorably lo- 
t * cated. judiciously planted to the best vari¬ 
eties of all the hardy species, and properly 
treated will yield more average net profit 
than 100 acres at ordinary farming. 
SMALL FRUITS FOR COUNTRY HOMES. 
Complaints are made that our farmers 
isolate their iamilies from the many enjoy¬ 
ments of city or village life, and neglect to 
provide those luxuries of the garden that 
lighten the heart and invigorate the stom¬ 
ach; a choice collection of which delicacies 
one might well travel some distance to par¬ 
take, at the home of a friend, as some 
writer has intimated. Such complaints 
are well founded, and farmers are to bi 
censured, if. as some imagine, our 
farmers are independent, and burdened 
with leisure hours. But this happy con¬ 
dition being simply a dream of the poet, 
or a burlesque on struggles for existence, 
let us not berate the patient husbandman; 
for no class is so badgered, harrassed and 
driven, nor so poorly paid for their toil. 
The care of farm fences, buildings and live 
stock, long journeys to market over horri¬ 
ble roads—relentless storms, the fickle sea¬ 
sons, and countless never ending drudger¬ 
ies. assail the farmer at every turn; and lo 
and behold! it is discovered his fruit gar¬ 
den, his flowers, his lawns do not compare 
favorably with those of his city brothers. 
The homes of many of our farmers are 
indeed barren of the choice varieties and 
species of small fruits; but the farmer’s 
heart beats kindly towards those dependent 
on his efforts, and as he becomes more fa¬ 
miliar with the better varieties, and appre¬ 
ciates their value for home use, and learns 
how easily they may be grown, he will 
produce them. In fact, our well-to-do far¬ 
mers are, of late, introducing these com¬ 
forts quite liberally. 
Small fruits are a great attraction to any 
place, but no country home is complete 
without them in abundance, from June to 
January. They are not only toothsome 
and healthful, but are possessed of great 
beauty. Downing says that “fine fruit 
is the most perfect union of the beautiful 
that the earth knows.” As much pleasure 
may be obtained by wandering through 
a garden of strawberries, raspberries, 
blackberries, currants, gooseberries and 
grapes, under good culture and treatment 
when in bloom or fruit, as from many 
flower gardens. We are apt to overlook 
the beauty of these useful plants, and be¬ 
stow our admiration indiscriminately on 
those that have their being for beaut} r 
alone. If we desire we may train most of 
the small fruits in forms of beauty, greatly 
enhanced when beming their luscious bur¬ 
dens. For instance, the Black Cap rasp¬ 
berry may be made to cover a trellis or may 
be trained low, and as round-headed as a 
liay-cock, or transformed into an uniform 
and trusty hedgerow. Should we first see 
the currant in fruit, when strolling for 
wild flowers, we should feel that we had 
discovered berries of great beauty. Like 
blades of grass, apple blossoms and sunsets, 
currants are too familiar to receive general 
admiration. 
Few vines are more ornamental for home 
grounds than the grapes: and when the 
“bloom-dusted” clusters swell and ripen, 
in the autumn sun, we may rest with con¬ 
tent beneath their shadows. Hundreds of 
m 
dollars expended in architectural display, 
may not add so much attraction to a coun¬ 
try home as the old grape-vine, trailing 
from a rustic arbor about the gables. How 
well we remember the vines that twined 
their tendrils about the homes of our 
childhood. Familiar scenes and former 
acquaintances may have been forgotten, 
but the old vines cling to our memory 
in all their beauty and fruitfulness. Let 
us plant the small fruits about our homes. 
They will promote health and contentment, 
and do much to brighten life’s toilsome 
journey. 
DIRECTIONS FOR SMALL FRUIT CULTURE. 
For garden culture plant Strawberries 
in beds four feet wide, with paths between. 
In such beds set three rows of plants, fif¬ 
teen inches apart each way. These beds 
can be kept clean, and the fruit gathered 
without setting the feet on the beds. En¬ 
rich and pulverize the soil at least one foot 
