83o 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
December 16 
cold storage. The cluster I send you was picked from 
the vine to-day ; a month after the first cluster sent 
you, and also a month later than th° cluster from 
which the photograph was taken. So far, I have noth¬ 
ing to find fault with in my grape, and am more than 
ever convinced that it will be found worthy.” G- w. c. 
One ot the bunches alluded to by Secretary Camp¬ 
bell was received October 9. It proves that the size 
of the berry, as shown in the photo engraving, is not 
overdrawn. 
In The It. N.-Y.’s judgment, it is a delicious grape ; 
one that combines all the qualities claimed for it by 
its originator. Whether the vine will thrive, here, 
there and almost everywhere, as does the good old 
Concord, will be for the future to determine. 
There is no acidity in the flesh about the seed as 
there is in the Concord. As there is a growing and 
not ill-founded objection to swallowing grape seeds, 
this is a strong point in its favor. It is a mild and yet 
richly-flavored grape without a trace of foxiness that 
we can discover. The flesh is inclined to be meaty, 
with less pulp than the Concord. The seeds—of me¬ 
dium size and averaging three in number—part readily 
from the flesh. Here again, it has a decided advan¬ 
tage over the Concord. It is a better grape than the 
Concord in these important respects, while its earfier 
maturity is of inestimable value. Will it succeed 
where the Concord succeeds? That is the vital question. 
NOTES ON RASPBERRY CULTURE. 
PLANTS CLOSE IN THE ROW. 
As a comparison of methods in raspberry culture 
seems to be in order, I give some methods I have been 
led by past experience to try. I now plant in rows 
seven feet apart, but have planted closer for several 
years, and the plants two feet apart in the row. 
From two to three canes are allowed to each hill. 
My reasons for making this change are, first, that 
raspberries seem to like lots of room to stretch out 
their roots horizontally ; the plants at the ends of the 
rows are always more thrifty than the others. Again, 
raspberry bushes cannot be grown so near together 
as to allow of being cultivated by once passing be¬ 
tween each two rows, and, as I have to walk the 
horse up one side and down the other, I can cultivate 
seven feet as easily and as well as six. A partial 
shade is of benefit to raspberries, and where rows run 
north and south, close planting not only affords shade, 
but the mutual support afforded to at least one-half 
the laterals of each bush prevents them from trailing 
their fruit on the ground. 
Cut Down the Hand Hoeing. 
One more advantage, and not a small one, which is 
gained in ‘this way of planting, is the hand hoeing 
saved. I am aware that many growers of the rasp¬ 
berry trust almost entirely to the horse cultivator. 
For the benefit of those who practice hoeing out all 
the weeds left by the cultivator between the plants, I 
suggest that 150 plants in a row can be kept clean with 
about the same labor as 100. I have tried removing 
the young canes with the object of increasing the 
crop on the old and advise Mr. Fierce (page 703) to 
save himself my experience. The shade afforded to 
the roots by these leafy youngsters is worth much more 
than the fertility they consume. The old canes are, 1 
think, also benefited by the shade. I thank Mr. 
Pierce for the hint thrown out in regard to a short 
rotation for the raspberry crop. By removal to a dif¬ 
ferent location, say, every fourth year, diseased condi¬ 
tions might be tricked into expending their poisons 
on the vacant air. As I find it possible to nurse a 
young plantation into bearing a paying crop the second 
year from planting, the increased trouble may be 
repaid in an increase of vigor and health while dead 
bushes and unsightly gaps would cease to vex us. 
Michigan. _ F. habmek 
HORTICULTURAL TALK AFTER THE FAIR. 
A dozen pears were received from Addie H. Stone, 
of Oswego, N. Y., of a variety which has not before 
come under my notice, but which is handsome and of 
good quality. It is popularly known as the Trout 
pear. Downing calls it Forelle. He describes it as 
follows: “ This exquisitely beautiful German pear— 
called in that country Forellen-birne, f. e ., Trout 
pear, from its finely speckled appearance, is one of 
the most attractive dessert fruits. Fruit oblong, obo- 
vate, inclining to pyriform, smooth, at first green, 
but when fully ripe lemon yellow, washed with rich, 
deep red on the sunny side, where it is marked with 
large, marginal, crimson specks. Stalk rather slender, 
slightly curved, shallow, uneven cavity. Calyx rather 
small. Basin abruptly sunk. Flesh white, finegrained, 
buttery, melting, slightly vinous, good. Ripens begin¬ 
ning of November, and may be kept with care until 
Christmas.” The sender writes that they 7 have grown 
it for many years, her brother getting scions from an 
old nurseryman in Oswego more than 20 y 7 ears ago. 
The largest collection of strawberries shown by any 
State or exhibitor at the Columbian Exposition was 
shown by L. J. Farmer, of Pulaski, Oswego County, 
N. Y. He exhibited about 70 varieties at one time. 
The marvel of it was the perfect condition in which 
it was received, owing to the careful manner in which 
it wa 1 ) packed. Crates were specially prepared, of the 
Atwater & Armstrong type, but, instead of using bas¬ 
kets, the crates were filled with pasteboard partitions, 
after the style of egg crates. A single berry, envel¬ 
oped in cotton wadding—not batting—was placed in 
each compartment. The batting absorbed the surplus 
moisture and prevented the berries from becoming 
soft. Not only did they come in good condition, but 
they kept perfectly when exposed to the air, four or 
five days on plates. This experiment should settle the 
question of ventilation in shipping berries. These had 
no ventilation—were in almost air-tight compartments 
—and the condition in which they were received after 
an 800 mile ride, seems to prove that ventilation is not 
needed, but is rather an injury to the fruit. 
By the way, it is worthy of note that apples care¬ 
fully picked and each one wrapped in paper, kept much 
better than those not similarly wrapped. I believe 
that it will pay to wrap fine fruit in this manner for 
the general market. This method would be especially 
valuable with King of Tompkins County and such 
early winter fruits, helping materially to prolong 
their season. e. g. f. 
FARM FAILURES.—II. 
A BATCH OF MISTAKES. 
One of my first failures occurred many years since 
when I set about 250 pear trees, expecting them to 
grow and bear such fruit as thfir names indicated. 
The R. N.-Y. Illustrated Advertisers. 
“A Fearless Thrasher.” Fig. 266. 
But, alas! Many kinds were conspicuous by their 
absence and 25 per cent of the trees have never paid 
for setting. Moral : Buy trees of reliable persons, if 
you know where to find them. 
Another failure was caused by setting several varie¬ 
ties of grapes that have never paid for the time and 
care expended on them. The same may be said of 
some other fruits much praised by the introducers, 
but which have now passed into oblivion. But more 
of practical value comes frem some of my other exper¬ 
iences. I am now something of a crank on thorough 
preparation of the soil before planting. Several years 
since I planted about two acres of potatoes on land not 
thoroughly prepared and with seed cut some days 
before and partially dried. Dry weather following, 
the seed sprouted very unevenly and some not at all. 
The consequence was a poor stand, a poor growth and 
a miserably poor yield, only about 50 bushels per acre. 
Why ? Because I complied with none of the conditions 
necessary to produce an abundant yield. Imperfect 
preparation, deficient fertilization and poor condition 
of seed all contributed to this result. The moral is 
obvious. 
In another case, proper care was not exercised in 
determining the character of the seed corn planted, 
which failed to grow and the result was a yield of only 
about $50 per acre, whereas good seed planted beside 
this paid $150 per acre. We cannot know the kind of 
season to expect, whether wet or dry, and however 
well we may fertilize, if we do not have sufficient 
moisture to dissolve the fertilizer, the plant cannot 
use it. Such was the case the past season. There was 
not sufficient rainfall to dissolve the chemical fertil¬ 
izers used on potatoes, and the result was a yield only 
one-half to three-quarters as large as would have been 
secured could the roots have received the nourishment 
provided for them. 
I made the mistake of applying stable manure to the 
sod last winter and plowing it under in the spring for 
early sweet corn. Why ? Because the small roots of 
this early corn could not utilize the fertility placed at 
such a depth. If the manure had been placed on the 
freshly turned sod and thoroughly incorporated with 
the soil, it would have retained moisture and supplied 
nourishment to the plant when needed. 
Another failure the past season came from planting 
potatoes where they had been grown the previous 
year; and, although the seed was “ sublimated,” the 
tubers were scabby. I must say that, notwithstand¬ 
ing the evidence to the contrary which you have pub¬ 
lished, the soaking of the seed will not prevent scab 
unless other conditions are favorable. 
Again, a part of our grape vines were not properly 
summer pruned by our men, and the result was too 
much wood growth and, consequently, imperfect 
bunches of fruit, much less valuable than those where 
the work was properly done. 
I think that I have recalled enough failures to show 
that if our foresight were as goed as our aftersight, 
we would avoid such mistakes; but the lessons they 
give, if we heed them, may be of more practical use to 
us than the record of our successes. Walter f. tabek. 
SWEET CORN FOR THE COWS. 
IS IT CHEAPER THAN ENSILAGE? 
The Deacon Talks About Stalks. 
We raised a good crop of Henderson’s Mammoth 
sweet corn for fodder this season, and as we did not 
need it for soiling, the cows have been luxuriating on 
sweet corn all the fall. As the Deacon came into the 
stables the other morning, he picked up a sheaf of fod¬ 
der with the remark : “ Say, Mapes, how does itcome 
that you are feeding up this corn without husking it ? 
Here are as many as a dozen good ears of sweet corn 
in this sheaf. Here is one that is good enough to take 
to the fair.” 
“ Well,” said I, “ you don’t think they will harm the 
cows, do you ? ” 
“Probably not, if you don’t give them too much. 
But corn stalks after the corn is husked are good 
enough for most cows.” 
“ But, you see, I did not get the corn planted until a 
little after June 1. The exceptionally dry weather 
during July and the first half of August held it back 
so that by the time the ears were in good roasting con¬ 
dition it was time for frosts. I concluded that it would 
not ripen sufficiently for seed, and as there was not 
much market for the green corn, I cut it up and placed 
it in good-sized shocks in the field. We are drawing 
it to the barn as we use it.” 
“ I have been watching that field of corn all sum¬ 
mer,” said the Deacon. “ How did you manage to keep 
it so green and rank through the drought when mine 
all turned yellow and sickly ? ” 
“ Probably your land was poor, or else you used too 
much seed.” 
“ It could not be on account of too much seed, as I 
used only two bushels to the acre. What makes you 
smile ? ” said he. “ Is that too much ? ” 
Raising Cheap Eastern Corn. 
“ Entirely too much,” I replied. “ I used only half 
a bushel to the acre, and I presume only part of it 
grew on account of our manner of planting.” 
“ What was your method of planting and cultivat¬ 
ing ? ” 
“ The land was rough and full of stones, both fast 
and loose. We first plowed and harrowed in the usual 
way. I then started my man with a one-horse plow 
on one side of the field with instructions to make shal¬ 
low furrows 3% feet apart. I followed about six feet 
behind him to see that my instructions were carried 
out, at the same time scattering a little corn in the 
furrow. As soon as we had planted two furrows, I 
started a boy with team and harrow to cover it. The 
harrow used is a spring tooth with lever attachment 
to adjust it to any desired depth. As soon as the corn 
began to appear above ground, the boy and harrow 
were agaiH put to work. This time the harrow was 
adjusted to cut very shallow.” 
I should think you would have destroyed all the 
corn with your heavy harrow ; I have read of using a 
smoothing harrow on corn after it was up, but not a 
heavy, spring-tooth harrow.” 
“ We probably killed some, but there was enough 
left, and we killed millions of embryo weeds, thus 
giving 5he corn a clear track from the start. As soon 
as the corn was well started the man had another 
bout, this time with the cultivator, repeating in about 
two weeks. He spent about four days in cultivating 
the five acres.” 
