June 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
4o2 
TRIMMING VUBIETIES OF BLACKBERRIES. 
One of our readers says that in trimming blackberries 
one must be careful not to prune Early Harvest severely, 
because, he says, the fruit buds of that variety are chiefly 
borne near the end of the canes. He says that other 
varieties may safely be trimmed severely, but that Early 
Harvest should not be handled in this way. This leads 
us to think that possibly there may be differences in 
the growth of small fruits which require special care In 
pruning. Is It safe to give general directions for trim¬ 
ming or pruning bush fruits generally, or do the varieties 
liave such difference in growth that we should change 
our methods according to the variety? 
I do not dotibt but what your reader is right about 
Itrtming the Early Harvest blackberry. While I have 
not observed this peculiarity that he speaks of in this 
variety, I know that different kinds of raspberries 
make different growths, so that they receive different 
treatment in the hands of expert growers. These dif¬ 
ferences in growth and bud formation can scarcely be 
called a varietal characteristic, but rather a charac¬ 
teristic of the race or type of fruit to which the va¬ 
riety belongs. These differences are usually not ap¬ 
parent to the ordinary grower, but in some instances 
these little features are taken advantage of, and the 
knowledge is turned to good account. The following 
e.xtract from a letter from Mr. J. F. Hunt, one of the 
best small fruit growers in central New York, shows 
that different types of raspberries need different 
treatment in order to get the best results, and also I 
think that there are many things in small fruit grow¬ 
ing that escapes the notice of the majority of men: 
“Would say that my experience in trimming the 
Shaffer berry is very much the same as in trimming 
blackcaps, except trim shorter, as each well-developed 
bud has the capacity of producing twice as many ber¬ 
ries as buds of blackcaps with the same development; 
that is to say, if each was forced by proper trimming 
to its full extent. If the new growth was pinched off 
when about 12 to 1.5 inches high, making the head 
low, the pruning of side branches may be longer than 
where the head is high and the weight of the berries 
tops the bushes over on the ground, and nearly all 
of the fruit is lost on account of being covered with 
dirt. I believe I have learned this, that three or four 
canes to the hill, cut very short, will produce more 
fruit in a dry season than the same canes trimmed 
long, or more canes left in the hill. If there is too 
much wood left to set fruit, and a heavy crop de¬ 
velops, and conditions are unfavorable, then the 
whole crop is forced to maturity in a few days. On 
the other hand, if cut short, the least-developed buds 
on sides of main cane start late, and so lengthen the 
season by a week or more. The same conditions I 
find hold true with the Cuthbert berry, but not with 
blackcaps to any extent. With blackcaps, such 
varieties as Ohio, Palmer and Souhegan, that have 
short-jointed wood, should be trimmed accordingly; 
they also develop many more berries to the bud than 
the Gregg and that class of berries.” w. paddoc:k. 
WATER WORKS FOR THE FARM. 
I have been interested in what the Hope Farm man 
said about his water works, because I put in some 
last Fall myself. 1 built a cistern that will hold 170 
barrels, in the top of the hill south of the house- 
grout and cement wall; 15x6 feet, eight feet deep. 
The top of wall is six inches above surface of ground, 
and cistern has a frostproof cover. It was a back¬ 
breaking job, digging the ditch and cistern; had to 
use a pickax all the way (38 rods), and near the cis¬ 
tern the ditch had to be eight feet deep, so I can draw 
right from the bottom. No siphon business for me; 
a siphon will work all right—for a while, and the 
bother begins. Fig. 165 shows how I have my water 
works arranged; two hydrants in garden and one 
each in flower garden, barn and pigpen; three valves 
in barn and two in house—one in kitchen and one at 
Cooley creamer. I have three way cocks in well, so I 
can either draw from cistern or pump from well. I 
can attach hose at pump or flower garden hydrant, 
and throw a stream over the house. I have a hydrant 
by the stable door (inside) where I can water the 
horses; and the pipe then extends to the top of the 
stable room, and from there all the way on a slant, 
out through the cow barn in front of the cows, to the 
water trough in barnyard, so I can drain the pipe out 
and have no trouble with zero weather. There is a 
feeding alley in front of horses, where cut hay drops 
down from above; have a mixing box there and a 
short hose, with the ground feed just a step from it; 
so everything is handy for giving the horses their 
mixed feed. I put cement on one end of the bottom 
and part way up on the sides of the alley in front of 
cows, and use that to mix the cut stalks and feed for 
the cows; of course I have a hose there. 
My wife appreciates the water as we have it now, 
but she will have it still better when some changes 
are made in the kitchen and a bathroom added, for 
then with a water front In the stove she will have 
both hot and cold rain water and cold well water; 
can make the windmill pump up the rain water, too. 
The boys think the cistern is a mighty fine thing, too, 
because now they never hear: “Come boys, fill up 
that trough!” You know the old saying: “You can 
lead a horse to the water but you can’t make him 
drink!” I can do better than that, because I can stick 
the hose down his throat and make him drink. 
I have been trimming a young orchard set out four 
years ago. In spite of the fact that when setting them 
out I leaned the trees slightly to the west, many of 
them are now leaning to the east, and many of the 
limbs on the west side are bowed right over to the 
east. Some of the Roxbury Russets were and are of 
fine shape, but some of them were crooked, and de¬ 
spite careful pruning are so still. I think they must 
have crooked blood. Rome Beauty, Jonathan, Spitz- 
SMYUNA KIG FROM CALIFORNIA. Fia. 164. 
enburg, Wagener and Grimes Golden will bear this 
year. The present prospects for all kind of crops are 
good. Red clover that I sowed in Spring wheat April 
27 is better than that I sowed on Winter wheat 
April 6. j. K. w. 
Shortsville, N. Y. 
NOTES ON STRAWBERRY GROWING. 
Many authorities on strawberry culture advise 
plowing up old beds after the second year and starting 
new ones. Some suggest cleaning out and working 
over old beds without moving the plants, but 1 have 
found this practice usually labor lost. The roots of 
the strawberry begin to decay when the fruit ma¬ 
tures. All the strength and vigor of the plant passes 
from the roots to the berries and runners; conse¬ 
quently the old root system becomes enfeebled and 
gradually withers and dies. My own practice, dif¬ 
fering perhaps from that of most others, and which I 
have followed for several years with gratifying suc¬ 
cess, is as follows: Immediately after fruiting ceases 
I take up the plants with a spading fork, three or 
four to a forkful, disturbing the roots as little as pos¬ 
sible, and set them one side; then thoroughly spade 
up the old row, clean out the weeds, fertilize, trench 
and then set the plants back, being careful to keep 
the blocks of earth intact; arrange the runners for 
rooting, and later on cut off only the weaker runners 
if in too great profusion. The first runners sent out 
by the old plant are larger and more vigorous than 
those produced later, thus making stronger plants. 
The importance of replanting at once after the plants 
have ceased fruiting will therefore readily be seen. 
A delay of three or four weeks, if not resulting in 
entire failure, would be likely to show a great reduc¬ 
tion in the size and vigor of the new plants, and ren¬ 
der them less capable of enduring the Winter freez¬ 
ing. By this system I have grown strawberries suc¬ 
cessfully year after year upon the same ground. In 
resetting probably not more than one-half or one- 
third of the old plants would be required to fill the 
worked-over rows, while the remainder could be used 
in enlarging the plot if desired. In fertilizing I have 
found fine ground bone and sulphate of potash, in the 
proportion of about four to one, very satisfactory, 
and estimate production at the rate of about 5,000 
quarts per acre. 
My method of mulching and Winter protection also 
differs from that usually recommended. In August 
or September, with a spading fork, I take up sods 
about one foot square, thoroughly shaking out the 
earth. After lying reversed in the sun for a couple 
of months the grass roots become entirely dead. 
Along in November I trim the edges of each matted 
row with sods, allowing them to cover the ground 
close up to (not on) the plants. This prevents all 
damage from freezing and thawing. No other cover¬ 
ing is required. Have sometimes used cornstalks, etc., 
as additional covering for some of the rows, but per¬ 
ceive no benefit from such use. No Summer mulch¬ 
ing of hay, etc., to keep the berries clean is necessary, 
the sods forming a perfect protection. After fruit¬ 
ing is over, while working the rows, the sods are 
turned under, thus materially increasing the humus 
and fertility of the soil—no small gain. My experi¬ 
ence in growing strawberries in hills has not been 
successful. I have discovered no increase in size, and 
a material decrease in production as compared with 
narrow matted rows. The reason is plain. The straw¬ 
berry is a perennial. When confined to hills reliance 
is placed upon a single plant to form several crowns, 
which are expected to fruit the following season, all 
runners from the original plant being cut off as they 
appear. The plant being deprived of the natural 
power of reproduction from runners is compelled to 
form crowns. Reproduction from runners is natural; 
from crowns unnatural. A certain amount of the 
plant’s vigor in sending out the runners has been 
wasted, and, of course, is not available for the crowns. 
Would it be risking too much to assert that a strong, 
well-rooted runner plant would produce more berries, 
equally large, than any single one of the forced 
crowns upon the original plant? As well expect a 
half-peck of potatoes planted in one hill to equal the 
product of a score of hills planted to single tubers. 
Connecticut. _ ii- h. boardman. 
EVERYBOOrS GARDEN. 
Experience Wiih Cabbage and Club-Rooi. 
As this disease is yearly becoming more prevalent 
and proportionately causing more and more damage 
to the cabbage crop, it may not be amiss to note some 
personal experiences. In February, 1898, I was called 
upon by a representative of a famous cabbage-grow¬ 
ing district to suggest, if possible, some remedy for 
the club-root, which was forcing many of the growers 
to abandon the growing of the crop. In April follow¬ 
ing the locality was visited, and from a careful study 
of the situation, and inquiry into various places of 
the progress of the disease, it seemed reasonably cer¬ 
tain that the disease, once started, was fostered and 
increasing to an alarming extent through a seriously 
acid state of the soil. There was no apparent lack of 
fertility, as stable manure was used in abundance, 
and fine crops of various kinds as strawberries, car¬ 
rots, potatoes, corn, etc., were grown; but cabbage, 
cauliflower, wild mustard, in fact, everything subject 
to the disease, was alike attacked by it. Selecting a 
plot of ground which had been abandoned for cabbage 
growing (the last crop planted having been a total 
failure), I made tests with blue litmus paper, and 
found my suspicions as to acidity well founded on 
fact. Portions of the soil in which the test revealed 
a serious degree of acidity, were, after testing, treat¬ 
ed with air-slaked lime, and placed in closely-covered 
tin boxes. After 48 hours they were again treated, 
and scarcely any traces of the acid were visible. At 
my suggestion, the cabbage was grown under exact 
usual methods, except the application of air-slaked 
lime at the rate of 2,000 pounds to the acre. On May 
9 the ground received a heavy dressing of stable ma¬ 
nure, and was plowed very shallow, barely sufficient 
to cover the manure. 
Very few plants were grown in the Infected district, 
most of them being obtained from outside localities 
known to be free from the disease. To make the test 
as thorough as possible, a strip through the center of 
the plot was limed after the plowing, and the seed 
was sown. This is by no means a safe practice or one 
under any circumstances to be recommended; but was 
done in this case to give as broad scope as possible to 
the test, as above stated. June 19 the ground was 
deeply plowed, and the lime at the above-mentioned 
rate was applied and thoroughly worked into the soil. 
The ground remained in this condition for about two 
weeks, or until sufficient rain fell to make the work 
of transplanting reasonably safe, after which the 
plants were set out. When the main portion of the 
plot had been set, the plants were all removed from 
the seed bed, which, after being deeply plowed, was 
planted, the same as the remainder of the plot, in 
transplanting a few diseased plants were found, which 
of course were discarded. Thorough cultivation was 
kept up, and the following report as to results was 
forwarded to me November 20: Whole number of 
plants set out, 2,200. Number found clubbed to 
greater or less extent, 121, which gave about .055 per 
cent affected. Of the number affected, some showed 
but very slight traces of the disease, while others 
were nearly or quite ruined. From the previous 
planting not one single cabbage was saved, and to 
reduce the disease from 100 to .055 in the one season’s 
work was a very satisfactory showing. 
Other troubles, as black rot, to a limited extent. 
Cabbage worms and drought were present; but as the 
test was made entirely as to the effect of lime upon 
club-root, no fungicides or insecticides were used. 
The results of the experiment may not prove alto¬ 
gether conclusive, as in the infected districts, the dis¬ 
ease is more destructive some years than others, 
which may develop the fact that weather conditions 
may have somewhat to do with the matter. Again, 
under other soil conditions, some other agent than 
lime may prove effective. Under ordinary conditions, 
however, lime will prove a very efficient remedy, but 
when once developed great care should be exercised to 
prevent the spread of the disease. All affected roots 
should be boiled or burned and never fed to stock, 
and all tools used in the cultivation of the crop 
should be thoroughly cleaned before using in other 
ground. J. e. morsk. 
Michigan. 
