55o 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
Aupiist 10 
Ruralisms ; 
NOTES FROM THE RURAL GROUNDS. 
So.MK Nkw Bmtuii'S.—Fig. 242, on page 
517, is a fair i’ei)resentation of Bur- 
luiiik’s Iceberg blackberry as fruiting on 
the Rural Groumls. The plants were set 
last year, and naturally cannot produce 
a full crop this season, but the density 
of the clusters, of whWh two are shown 
in the cut, indicate it to be very proliflc. 
The berries are of good size and of a 
very attracrtive translucent amber tint, 
60 light as to justify the name of white. 
The flavor is not particularly pleasant, 
however, though it is the best of its 
type. There is some mawkish astrin- 
gency even in well-ripened specimens. 
One can imagine these handsome berries 
sought after for garnishing and decora¬ 
tion, but not for their table quality. 
They are firm and handle well, but a 
bruise is soon followed by a brownish 
discoloration which mai’s their trans¬ 
parency. Iceberg is said to result from 
a cross of Lawbon with the well-known 
old Crystal White, and is certainly an 
immense improvement on that variety 
in size and pro<luctiveness. Many white 
and light-colored blackberries have been 
introduced from time to time, but none 
has been found valuable except as curio¬ 
sities, though there seems to be a place 
for Iceberg. The canes are vigorous 
and came through the past severe Win¬ 
ter without harm. The white blackber¬ 
ries, according to Profs. Bailey and 
Card, form a distinct variety of the 
common wild long-cluster blackberry of 
the Fast, Itubus nigiobaccus, and are 
found sparingly growing in mountain 
regions. A fine type of this class, bear¬ 
ing coral red berries, was found by the 
writer in Tennessee and transferred to 
cultivation. It is a beautiful fruit with 
a particularly agreeable sweet flavor,but 
is not sufficiently hardy in the North. 
SOMK Cur.TlVATK]) DlOWlCKRUIKS.— 
Everybody knows the common creeping 
blackben-ies of pastures and waste 
lands. The fruiting varieties are quite 
generally known as dewberries, while 
the sterile or pistillate forms are often 
called catbriers from their scratching 
propensities, and locally. In the expres¬ 
sive language of the bare-legged boy, 
as “rip-shins.” The berries are gener¬ 
ally liked even better than those of the 
high-bush sorts, and coming earlier, are 
heartily welcomed when enough can be 
had. The fruiting plants, however, 
usually are found in small proportion to 
the barren ones. Which spring up in 
great profusion in the most unpromis¬ 
ing places. Sevei-al species are de¬ 
scribed by botanists, those found in the 
West and South being quite distinct 
from tlie eastern forms. All are pro¬ 
cumbent or trailing in habit, and root 
so freely from the tips that there is lit¬ 
tle need to pixxluce fruits with their 
accompanying seeds to insure propaga¬ 
tion. However, an occasional plant is 
found with perfect inflorescence, bear¬ 
ing profuse crops of fine berries. A 
numl>er of such superior varieties have 
been transferred 'to cultivation, and 
have proven more or less successful. A 
few are still in commerce and are known 
to most horticulturists. Bucretia, whiifh 
was found in West Virginia during the 
Civil War, and Mayes or Austin, which 
was found in Texas about 1880, are un¬ 
doubtedly the best examples. Plants of 
these varieties received last season from 
Wm. F. Allen, Salisbury, Md., made a 
fine growth, and fruited heavily this 
year. They l)Oth belong to the common 
eastern species, Rubus villosus, and 
there is much resemblance in growth 
and appearance of plant. Lucretia pro¬ 
duced the largest and best-flavored ber- 
rit*s and Mayes the firmest and most 
pei'feet specimens, while it was by far 
(he most productive. Lucretia is about 
a week earlier, and the more rampant 
grower. It evidently does not pollinate 
its blooms as well as Mayes, as a much 
larger percentage of imperfect berries 
was found. Of the exccllejit table qual¬ 
ity of these native berries Ibere is little 
<lifference of opinion. Everyone seems 
to like them, and they can be put to all 
uses of which a blackberry is capable, 
'riiey come in with the red raspberries, 
and fill a useful chink between curi'ants 
and bush blackbei-ries. It is some trou¬ 
ble to handle the viciously thorny canes, 
but iit looks as though the I'esult would 
warrant the trouble. Notwithstanding 
the long time Lucretia has been before 
the public it has made little headway in 
popular esteem; mainly, we think, be¬ 
cause plants of oixlinary pistillate va¬ 
rieties were sent out in place of the true 
one. Unless care is taken to root tips 
from actual bearing plants it is easy to 
get hold of common wild ones, which 
are sure to spring up under cover of the 
cultivated plants. 
Man.-vthk, from Reasoner Bros., 
Oneco, Fla., winterkilled badly, and only 
producetl a few imperfect berries of 
good flavor. It belongs to the southern 
species, R. trivial is, and is a selected 
stmin from the Florida woods. 
Cai.ikohnia Mammoth, from James 
Waters, Watsonville, Gal., is a supposed 
cross between Rubus vitifolius, the 
western dewberry, a most unproductive 
plant in its natural state, and a bush 
blackberry from Texas. It originated 
with Judge .1. H. Ixigan about the same 
time as the Loganberry, which had the 
same dewberry for the seed plant, but 
was i)ollinat('d with an European red 
raspberry. Mammoth endured the Win¬ 
ter perfectly, the unprotected plants 
coming through rather better than the 
covere<l ones. They bloomed profusely 
and ripened a considerable crop of long, 
well-flavored berries, which, however, 
did not reach the great size figured in 
California specimens. It is a handsome 
plant with bioad leaves like the Ijogan- 
berry, but a more erect habit. The canes 
trail and root freely at their tips. We 
think this distinct variety will do bet¬ 
ter another season, and will have more 
to say about it in the future. 
Tun R.vthjmcx is again the best bush 
blackberry we have under trial, excell¬ 
ing all others in size, productiveness, 
rolor, firmness, and when thoroughly 
ripe, in flavor. It is entirely hardy here, 
and bas not yielded to the Orange rust 
or other disease during a four years’ 
trial. Mersereau is an improved Sny¬ 
der, larger, more pix)ductive and holds 
color better, but does not come up to 
Rathbun for real utility. The older 
blackberries do not succeed well in this 
immediate locality, though they were 
much planted in former years. 
OiiMHKKi.ANi) and Kansas blackcap 
raspberries take the lead among their 
type, with a preference for the former 
as larger and moi-e vigorous. 
MiLi.Kit Riii) and Cuthbert are the pre¬ 
ferred red varieties. Cardinal, A. H. 
Griesa, Lawrence, Kas., is disappointing 
in size and color as fruited this season. 
'I’he berries are firmer than Shaffer or 
even Columbian, and are very freely 
produced, but they are much smaller in 
size, about like Cumberland, and rather 
dull purple when ripe. There is not much 
cardinal color about them when ready 
for the table, though the red tint is 
bright enough just before they are ready 
to pick. The flavor is acid, but of Hie 
usual agreeable quality of the purple- 
cane type, now considered to be made 
up of natural hybrids between species 
producing red and blackcap berries. 
Many intentional crosses have been 
made between black and red-fruited 
raspberries, and something like the pur¬ 
ple-cane type generally results, but none 
has proven of value. Cardinal makes a 
splendid plant of strong upright growth, 
and roots easily from the tips. Shaffer 
is too tender, though the great size and 
excellent quality of the berries make it 
a favorite in many gardens. Columbian 
is hardy enough, but entirely too dull 
in color for market purposes, though it 
is liked for drying. We have trouble 
on the Rural Grounds owing to exposed 
location, with the young canes of pur¬ 
ple and blackcap varieties twisting off 
with the wind. Columbian is usually 
badly wrecked before the new growths 
harden by easterly storms, but our Car¬ 
dinal plants are of such sturdy, erect 
habit as not to be affected. They passed 
last Winter without harm from cold. 
w. V. F. 
String fellow's Method of Planting. 
A. C. Worth, of Bergen Co., N. J., says 
that he has tried the Stringfellow plan 
of cutting roots of transplanted fruit 
trees back to a mere stub, and that tne 
experiment has been highly successful. 
When asked whether he followed Mr. 
Stringfellow’s plan of avoiding culture 
entirely, he said: 
“I must admit that I did not carry out 
Mr. 'Stringfellow’s method, except as to 
cutting away all the roots and cutting 
back the top of lK)th trees and plants 
to a stick not over two-thirds of the 
former length. I have cultivated all 
trees, just as though they were corn, 
and kept shrubs well worked with hoe 
and rake. In one case, where I received 
a lot of plum trees in May, in full leaf, 
I cut back both roots and tops, and 
every tree lived and made a fine growth 
this, the second season. The more I 
study the matter the plainer it is to me 
that the new root growth, by this 
method, is far better than the old way 
of saving as many roots as possible, es¬ 
pecially ill the case of trees which have 
to be transported any distance. I shall 
try some peach trees this Fall, sftt in 
holes made with a crowbar, and will 
only cultivate to keep down the weeds 
and grass.” 
Eahi.y Vi'XiKTAni.ES. —How is this for 
a late season? New potatoes .June 9; 
peas, June G; strawberries, June 4; beets, 
June 9; carrots, June 9; cauliflower, 
vei'y fine. May 16. Tomatoes are now 
turning red;will pick next week, and 
lots of nice early Wakefield cabbage. 1 
forgot to say we picked new beans July 
2, Marvel of Paris. Refugee was plant¬ 
ed two weeks earlier, and only now 
coming in. f. r. t. 
Ivong Island. 
The Manager’s Share. —As to the 
wages due the fruit manager on page 
538, a person capable of properly su¬ 
perintending the planting of 2,500 apple 
and 2,500 peacb trees, on 50 acres of 
land, and managing the work of caring 
for them for the first five years, ought 
to be worth $1.50 per day without 
board. If really expert in managing 
men and caring for trees he would be 
worth more than that. I don’t see how 
one could make an intelligent estimate 
of the amount of time it would be neces¬ 
sary for him to put in at it, especially 
as nothing is said of the nature of the 
land or the methods of planting and 
culture. I think a manager should have 
at least $100 and perhaps double that 
amount. If they have good crops of 
peaches to market (as they should have) 
it would be no small job to attend to 
that. It seems to me that the business¬ 
like way is for them to agree on the 
value of the manager’s time, and his 
l)artner pay him one-half of said value, 
for every day he puts in attending to 
their mutual interest. a. r. i.. 
Barboursville, Va. 
When you write advertisers mention The 
I t. N.-Y. and you wlii get a quick reply and 
“a square deal." See our guarantee 8th page. 
For the land’s sake, use Bowker’s Fer¬ 
tilizers. 'Phey enrich the earth .—Adv 
PEACH 
BASKETS 
Size.s 2, 4, (!. 8, 10.12 and 
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Peach Covers 
Square and Round Wood, 
Burlap and Cotton. 
Ga. Peach Carriers 
With six Baskets. 
Grape Baskets 
Sizes 0, 8 and 10 pounds. 
Berry, Peach and 
Grape Crates 
Crate Stock and Box 
Shooks In all sizes, direct 
from the inanutacturer.s. 
Special Prlce.s to Dealers 
and Carload Buyers. 
Write for Catalogue. 
COLES & CO., 
109 & 111 Warren St., 
NKW YORK CITY. 
Wo hear much about trusts, but the worst of all 
trusts is the habit of getting trusted for things you 
buy, and consequently paying often double prices. 
Jones of Binghamton, N. Y., will tell you how to get 
scales at half old Monopoly's prices. Jones he pays 
the freight. 
BALES 
15 Tons 
a Day 
The Gem Full-Circle ^ Baler, lightest, 
■trongeHt,cheapeBt baler. Made of wrought steel. 
Operated by 1 or 2 horses. Bales 10 to 15 tons a day. 
Sold on 5 days trial. Catalogue free. Address 
CEO. ERTEL CO.. Oulnoy, 
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Heat and cheapest. 
Bend for catalogue 
BOOMER & BOSCHERT 
PRESS CO.. 
' Water Street, 
BYKACIJHK. N. Y. 
THE MIETZ & WEISS 
Kerosene Engines 
Cluapett and Safeit Poiver 
Known. For pumping and 
electric lighting, grinding 
corn, separating cream, 
sawing wood, and all power 
purposes. Send for Catalog. 
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128 Mott Street, New York. 
CHARTER 
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I Trwr«rv Any Place 
LNrII ^ny one 
Fur Any Purpose 
8tationarie», ¥ortabl«$,Engin«» 
and Futnpaf Hoi*t»r» 
Bend for Illustrated Catalogue and 
Testimonials. State your Power Needs. 
Charter Gas Engine Co., Box 26, Sterling, III. 
LAND DRAIN TILE 
(Car-loads or less). 
Sizes, 2, 3, 4, 6 and 
G-lnch. 
T.LEGGETT& CO. 
1026 Liberty Avenue, 
Pittsburgh, Pa. 
SAN JOSE SCALE. 
And other Insects can be Controlled by Usiug 
Good’s Caustic Potash Whale- 
Oil Tobacco Soap No. 6. 
Kegs, 60 lbs. ea., 5Hc. lb, Bbl., about276 lbs., 4o. lb 
Kegs, 100 lbs. ea., 5c. lb. Bbls., about 426 tbs.,8^o.lb 
Kegs, 170 lbs. ea.,4l^o. lb. 
Large quantities Special Kates. Send for Circulars. 
JAMBS GOOD, 937 N. Front St., Philadelphia, Pa. 
Cyanide 
Guaranteed y8 to yg per cent., for generating 
Hydrocyanic Acid Gas 
the most effective fumigating material, to 
destroy scale insects on fruit trees and 
plants. The only positive eradicator of 
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Johnson, State Etymologist of Maryland. 
MANUKACTURBO BV 
The Roessler & Hasslacher Chemical Co., 
No. 100 William Street, New York. 
FERTILIZERS. From Factory to Farm 
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