292 
<Iht RURAL NEW-YORKER 
February 14, 1920 
La France 
King of Raspberries 
(Everbearing) 
Raspberries from early July to 
November! From your own 
garden to your own table! La 
France Everbearing Raspberry 
is Scheepers’ latest introduction 
to the world of horticulture. Im¬ 
mense clusters! Giant berries 
—twice the size of the ordinary 
varieties! Firm, luscious fruit; 
deep colored, wonderfully rich- 
flavored ! And few seeds! 
Tested and Proved for Three 
Years—Continuous Crop— 
Easily Propagated 
La France Everbearing is a remarkable 
plant. Its hardiness and habits—its pro¬ 
lific bearing qualities, and its ease of 
propagation—make it a horticultural 
phenomenon. 
Planted early in the spring, it loses no time 
getting started. Begins bearing as early as 
the first week of July (the first season!) and “never lets up”—keeps right on with 
break after break, cluster-laden shoots, until all vegetation is completely frost-checked 
for the season. Even then its remarkable nature continues in evidence: La France 
has demonstrated its hardiness by surviving temperatures as low as 30° below zero. 
La France First-Class Awards 
Massachusetts Horticultural Soc. 
New York Florists’ Club 
Horticultural Soc. of New York 
Morris County Horticultural Soc. 
Tarry town Horticultural Soc. 
The American Institute, New York 
Nassau County Horticultural Soc. 
Fairfield and Westchester Hort. Soc. 
La France Everbearing Raspberry propagates freely and very rapidly . 
A dozen plants will produce a good-sized berry patch in an incredibly short time. 
Its rapid growth, its hardihood to withstand extreme cold, its immunity from fungus 
and insect diseases, its remarkable all-season production of fruit, make La France 
Everbearing by all odds the raspberry for home gardener, fruit grower or farmer. 
A Giant Everbearing Quality 
Fruit which the U. .S'. Dept, 
of Agriculture states “should 
be tried in gardens in all parts 
of the country.” 
Now’s the Time to Order. 
Supply is Very Limited 
Plant La France early this spring and have berrie* the 
first days of July. But order now. Twelve plant*—a 
reasonable first planting—delivered to your door for $20. 
Six for $10.50. Single plants, $2, postage paid. (Not 
more than two dozen plants to any one customer.) 
JOHN SCHEEPERS, Inc. 
2 Stone St., New York City 
Nurseries: 
Sound Beach, Conn.: Brookville, N. Y. (Glen Head P. 0 .) 
Write for booklet on “La France Ever- 
bearing Raspberry.” Includes addi¬ 
tional expressions from noted horticul¬ 
turists, etc. 
T. A. Havemeyer, Pres. Hort. Soc. 
of N. Y., says—“Far superior to any 
other raspberry. Very prolific. Large 
clusters. Luscious berries. A remarkable 
plant. Should be grown by every garden 
“owner, fruit grower, farmer, nurseryman.' 
F. A. Bartlett, Tree Specialist, 
Stamford, Conn.—“The finest acquisi¬ 
tion in years. Winter of 1917-18 killed 
all my varieties except La France. ” 
Wm. Ziegler. Great Island, Conn.— 
“La France 8-ft. canes loaded with large 
clusters. Shall discard all other varieties 
and grow only La France." 
J. B. Cobb, Stamford, Conn. — 
“Produces large crop for almost four 
months. Consider La France “King of 
Raspberries.’’ 
Making a Hotbed 
I would like to have a little informa¬ 
tion on hotbeds. Flow much manure 
should be put in them and how much soil 
on top of the manure? What tempera¬ 
ture should it be before I plaut the seeds? 
Woodbury, N. Y. mbs. o. s. 
Wood constructed frames are more ex¬ 
tensively used than any other kind, prin¬ 
cipally on account of being easily and 
cheaply constructed. Besides, they can 
be constructed in portable units, so they 
may be easily removed from one location 
to another with but little expense of time 
and money, which cannot be done if they 
are constructed of brick or concrete. Lo¬ 
cation of this hotbed is of considerable 
importance. When possible, it should be 
located on the south side of a building, 
tight board fence or hedge, to protect it 
from the cold north winds, and when it is 
to be made partly in the ground, there 
should be good natural drainage, as the 
hotbed cannot be a success if the pit is 
partly filled with water. 
The standard size sash is 3 ft. wide and 
6 ft. long, and is the size almost univer¬ 
sally used by gardeners. When it has 
been determined how many 3x(5 ft. sash 
one wishes to use, and the location has 
been selected, stake off the size of the 
hed, making provision in the length to 
admit of a %-in. rib to be used between 
the sash to act as guides when sliding 
them up or down. Thus, if the frame is 
to be six-sash size, four ribs will be re¬ 
quired. and the frame should, therefore, 
be 4-in. or slightly more than the com¬ 
bined width of the sash, or, in other words, 
the frame .should be about 18. ft. 4y 2 in. 
long over all., and the width about 5 ft. 
9 in. Have the corners square, otherwise 
the sash will not fit right.- Now dig out 
the soil inside the measurements to a 
depth of at least two feet, making the 
depth equal all over and the bottom of 
the pit level. There should be a post at 
intervals of three feet on back and front, 
spacing them so they will be centered 
under the rib dividing the sash. The 
posts may be of hemlock, chestnut or lo¬ 
cust, 2x4-in. scantling. The posts for the 
back should be cut about 4 ft. 6 in. long 
and those for the front about 3 ft. 40 in. 
long. Set them in the ground aloug the 
edges of the pit. so the rear posts will 
he 1 ft. 8 in. and the front post 1 ft. above 
the surface of the ground, with the low 
side facing the south. Be sure the posts 
are in line, the corners square, and all 
level on top. Now take strips of sur¬ 
faced boards 3 in. wide and % in. thick. 
Cut just long enough to reach across the 
width of the frame, with the ends flush 
with the outer faces of the rear and front 
posts. Nail a strip iy 2 or 2 in. wide and 
%-in. thick edgeways exactly in the cen¬ 
ter of the 3-in. strip lengthwise. Then 
nail these to the tops of the inside posts 
for a six-sash frame (four of them will 
be required) to the tops of the corner 
posts. Simply nail a 2 or 3-in. strip with¬ 
out the rib. This being done, you are now 
ready to board up the sides and ends. 
Any kind of rough, sound lumber will an¬ 
swer, and it may be one, one and a half 
or two iuches thick and any width that 
is conveniently handy. Commence at the 
top and put the top board on so its top 
will come flush with the top of this strip 
nailed on tops of posts, finishing the en¬ 
closure with the bottom board, which 
should be 40 or 42 in. below the surface 
of the ground. Some gardeners board up 
the pit its entiire depth, but I have never 
found this necessary, except where the 
soil was a very loose sand. 
Heating material should be fresh un¬ 
fermented horse manure, to which should 
he added about half its bulk of forest 
leaves, straw, hay or a mixture of all 
three well mixed with the manure. All 
the litter should be thoroughly dampened 
with water, as it will not ferment prop¬ 
erly if dry. Place the mixture in a con¬ 
ical heap, lightly tramping it down in lay¬ 
ers as it is piled up. If conditions are 
favorable, within a few days a violent fer¬ 
mentation will take place. This will be 
indicated by the steam arising from the 
heap. It should now be turned over and 
carefully shaken out, making sure to get 
that portion that was on outside of heap 
well mixed in with the fermented portion. 
Now place again into a pile as before and 
allow it tio remain until the second fer¬ 
mentation occurs, which will usually oc¬ 
cur in two to four days. It is now ready 
to be placed in the pit. When it is being 
put into the hotbed it should be well 
shaken out. and care being taken that no 
frozen material is mixed with it. As the 
manure is thrown in, beat it down with 
the back of the fork or tread it lightly 
with the feet, making certain there are 
no hollow or soft places in the corners or 
along the sides and ends, and that it is 
so trodden or beaten down that it is uni¬ 
formly of the same solidity and depth, 
which should be not less than two feet. 
The sashes are now placed on the frames 
and a good thermometer plunged into the 
manure two or three inches. In a few 
days the temperature of the heating ma¬ 
terial will probably l-ise to about 100 de¬ 
grees ; but this is too hot for seed-sowing, 
and besides the strong smelling steam 
caused by the fermentation must be al¬ 
lowed to escape before seed sowing or 
planting is done. Do not be impatient, 
but wait until the temperature in the bed 
drops to about. 90 degreees; then, and not 
before, should the soil be put on to a 
depth of four to five inches. The soil for 
hotbed use should be prepared beforehand, 
and should be made up of one-third well- 
rotted manure and two-thirds good sandy 
loam, spread evenly over the manure in 
the hotbed. As soon as the soil becomes 
warmed through, the bed is ready for seed 
sowing or planting. 
Many kinds of vegetables and flowering 
plants may be raised in the hotbed, but 
they are used most extensively for the 
raising of vegetable plant®, the most im¬ 
portant being cabbage, lettuce, pepper, to¬ 
mato and eggplants. When it is proposed 
to raise the hardier plants, such as let¬ 
tuce, cabbage or cauliflower, etc., plants in 
the same hotbed, along with tomato, pep¬ 
per and eggplants, a division of canvas 
or thin boards should separate them, as 
the hardier plants will require much more 
air than the tender plants will stand and 
thrive under. Seed sowing for early veg¬ 
etable plants should be done about the 
second week in March in the latitude of 
Philadelphia and New York; farther 
north later; farther south earlier. In 
sowing, the seed should not be covered 
more than one-fourth of an inch, firming 
the soil around the seed by patting it 
down gently with the back of the spade. 
F rom the day the seed is sown careful 
attention to airing, during the middle or 
hottest part of sunshiny days, and pro¬ 
tection with some kind of covering over 
the glass at night, is very essential, and 
also that the soil never be allowed to be¬ 
come too much dried out. Gn the other 
hand, water must he applied with good 
judgment, as there is quite as much dan¬ 
ger from over-watering as there is from 
under-watering. When watering the seed 
bed and baby plants, a pot with a very 
fine rose should be used, and if water 
heated to a temperature of about 80 de¬ 
grees can be used, all the better. 
The temperature during the day should 
not be allowed to range much above SO 
degrees, and. if possible, it should be kept 
at from 55 to 05 degrees at night. If an 
extremely cold night should occur, and 
more heat seems to be advisable, a five- 
gallon milk can or two, or any other suit¬ 
able vessel, 'tfilled with boiling water, 
closed tight and set in the frame, will 
greatly help to keep up the temperature 
during the night. 
As soon as the plantlets get two or 
three inches high they should be taken up 
and transplanted in a larger hotbed, as 
they now require more room. Tomatoes 
may he planted in the hotbed, spacing 
them so about 100 may be put into each 
3x6-ft. sash. Eggplant and peppers will 
be better if planted into 2V» or 3-in. pots, 
as they are more difficult "to transplant 
than tomatoes. They should also be kept 
a little warmer in the hotbed, as they 
require more heat than tomato plants. 
Be very sure to water all after trans¬ 
planting. and shade them from the sun 
until they take new root hold, which will 
generally be inside of three or four days 
after transplanting. 
When it is convenient to do so. it is 
bettor to make up a hoftbed especially for 
cabbage, lettuce and cauliflower about the 
last week of February, particularly if 
plants are wanted for setting out by the 
fifteenth of April. M hen this is done, 
the beds they are (taken from can be used 
for transplanting tomatoes into, as they 
cannot he put out in the garden safely 
until the middle of May or later. When 
seeds of these vegetables are sown early, 
the young plants should be transplanted 
into a cold frame and grown on without 
bottom heat and well hardened to the cold 
before they are planted out the middle of 
April, as they will he in the open ground, 
for probably a full month before frost is 
Intercropping Orchards with Asparagus 
My observation has been that asparagus 
is not a good crop to interplant in or¬ 
chards. In the first place it is nearly as 
permanent a crop as the tree® themselves, 
and if the trees were to have the full 
space at the proper time the asparagus 
would have to come out just as it was be¬ 
ginning to make its best returns. The 
first two or three years there would he 
but very little return from asparagus, yet 
these years are (he ones when the greatest 
returns should he expected from an inter¬ 
crop. There is also an awkward situa¬ 
tion when it comes to cultivating. The 
trees interfere with proper treatment of 
asparagus and the asparagus prevents 
cross-plowing and proper cultivation of 
trees. 
This plan of using asparagus as an in¬ 
tercrop has been tried on several or¬ 
chards, but as far as I have been able to 
find out it has not been tried the second 
time. Truck crops work out to far better 
advantage. A crop that is planted so as 
to cultivate both ways and one that re¬ 
quires cultivation until late in the season 
is the best. We find eggplants, peppers, 
bush Lima beans, sweet potatoes and 
crops of that nature give the best results 
in young orchards. truckek, jr. 
Swedesboro, N. J. 
