April, 1917 
25 
FRESH BERRIES — WITH CREAM 
Wherein the Wares of the Howling Huckster and the Avaricious Fruit Store Man 
Achieve that Elusive Perfection Through the Medium of the Home Garden 
ROBERT STEEL 
T here is nothing particularly musical 
about it—that elongated howl of the 
huckster beneath your window. Indeed, 
his voice is distinctly harsh when unmel¬ 
lowed by the distance, and his enunciation 
is atrocious. About all you can understand 
is that he has berries of some sort for 
sale, and that they are fresh; whether 
they be black-, straw- or rasp- is lost in 
the middle motive of his song in B-Flat. 
And yet, you are somewhat less than 
human if those two relatively understand¬ 
able words do not make you hungry. 
Naturally! Good berries, regardless of 
variety, are an epicurean treat in them¬ 
selves. Notice, please, that I specify 
“good”—the ordinary fruiterer’s “Yes, 
madam, very fine today—and only thirty 
cents a box. How many will you take?” 
is sometimes susceptible of doubt. Sadly 
enough, the same is often true of the 
leather-lunged huckster’s vociferations; so 
when you really hunger for the best ob¬ 
tainable, I can offer just one bit of consci¬ 
entious advice: 
“Grow them yourself.” 
Strawberries come in for their share of 
attention elsewhere in this issue, so the 
paragraphs which follow have to do merely 
with the so-called cane fruits. Blackber¬ 
ries, raspberries, currants and gooseberries 
■—these four are the most popular sorts in 
this country, and perhaps the most easily 
grown. Granted proper selection, a suit¬ 
able location and the right sort of care, 
there is no reason why you should not raise 
fruit which, because it ripens on the stem 
instead of in the basket, and because it 
comes to the table indubitably fresh, 
boasts a perfection that the market product 
cannot hope to attain. 
There is no mystery or magic about the 
successful cane fruit garden. It should 
have a fair share of sunshine, good soil 
(a trench dug 3' deep and filled with a 
mixture of % soil and well rotted 
manure is best), plenty of moisture, and a 
supporting trellis for the blacks and rasp¬ 
berries. Early spring is the time for set¬ 
ting out, and while the crop for the first 
year will be negligible, the second season 
should see an abundant yield. 
Provided the strip selected for the small 
{Continued on page 74) 
Heavy bearing tnisJies can result 
only when wisely selected and 
well cared for giants are tised 
Black raspberries should find a 
place in the small fruit border. 
Many prefer them to the red 
form 
Unlike the true cane fruits, cur¬ 
rants bear only on mature and 
thoroughly ripened, hard wood 
The best red raspberries, when 
grown at home, lack the some¬ 
what pithy character of those in 
market 
Blackberries, as well as raspberries, must have a supporting 
trellis to lohich the canes can be tied. A good one is made of 
stout wooden posts with connecting strands of heavy wire 
