Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1875-09-04
Gooseberries. and all About Them.

Gooseberries. and all About Them.
The one described as Ribes hirtelum wild
gOoseberry) used by the Indians, is not the one
propose to allude to. refer to what's understood
as the English gooseberry (Ribes grossularid.)
GrOSeiiier EpiRetr, IRA EsPind, Stacheibeere,
are the designations by which French, Spanish,
and Germans recognize the fruit As the culture
of them is extremely easy and simple, it Ia a mat
ter of surprise that 50 many farmers are content
to dispense with them. One thing-we cannot
here i'm New England ever expect to even remote
ly approach Old England in point of size, as this
climate is not sofavorable as that of the latter.
That is the only reason can assign
The plant may be propagated direct from the
seed, but my plan is to do so by what is termed
ayerng, which is accomplished by bending down
a branch early in the season, and covering the de
pressed part with earth, upon which either place
a stone, or use crotcfed stick or peg. 1t will
then form roots at the point of contact, and in the
fall simply detach the branch between the newly
formed roots and the parent plant. This must be
set out preferably in the falD and the following
year look for some fruit with prospect of not
experiencing disappointment.
They should be set out AKA, and either muched
with some loose material, or what is equally good
receive the cleanest kind of culture, which every
good farmer is aware promotes the deposition
and retention of moisture. Some send for cut
tings insert them in the ground car slessly giving
them no further attention, and then admit ait is
{ just their luck" if they fail When the fruit is
gathered then is the time to thin out any branches
which interlace each other, and cut out any dead
or dying limbs; or when branches, which by rea-
son of age have ceased to bear, remove them and
!, "let in the new"
English cultivators adopt the practice as fol
lows, and consider it the best and simplest plar
of pruning: AS soon as the bushes are in full
leaf, take main shoot in your hand, and observe
J the side shoots growing out of it. From I'll eX
cept the topmost which let alone, pinch off the
end as soon as four leaves are visible. Do this
to every main shoot in succession until the job il
completed.
find wood ashes and ground bone mixed ant
moistened y,eek or ten days before using is the
, best fertilizer, supplying potash and bone phos
phate, an analysis of the fruit favors my theory
In the autumn, (the writer of prize essay adds,
as soon as the fruit is gathered use sharp knit
to shorten the top shoot of each branch to thre'
e or four buds above last years wood
NIildew is the particular complaint of goose
' berries but this may be remeded largely by
Z rigid system of clean cultivation.
v Next in order comes the insect trouble, and it il
q here where patience, watchfulness, and perse
verance is requisite. First, as being the most de
structive, is the imported cur1ant worm or saw
fly, neRaatus reRtricoSuS The perfect fly come
out of the ground in April or May, and lays he
eggs along the principal veins on the under sid
of the leaves, The larva have twenty legs, blac
l.; heads, and are Of greenish color, spotted wit
: black, but after the last mOult they become en-
tirely of green color, with large, dark, eye-lik
; spots on each side of the head, and when full
matured are about three-fourths of an inch i
g. length. They then burrow into the earth, or skull
c under dead leaves and spin thin, oval cocoon Q
i brown silk in which the pupa is formed. Th
perfect insect appears in June and July, and tn
| second brood does not exhibit until the mex
T spring.
IL NeXtfollsws the native currant worm-his nan,t
Y PristOphOra groSsularia, but is not by any mean
f. so revengeful as the "pesky fu1riner' alread
described, and differs from it by being in the ba
rel state, always of a uniform green color withor
the black dottings always found on the importe
10 Species except after the last moult. The cocoo
II is also spun among the twi%s and leaves OF Oh
e bushes on which it feeds, and it does not ava
I itself of the underground railroad to form il
- cocoon. These are only three-quarters the size {
the imported, and the sexes are alike in colorz;
ton, while the female Of the imported species ha
J. the body mostly of bright, honey yellow-th
q male being principally 9TH amendment TIL
q larva of both feed upon the currant and goost
berry, while some have been found upon straw
. berries when planted near to the former.
e both consume the foliage (the lungs of the plant
e the fruit drops off prematurely, and growth
e arrested. Remedies are about as numerous a
p those offered for common colds Alum in forl
of solution caters amongst the best for destrOyln
u insect life. Pulverized white hellebore, Verat'u
re album (European) used by busting upon til
s. plants. The success of native hellobore (Vert
e trWm UiSide) has not been reported Qndian poke
n Swinging the plants is also recommended, wit
the decoction is said to be good. The latter is n
+ garded as poisonous, but the entomologist of tn
. Department of Agriculture Ito whom l am il
2. debted for the description of the currant worm
q says it is nnocuous, having long been used a
n the basis of certain snun's. 1t is well enough
- wash the fruit before using. Air Stacked lime,
it does not kill insects will benefit the plant, an
u is best applied by man who gets up befor
'r breakfast. Strychnine, or Paris green, in dost
of half teaspoonful every half hour before bee
! time, to each worm, is said to induce repos
Some recommend sparrows, others introduC
u chickens, then shake the bushes. But l kno
:. from experience the latter do not banker for h
It variety of pabulum. After patiently trying mo
of the remedies so called, discarded them q
~ and followed the plan as given below. l go
each bush, catch the worm between thumb an
finger, and squat him. He never comes baC
Us to get his trunk, or inquire for something he LEI
" Nor does he descend into the bowels of the cart
,r to swell the census. Tedious, not very agreeab
-, employment, laborous in the mere changing
position, but if steadily, persstently followed ft
le few days, victory is enthroned, and your berri'
10 go into pieS'n things, instead of the stomach
in insect loafers The system literally means aoor
Employment is consttutionally Objectionable
some, but as far as my experience is concerne
y there is little or nothing without labor" ha
A 10 bushes a few years ago, which have increase
le to 175 bushes, most Of which are well clothC
;. with fruit, for which obtain ID cents per quai
:. and is paying operation even at that-whlle
IL the English markets Superior in size) hmt
u abundant at one penny 1.-TWO cents) per pound
he If was not fearful Of Overrunning your llmi
n 1 would give your readers a short extract from
Nottingham (Eng.) Gooseberry Show, held Ju
III 2s, 1873. LIST prize, Taylors "London," 50 dram
1T II grains-apothecarie weight; smallest on exl
I'd bition, Smalleys Snowdrop II drams-36 yari
4 ties exhibited. And now for the exhibition
Newark, county of Nottingham, Aug. Z, 1873
"a prize for the berry "London," OF. dwts. l5 81
i, Troy weight lowest weight on exhibition WI
IN Clarke's "Antagonist," Is dwts. IA grs., and {