New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1882-09-04
A CHAPTER OF SMALL FRUITS.

DR.. T. II. lIoskins the careful, intelligent, ex-
perenced and successful hOrtculturist OF Vermont,
communicates to The Maine Farmer some interest
ing notes of small fruits, which will doubtless be
useful to many readers of THE TRIBUNE. An
idea of one factor in his surroundings may be in
ferrea from the statement that berries begin to
rpen about the time the for them ends in the
vicinity OF Boston and was not fully over this year
till the ID of August.
"Of Strawberries the standard here elsewhere Is
the Wilson, but the Crescent Is largely planted,
and answers for nome market. have been test
ing every thing to find late SOFT possible and
think have found II satisfactory KIND III " lndsor
Chief, every way rs good rs Wilson, and full week
later. have tired kentucky, Glendale ara several
other late sorts, but they fail in prOductveness Ihe
Windsor Chiefs pistillate SOFT. yet 1t does not
require TO be very near another sort TO be well
fertizcd Mine this year were 200 Icet from any
other, and yet were full OF fruit. Ii Is very
hardy and vigorous sort. with strong fruit stems,
that hold the berries well up ont OF the dirt, in
this respect beng far better than Wilson. With
Crescent Wilson. and Windsor Chlei the picking
season, with sufficient rain Will cover fuII
month. | am trying Manchester and BidTeI.
The first | think will be valuable; but the Bid
well, like Monarch of the West aud several ether
highly praised sorts does not color well over the
end on my soil. These sorts DO better on clay, am
told
4" In raspb'1ries we do nothing except with the
backcaps and OF these only the DUOlittle has
proved of any commercial value. The large
kinds, Mammoth Cluster and Gregg, wntcr-klil
and are not productive. | am trying Wahesan
lSOuhcgan n with hopes that il Will prove useful,
as 1t Is called week earlier than DOoilttle.
DayisOn's Thornless Is early, but bears only IL
small crop. The blackcaps nre fully as profitable
as strawberries, but the market for them Is not
unlimited. No red raspberry Is sufficiently
hardy here to be proitably planted in the open
field. But under fences where the snow drifts, We
grow small quantity of the Clark which does pretty
we'll though IL Is not n very productive kind As
regards bIdckbG res, they too not hardy enough
for unprotected culture, yet when grown alongside
~
Sable Queen. If there were sufficient market
think It would pay &c put up light fences every
ten feet to protect the blackberry plants. II
would not be very costly aud would be perfectly
successful in snowy country. The pants should
be woll pnched to keep them low, so that they
would be completely covered. So managed, !
think backberrles would be a surer crop here
than along the seacOast.
" For cuTdhts, as for straw berries, there
unlimited market. keep extending nly plantations
OF currants every year. but have never vet had
enough for my customers They are quite rs
profitable as straw berries, and much suIer crop.
have lost but one in fifteen years and that by
June freeze. We are now, August T. just passed
the middle Of the season for currants, ana they
would last the month out II There were enough of
Well MANFRED, this is large and very productive
fruit, and hardly requires llnproyem ent. But
have paid this spring Tl5 for dozen twO-year-
old plants OF Fay's Prolific. variety sand to
he as large As the cherry cu1ant and productive
as the Red Dutch. From the few punches borne
by these new plants this year | am encouraged TO
tniIlk tuty are not Over pIdlScu. lutA nave INC
Endorsement Of j. j. Thomas and Charles Down
ing, and II they are what they are claimed to be-
the ease and rapidity with which they can he
picked Is % sufficIcnt merit with the grower, aside
from the greater stability secured by their large
size and fine appearance. As matter of fact. for
all purposes that currants are used for mine tenths
are ma ie into elly and winel the Red Dutch IL big
enough but the dear public will also go for size IN
any kind OF fruit.
My seventeen years experience in berry
growing has taught me thoroughly that with al
OF them unless black berries are an exception tho
manure pile Is tho main reliance for prOht. With
ont manure. and plenty of It, IL IL quito useless 10
embark In snall-frult growing with view to
profit. This is everywhere but particularly so
when there Is trouble In getting pcker~. IL tho
berries are large and abundant, the plckers make
good wages aud are encouraged TO stick 10y yOu;
but II small and scattering they viii 'break 10
easy To you by saying they have work nj home
aud cannot come tomorrow, which means goOd-by
for tho season And 10 is just rs bad az the other
end Of the business. That last crate were alto
gether too small don't .send any more TIL you hear