The Mineral argus., 1884-04-17

half feet apart, and set the plants twelve
or fifteen inches apart in the rows, press
the earth firmly about the plants, and
if the weather is dry and hot, as it
sometimes IS in early spring, put about
one pint of water about each one Of them.
How large shall the bed be made?
The method I am proposing should
Weld at least one bushel offruit to every
square rod OF ground. Hence each
family can Judge for itself Yf the area
of ground they need for this purpose.
After the plants are set there is a large
vacant space between the rows that may
be utilized for other quick-grOwlng
crops that Will pay for the cultivation
of the plants for the first season. Early
peas or beans of the dwarf varieties,
lettuce, radishes, early beets, carrots or
the Jersey Wakefield cabbage may be
raised between the rows of plants with
out damage to them, provided they are
taken off in due time, the ground cultl-
waited, and put in good condition for
the young plants as they begin forming
runners. Let the runners form a thick
green bed until they are a matted row
of say two feet wide. After this Il
through with either the horse or the
hand c~ultivator, and destroy those in
truding upon what is left for the path
or allev between the rows. The Wilson
will almost always attempt to beaT some
fruit the first season, but it will be much
better for the growth of the plants, as
well as for the next seasons crop, If
the blossoms are all picked off, and no
fruit allowed to grow the first season.
Keep the plants free from weeds and
grass through the entire season, and at
its close when the ground has frozen
sufficiently hard to bear, cover the
plants with some marsh hay, or straw
is equally good, provided it Is not filled
with foul seeds to annoy You the follow
ing season. Put on cover sufficient to
hide the leaves from view. Leave it III
the spring, until the ground is done
freezing nights and thawing day time.
1t may then be raked off the plants and
left in the alleys or carried entirely
from the beds as may be preferred.
As the warm weather on the
plants will load themselves with bios
SONS, and then with fruit. While the
fruit is growing the beds need plenty
of moisture. If nature does not supply
a sufficient quantity, it is much better
to do it by artificial means than to fail
ofhaving a nice crop after all the labor
that you have already done upon them.
It is much better to give them n
thorough watering, and then leave them
for a few days, than to merely sprinkle
the plants every day.
After the crop is taken off clean out
all the weeds and grass, and the old
,1.~A1 Ill LII eonI1o on1 NyhoT1-fo1
and give ground to the young and thrifty
ones, and you will almost certainly Sc
cure another good crop the following
year.
Downer's Prolific is a hardy plant, a
fair bearer ofmoderate-sized early fruit,
and of excellent quality. If one wants
to p%rolong the season, the Kentucky is
the best that I have tried for that pur-
pose. 1t is a fair bearer of good-sized
berries, and they are of good quality. l
like it much better than the Glendale
for o late berry. If one wishes for some
very large fruit, the Sharpless is a fine
grower, and will give one a few very
large berries, only moderate in quality.
With me it is utterly worthless except
as Just mentioned. The farmer should
not bother with any of the pistillate
kind. They have no advantages over
the perfect-flowering varieties, and do
require some extra work and care to Sc
cure a crop. 1t will not, as a rule, pay
the farmer to try to get more than two
crops from a single bed; in fact, it is
better to set a small one each year; then
he will be sure of fruit if his old bed fails
after the first year, as it sometimes will
if it bears very heavily. NJ. Smith,
Brown Co., Wis.