Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1894-11-15

! VI 'NFsIl anu h'JhSNhi NoNtilNtE, anu
| tho usual heterogeneous mass OF hui
mainly that makes up the small army
of cranberry pickers is gathering to
collect the tart and popular fruit
and start 1t on its fall and winter
campaign against the turkey. The
harvesting OF the crop gives employ
ment to probably 5000 persons says
the New York Sun. There ought to
be about 100000 bushels of cranber-
ries picked from Jersey marshes this
season.
John Webb, one.lesged down east
err, went to Ocean county many years
i ago, and for years managed to make
a living picking wild cranbcrries and
doing such other work as the nature
of Ocean county farms required. He
finally managed to get possession of
n small piece of low swamp land
where the wild. cranberry grew. In
! the fan of 1857, Webb made the
discovery that in places where sand
had been washed from the high
ground and carried down upon the
fiat bottoms of the cranberry marsh
! the vines grew more luxuriantly, and
/ the berries on them were larger, of
/ better flavor, and Of heavier bearing
! That set John Webb to thinking.
| He pulled the pine and cedar stumps,
and other foreign substances out of
his little swamp, levcled its pcaty
bottom, and over it all spread Il GOV
ering Of sand three inches deep. He
dug bitches in the marsh, dividing it
| into n number OF oblong beds. The
result of his work was that In three
years he had such crop of cranber-
ries on his bog as was never seen or
heard of before. The fame Of John
Webb spread to the remoteSt cram
berry marshes Of Massachusetts and
| Wisconsin. His name Is now house
hold word wherever cranbcrries are
grown. He became one OF the wealth
lest men in southern New Jersey, and
all his money was made through the
discovery of the efficacy of sand
mixed with the soil where cranhe"%i"$
grow
A cranberry marsh of the present
, day Is as handsome Il plot Of green
things growing" as the eye could we'll
rest upon, but the rearing of the
vines is attended with no end OF toll
and care. In its wild state the cram
/ berry vine had no obstructive or
destructive enemies. But since cult
walton took hold of 1t three persistent
ana determined foes have come into
existence. These are a Sharp-edged,
stiff lcaved grass, an obtrusive and
/ hardy bullruSh, and n destructive
little insect known as the web worm.
After a marsh has been cleared
and sanded it IS planted by taking
cuttings or slips from old vines and
inserting one end of them In the sand
on the peat. The soil is pushed tight.
ly about the slips The vines soon
take root in the generous peat and
begin growing ut once. They spread
rapidly over the ground, but they
have not been reaching out many
days before the grower finds them
surrounded and crowded by the hardy
and rapi three -cornered hop, and It's
friend and coadjutor. the bullruSh.
The grass and the ruShcS have to he
! removed, root and branch. by means
( OF gougcS and pNuliar-looklng hoes
and other implements. These pestif-
crous weeds have to be constantly
watched ana uprooted every week or
81 for two seasons. 80 full does the
soil seem to be imprcgnated with
their germs. and so rapidly do they
grow If neglected for Il week they
would choke the life out OF every
vine on the marsh. At the end of the
second year the cranberry vines
have obtained such Roadway that
they cover the ground all over the
bog like on vast velvety mat OF emcr-
aid, and have suppressed MI further
hope OF the grass and PUSHES to get
the better OF them. 1t Is the general
estimate that to foster a cranberry
bog along to this stage costs the
grower 500 nm acre: but by this time
the bog Is worth 5000 an acre.
At the beginning of the third year
the vines begin TO hossom. ana then
the festive web worm comes TO the
front. The appearance OF tins curl
Gus pest Is entirely unhcralded, The
owner of cranberry marsh may go
able to see a sign of 4 web worm on
his vines and get up next morning TO
SEQ the marsh looking rs II 1t were
covered with miniature banks OF fog
the tops OF the vines being drawn
together SO tightly that twine bound
around them could hardly bring them
any closer. The little banks of toS
arc the webs of the dreaded worm
that have been CONSTRUCTED during tho
night and they arN what pun the
tops of the vines together. When the
grower sees that appalling sight he
ceases toralculate on what his profit
will he on crnnhcrrics that year lie
begins to figure, rather, on what he
is likely to lose. The vines hegit 10
i turn yellow In the course OF day
or two after the appearance Of the
wrh worm on them. and tho blossoms
fall of. The worm often ruins bog
after bog. but sometimes confines its
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