Belding banner. (Belding, Mich.) 1889-1918, 1897-03-11
SMALL FRUITS ON THE FARM.
A Few Practical Facts for the Practical
Farmer


Farmer.
Hundreds OF articles have been writ
ten on the advisability OF farmers rails
ing small fruits for their own use, but
there Is room for hundreds more OF
articles II they will in any way tend to
bring about this desirable end, says a
writer. AS rule farmers live we'll,
but their tables show little variety,
and they rarely have any of those de-
lightful, wholesome sub-acid fruits,
even during the hot summer months
when such fruits are most craved.
In the fall and winter they have apples
and occasionally there is farm that
has a few pear trees, but where one
farmer has Strawberries there are ten
that do not. II the children are too
small TO be OF much use on the farm
they are sent after huckleberries and
blackberries, and the older members
OF the family eat them with a relish
that ought to be an inducement for
them to have fruit Of their own. But
as soon as the berries are gone they go
back alphabetically to their diet Of
bread and meat and milk in its various
combinations. am convinced that it
is not from a distaste of the work or
expense involved that they neglect the
small fruits so Systematically. But
the farmer, perhaps more than any
other person, is creature Of habit.
He seldom complains of his own work
but finds it almost impossible to step
beyond certain accustomed limits. He
will work from early morn till late at
night, day after day and year after
year, ard not feel it any special griev-
ance, but If he is brought face to face
with half-hour's work ''out of his
line, p" in the house or flower garden or
anywhere, he will pay ten prices to
have it done rather than do it himself.
1T is easy to raise str awberries and
other small fruit" you tell him and he
agrees with you, but says that he
don't know much about EN-" and is
"too old to learn" And that is all
there is to it. You may talk to him
until the end of time and he will agree
with you in everything, but he does
not set any fruit just the same.
have known farmer leave his work
and tramp all day over the fields, and
return at night with a quart or two of
wild Strawberries that a fruit dealer
would have rejected with scorn. He
them triumphantly, and it is
worth while to tell him that
one-half his labor would have set out
strawberry bed that would have fur
nished him with fine berries every day
for weeks. Now and then farmer is
induced to give them trial, but the
chances are that his interests will not
go beyond the setting, and that the
vines will become choked with grass
and weeds and be plowed up at the end
OF year or two, with the remark that
they turned out just as he expected.
And here lies one OF the great difficult
ties. To u certain extent the apple
trees and pear trees, take care of them
selves, but the small fruit is not quite
so accommodating. 1t is ready to
yield an abundant return, but must be
understood and have some care. Per-
haps the best method is to let the
bear once and then pillow
them up. | have tried some of the
methods advocated and like this best.
Set the vines in the spring and keep
them hoed the first year, going over
them three or four times il necessary.
1t will not take more than half an hour
to hoe bed large enough to raise fif-
teen or twenty bushels. The next
spring take some OF the fresh runners
and set new bed, and after the old
one is through bearing plow it up. 1t
is easier than keeping the grass and
weeds out and / am convinced gives
better results. A half-day's work in
preparing ground and setting plants,
and another half day in hoeing, and
the compensation is all the delicious
strawberries your family can possibly
eat and generous quantity for neigh
bors, or sell il you so wish.