The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-01-05
The Cultivated Dewberry.


wv. Hamlet of Alvin, Tex, who
has made a success of growing dew
berries for market, gives his method as
follows:
BY request of several interested par
ties, 1 give below a few pointers on
growing dewberries for profit. The
most important thing for all COM
mercial fruit-growers to consider Is
the earliness, favor, yield and ship
ping qualities of the fruit he intends
to grow. 1t Is hardly necessary to say
that, all things considered, the ex-
tremely early berry always commands
the highest market prices, and when
enc can secure a variety of fruit that
possesses these four great requisites
earliness, fine flavor, heavy yield and
good shipping qualities-he has all the
necessary means of realizing handsome
net returns from his commercial VEN
ture. OF course proper cultivation has
a great deal to do with the yield of
any crop
There are various opinions as TO
how best to plant and take care Of
the dewberry. l have found that rows
six feet apart, with plants three to
three and one-half feet in the row, ac-
cording to quality of SOIL give the best
results. This will give ample space to
cultivate and still have a thFee-foot
row of berries. The dewberry requires
moist, fertile and wel-drained soil.
VIII do as well on heavy clays as on
the lighter loans, provided ii gets the
moisture, especially during the fruit
apart; then throw out with turning
pillow. getting we'll down into the sub
soil. Then, II you want the best re-
suits, scatter in the water furrow raw
bone meal at the rate of 1000 pounds
per acre. Bed on the meal, harrow or
drag off rows to smooth them and
crush clods. Use trowel in planting. Be
sure that plants go in ground at least
six inches, and be careful to firm soil
around them. Do not pay any attention
to tops of plants, as new shoots will
come out from roots. A cheaper and
quicker way to plant on a large scale
is to lay off a straight furrow six (bet-
ter eight inches deep on top of row,
drop plants at proper distance and
cover with turning pillow, rolling ground
afterwards. After the berries have got
good start, one man with a team and
cultivator can take care of forty acres.
Berries should be plowed the same
way so as to make runners lie in the
proper direction.
After each crop has been gathered,
NOW vines close to the ground and
burn in the row II possible. If not.
drag into windows with a harrow or,
rake and burn in stu. Then with
turning pillow or disc harrow throw soil
away from the row, leaving a ridge ~
inches wide. l find that Swimming"
this ridge with a scraper or sharp
turning pillow is a cheaper and more
rapid way of cleaning than hoeing,
while it does not injure the plants. A
two-horse disc harrow, with the out
side discs removed, makes an admira-
BILE middle buster" for throwing dirt
back to plants. Plants should be plow-
| ed often enough always the same
way) to keep the vines from crossing
the rows or forming a mat wider than
three feet. Keep large weeds cut down,
but don't bother about the finer grass,
as it acts as q mulch for protecting the
plants in the winter
A top dressing of super-phosphate at
the rate of 200 pound per acre just be-
fore buds appear will greatly enhance
the value of the crop-a fact better
appreciated when the berries are
ready for market
The rules for gathering and market
ing Strawberries apply equally as well
to dewberries. For distant markets the
dewberry field should be gone over
daily, and the pickers should be cau-
toned against putting in green and
overripe fruit. When possible, sell free
on board shipping point. This will
save vast amount of worry, and will
net you, on an average. as much as