The Watertown weekly leader. [volume] (Watertown, Jefferson County, Wis.) 1912-1917, 1915-05-18


dressed with well-composted manure,
and no weeds should be allowed to
grow In the rows. These precautions
| are necessary to ward off mildew.
The tree form of growth is best suit
ed for this berry, as well as the cur
rant. Borers seldom trouble the goose
berry. In propagating we employ the
| layer system, which Is done by Sc
curing the thrifty bushes to the
| ground, and placing soil over them,
| when they will start root system.
Right after these small fruits we
want small orchard of plums, cher
| ries and peaches. A few trees of the
best varieties will supply the home
needs.
Every fruit grower wants small
| pear orchard, because there are a few
varieties of the fruit about as near
| perfection as anything that has been
| evolved in the orchard line. Next to
| the small fruits these trees are the
| most valuable in the farm garden.
AS an all-around fruit the grape
ranks next to the apple. Fifty or one
| hundred vines of well-selected va
rieties will afford plenty OF this
healthy fruit from the middle of Au-
| gust until frost comes.
Then, by taking precautions, and
| carefully storing late varieties in
| cool room, we can keep them in ex
| cellent condition for Christmas and
| New Years.
| No other fruit can take the place of
| grapes during their season They af-
ford an abundant supply of delicious
and strengthening food for nearly five
months during the year. We should
| grow the grapes and eat freely Of
| them
Blackberries come late in the sum-
| canning, preserving and making deli
| cious pies. The following way of
managing the blackberry patch will in
sure plenty of this fruit for the home
use:
Late in the fall secure roots of the
right variety; place them where they
| will be protected from the freezing
the spring, but not allowed to dry out.
Prepare the ground as for potatoes,
and every third row rake for the ber-
| ry rows, planting the other tive rows
with potatoes. Cut the roots into
pieces three inches long, plant them
one foot apart in the row. Cover
level with the ground.
but one in the hill, which may be cas-
lily done cutting with a knife or
sickle. In this way stalky cane with
| plenty of lateraIs will be obtained.
Cut back these lateraIs to secure the
bush form.
If the locality is subject to ex-
tremely cold winters, bend down the
canes and partly cover with soil. In
the spring they can he released with
fork. The second and third years
they should be given the same gen.
eral culture as the first, except
heavy mulching should be applied just
before the fruiting season begins.
This can be done with but little
labor if the canes have been kept in
rows where they belong. All fnanur-
ing and fertilizing should be done
early. and the rows should not be cul-
tivated after fruiting, because it
starts a late growth of wood that can
not mature by the time cold weather
sets in, and we must have ripe wood
for next years crop, as well as the
berries for the present season.
Apple and pear trees may be start
ed in rows with the small fruit vines
and bushes, and will begin to bear
about the time the berries need re-
newing. We should have low-headed
trees, that is, let them have their
limbs near the ground.
They will yield fruit much earlier
than trees that are headed higher. BY
planting trees in berry rows we can
clean out the berries and rely upon
the larger fruits alone and start new
berry rows.
Currants will continue to grow
among small fruit trees. In fact they
require some space to grow to their
greatest perfection.
1t does not require long years of ex-
perience or much expense to grow all
the choice fruit we can use at home,
and it will pay large returns both in
money and pleasure, to have all of the
fruit our families can utilize.