The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1916-06-15
DEWBERRY
 PLANTATIONS

WaSh1ngtOn, June 1b-Ihe OeWber- ry has proved profitable in many sec tfons because it ripens somewhat ear Her than the true blackberry, which it resembles greatly in some respects. Sometimes the deweberry is called the trailing blackberry, because it's canes trail on the ground while those of fhe blackberry are upright. The clusters of the dewberry also are small and open in comparison with those of the blackberry.
 At the present time the dewberry is grown most extensively in North Car oHna and New Jersey, but there are also plantations in Maryland, Texas, Missouri, Michigan. Colorado, and other States. The Lucretia, the most hitherto its culture has been confined to rather mild climates. Any fertile soil provided with good drainage and with a good supply of humus to re- tain moisture is suitable for growing dewberries. Many of the large fields of North Carolina are on coarse sand, and in other sections clay 1oans are used for this purpose. The fruit, however, should not be set on wet soil. Under such conditions root rot has been found to kill the plants. On the other hand, a sufficient supply of moisture is essential for the develop ment and ripening of the berries.
 Dewberry plants are usually, set dur ing the winter and early spring in the South and in early spring in the North As they occupy the soil for several years, the land should be well prepared beforehand. The use of cov- CT crops to add humus to the soil is frequently a desirable preliminary, and much better results are usually secured if the land Is planted to cul- tivated crops for two years before set ting out the plantation This will re- suit in a better growth of the plants the first year and the plantation will yield a crop much sooner than if no such preparation is made.
 Two systems of planting afe follow | ed-the hill system and the solid row system. With the former the plants are set 5 feet distant each way; with the latter 3 feet apart in rows which are 4 to feet apart. Cultivation is
 begun as soon as the plants are in the ground and continued until the
 growth of the canes trailing along tn
 ground interferes with the york;. Tn e following spring, just before the buds start, the canes should be trained. l There are number of different ways
 of doing this, details of which are discussed in Farmers Bulletin FPS, a new publication of the United States l Department of Agriculture on this
 subject. In some eases where the hill system is used, stakes are set by each l plant and the canes wound in a spiral | tenn of culture posts are sometimes set between every two plants and in other places a wire trel1is is used.
 In the South, where the growing
 season is long, all the canes, both old and new, are usually cut off after the
 fruit has been picked. In northern regions the season is too short to se- cure a. large amount of new growth
 and in consequence the old canes only are removed. The former method has the advantages of minimizing danger from the diseases which affect ! the dewberry. Of these the two most
 serious are anthracnose and double blossom. In States where it is not : possible to remove the canes after , harvesting the crop, the disease is con , tro1led by removing in the spring al Prospective dewberry raisers usu : ally obtain their plants from nurs
 cries. Those, however, who alread! F have a plantation can raise their ow1 n plants by covering the tips OF tn,
 young canes wit ha few inches of sof
 late in the summer or early in tn
 autumn. These tips will root freel
 and the new plans will be ready to dij . | late that fall or early the next spring 2 The duration of a plantation will de
 pend largely upon the attention 1t re 1 ceives and the system of prunin = adopted. In North Carolina planra tions fifteen years old are still pro . ductive.