|
Main
- books.jibble.org
My Books
- IRC Hacks
Misc. Articles
- Meaning of Jibble
- M4 Su Doku
- Computer Scrapbooking
- Setting up Java
- Bootable Java
- Cookies in Java
- Dynamic Graphs
- Social Shakespeare
External Links
- Paul Mutton
- Jibble Photo Gallery
- Jibble Forums
- Google Landmarks
- Jibble Shop
- Free Books
- Intershot Ltd
|
books.jibble.org
Previous Page
| Next Page
Page 32
I prefer to set out all raspberries in the fall, although as a
matter of convenience I often perform the task in the early
spring. I do not believe in late spring planting, except as one
takes up a young sprout, two or three inches high, and sets it out
as one would a tomato-plant. By this course time is often saved.
When it is our wish to increase the quality and quantity of the
fruit, I should advise that the canes of all varieties be cut back
one-third of their length. A little observation will teach us the
reason for this. Permit a long cane to bear throughout its natural
length, and you will note that many buds near the ground remain
dormant or make a feeble growth. The sap, following a general law
of nature, pushes to the extremities, and is, moreover, too much
diffused. Cut away one-third, and all the buds start with
redoubled vigor, while more and larger fruit is the result. If,
however, earliness in ripening is the chief consideration, as it
often is, especially with the market-gardener, leave the canes
unpruned, and the fruit ripens a few days sooner.
In purveying for the home table, white raspberries offer the
attractions of variety and beauty. In the case of Brinckle's
Orange, its exquisite flavor is the chief consideration; but this
fastidious foreign berry is practically beyond the reach, of the
majority. There is, however, an excellent variety, the Caroline,
which is almost as hardy as the Turner, and more easily grown. It
would seem that Nature designed every one to have it (if we may
say IT of Caroline), for not only does it sucker freely like the
red raspberries, but the tips of the canes also bend over, take
root, and form new plants. The one thing that Caroline needs is
repression, the curb; she is too intense.
I am inclined to think, however, that she has had her day, even as
an attendant on royalty, for a new variety, claiming the high-
sounding title of Golden Queen, has mysteriously appeared. I say
mysteriously, for it is difficult to account for her origin. Mr.
Ezra Stokes, a fruit-grower of New Jersey, had a field of twelve
acres planted with Cuthbert raspberries. In this field he found a
bush producing white berries. In brief, he found an Albino of the
Cuthbert. Of the causes of her existence he knows nothing. All we
can say, I suppose, is that the variation was produced by some
unknown impulse of Nature. Deriving her claims from such a source,
she certainly has a better title to royalty than most of her
sister queens, who, according to history, have been commonplace
women, suggesting anything but nature. With the exception of the
Philadelphians, perhaps, we as a people will not stand on the
question of ancestry, and shall be more inclined to see how she
"queens it."
Of course the enthusiastic discoverer and disseminators of this
variety claim that it is not only like the Cuthbert, but far
better. Let us try it and see; if it is as good, we may well be
content, and can grace our tables with beautiful fruit.
There is another American species of raspberry (Rubus
occidentalis) that is almost as dear to memory as the wild
strawberry--the thimble-berry, or black-cap. I confess that the
wild flavor of this fruit is more to my taste than that of any
other raspberry. Apparently its seeds have been sown broadcast
over the continent, for it is found almost everywhere, and there
have been few children in America whose lips have not been stained
by the dark purple juice of its fruit. Seeds dropped in neglected
pastures, by fence and roadsides, and along the edges of the
forest, produce new varieties which do not propagate themselves by
suckers like red raspberries, but in a manner quite distinct. The
young purple canes bend over and take root in the soil during
August, September, and October. At the extreme end of the tip from
which the roots descend a bud is formed, which remains dormant
until the following spring. Therefore the young plant we set out
is a more or less thick mass of roots, a green bud, and usually a
bit of the old parent cane, which is of no further service except
as a handle and a mark indicating the location of the plant. After
the ground has been prepared as one would for corn or potatoes, it
should be levelled, a line stretched for the row, and the plants
set four feet apart in the row. Sink the roots as straight down as
possible, and let the bud point upward, covering it lightly with
merely one or two inches of soil. Press the ground firmly against
the roots, but not on the bud. The soil just over this should be
fine and mellow, so that the young shoot can push through easily,
which it will soon do if the plants are in good condition. Except
in the extreme South, spring is by far the best time for planting,
and it should be done early, while the buds are dormant. After
these begin to grow, keep the ground mellow and free from weeds.
The first effort of the young plant will be to propagate itself.
It will sprawl over the ground if left to its wild impulses, and
will not make an upright bearing bush. On this account put a stake
down by the young sprout, and as it grows keep it tied up and away
from the ground. When the side-branches are eight or ten inches
long, pinch them back, thus throwing the chief strength into the
central cane. By keeping all the branches pinched back you form
the plant into an erect, sturdy bush that will load itself with
berries the following year. No fruit will be borne the first
season. The young canes of the second year will incline to be more
sturdy and erect in their growth; but this tendency can be greatly
enhanced by clipping the long slender branches which are thrown
out on every side. As soon as the old canes are through bearing,
they should be cut out and burned or composted with other refuse
from the garden. Black-caps may be planted on any soil that is not
too dry. When the plant suffers from drought, the fruit consists
of little else than seeds. To escape this defect I prefer to put
the black-caps in a moist location; and it is one of the few
fruits that will thrive in a cold, wet soil. One can set out
plants here and there in out-of-the-way corners, and they often do
better than those in the garden. Indeed, unless a place is kept up
very neatly, many such bushes will be found growing wild, and
producing excellent fruit.
Previous Page
| Next Page
|
|