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Manual of Gardening (Second Edition)

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For the South and Southwest the varieties named in the following list
are of value:--

_Early._--Red June, Yellow Transparent, Red Astrachan, Summer Queen,
Benoni, Oldenburg, Gravenstein, Maiden Blush, Earlyripe,(A) Williams,(A)
Early Cooper,(A) Horse.

[Illustration: Fig. 272. The Wagener.]

_Autumn._--Haas, Late Strawberry, Oconee, Rambo, Peck (Peck Pleasant),
Carter Blue, Bonum,(A) Smokehouse,(A) Hoover.

[Illustration: Fig. 273. Pewaukee Apple.]

_Winter._--Shockley, Rome Beauty,(A) Smith Cider, Grimes, Buckingham,
Jonathan,(A) Winesap, Kinnard, York Imperial, Gilpiri (Romanite), Ralls
(Genet), Limbertwig, Royal Lumbertwig, Stayman Winesap,(A) Milam,
Virginia Beauty,(A) Terry,(A) Ingram.(A)

In the Northwest only such varieties as are extremely hardy will be
satisfactory, and among those likely to succeed we may mention:--

_Early._--Yellow Transparent, Tetofski, Oldenburg.(A)

_Autumn._--Fameuse, Longfield, Wealthy, McMahan,(A) McIntosh,(A)
Shiawassee.

_Winter._--Wolf River,(A) Hibernal, Northwestern (Greening), Pewaukee
(Fig. 273), Switzer, Golden Russet, Patten (Greening).(A)

APRICOT.--This fruit is not often seen in home gardens in the East,
although it deserves to be better known. When grown at all, it is likely
to be trained on walls, after the English custom.

In the latitude of New York, the apricot has proved as hardy as the
peach. Given the right conditions as to soil and exposure, it will yield
abundant crops, ripening its fruits about three weeks in advance of
early peaches.

The apricot usually thrives best on strong land; but otherwise the
treatment given the peach suits it very well. The soil should be rather
dry; especially should the subsoil be such that no water may stand
around the roots. The exposure should be to the north or west to retard
the blooming period, as the one great drawback to the successful
fruiting is the early blooming and subsequent freezing of the flowers or
the small fruits.

The two serious difficulties in the growing of apricots are the ravages
of the curculio, and the danger to the flowers from the spring frosts.
It is usually almost impossible to secure fruits from one or two
isolated apricot trees, because the curculios will take them all. It is
possible, also, that some of the varieties need cross-pollination.

Among the best kinds of apricots are Montgamet, Jackson, Royal, St.
Ambroise, Early Golden, Harris, Roman (Fig. 274) and Moorpark. In the
East, apricots are commonly worked on plums, but they also thrive on
the peach.

The introduction of the Russian varieties, a few years ago, added to
the list several desirable kinds that have proved hardier and a little
later in blooming than the old kinds. The fruits of the Russian
varieties, while not as large as the other varieties, fully equal many
of them in flavor, and they are very productive. They bear more
profusely and with less care than the old-fashioned and larger kinds.

[Illustration: Fig. 274. Roman Apricot.]

Blackberry.--In a general way, the planting and care of a blackberry
plantation is the same as required by raspberries. From the fact that
they ripen later in the season, when droughts are most common, even
greater attention should be given to placing them in land that is
retentive of moisture, and to providing an efficient mulch, which can
generally best be secured with a cultivator. The smaller-growing kinds
(as Early Harvest and Wilson) may be planted 4 x 7 ft., the rank-growing
varieties (as Snyder) 6 x 8 ft. Thorough cultivation through-out the
season will help in a material degree to hold the moisture necessary to
perfect a good crop. The soil should be cultivated very shallow,
however, so as not to disturb the roots, as the breaking of the roots
starts a large number of suckers that have to be cut out and destroyed.
While hill culture (as recommended above) is desirable for the garden,
commercial growers generally use continuous rows.

Blackberries, like dewberries and raspberries, bear but one crop on the
cane. That is, canes which spring up this year bear next year. From 3 to
6 canes are sufficient to be left in each hill. The superfluous ones are
thinned out soon after they start from the ground. The old canes should
be cut out soon after fruiting, and burned. The new shoots should be
pinched back at the height of 2 or 3 ft. if the plants are to support
themselves. If to be fastened to wires, they may be allowed to grow
throughout the season and be cut back when tied to the wires in winter
or early spring.

Blackberry plants are sometimes laid down in cold climates,--the tops
being bent over and held to the ground by earth or sods thrown on their
tips (Fig. 155).

The most troublesome disease of the blackberry is orange rust
(conspicuous on the under sides of the leaves), which often proves very
destructive, particularly to Kittatinny and a few other sorts. There is
no remedy, and on the first appearance of the disease the infected
plants should be dug up and burned.

_Varieties of blackberries._

Many of the better varieties of blackberries are lacking in hardiness,
and cannot be grown except in the more favorable localities. Snyder and
Taylor are most generally successful, although Wilson and Early Harvest
are often grown on a large scale for market, and do well with winter
protection. Eldorado is much like Snyder, that seems hardy and
productive. Erie, Minnewaski, Kittatinny, and Early King are in many
sections large and valuable sorts.

CHERRY.--Of cherries there are two common types, the sweet cherries
and the sour cherries. The sweet cherries are larger and taller-growing
trees. They comprise the varieties known as the hearts, bigarreaus, and
dukes. The sour cherries (Fig. 275) include the various kinds of
morellos and pie cherries, and these usually ripen after the
sweet cherries.

The sour cherries make low, round-headed trees. The fruits are
extensively used for canning. Sour cherries thrive well on clay loams.
The sour cherry should be planted 18 by 18 ft. apart, in well-prepared,
under-drained soil. The trees may be slightly trimmed back each year,
keeping the head low and bushy.

[Illustration: Fig. 275. Sour or pie cherries.]

The sweet cherries have proved disappointing in many instances from the
rotting of the fruit. This may never be entirely avoided, but good
cultivation, soil not too rich in nitrogen, attention to spraying, and
picking the fruit when dry, will lessen the loss very much. In years of
severe rotting the fruit should be picked before it becomes fully ripe,
placed in a cool, airy room and allowed to color. It will be nearly as
well flavored as if left on the tree; and, as the fungus usually attacks
only the ripe fruit, a considerable part of the crop may be saved. Set
the trees 25 or 30 ft. apart. Only very well-drained land should be
devoted to sweet cherries, preferably one of a somewhat gravelly nature.

Leaf-blight is readily controlled by timely spraying with bordeaux
mixture. The curculio or fruit worm may be controlled by jarring, as for
plums, or by spraying. The jarring process is seldom employed with
cherries for the curculio, inasmuch as the poison spray seems, for some
reason, to be particularly effective on these fruits.

_Varieties of cherry._

Of the sour varieties, May Duke (Fig. 36), Richmond, Dyehouse,
Montmorency, Ostheim, Hortense (Fig. 34), Late Kentish, Suda, and
Morello (English Morello) (Fig. 35) are the most valuable. The following
sweet varieties are of value where they succeed: Rockport, (Yellow)
Spanish, Elton, (Governor) Wood, Coe, Windsor, (Black) Tartarian,
and Downer.

CRANBERRY.--The growing of cranberries in artificial bogs is an
American industry. The common large cranberry of markets is also a
peculiarly American fruit, since it is unknown in other countries except
as the fruit is shipped there.

Cranberries are grown in bogs, which may be flooded. The whole area is
kept under water during the winter time, largely to prevent the plants
from winter injury by the heaving and freezing and thawing of the bogs.
Flooding is also employed at intervals for the purpose of drowning out
insects, mitigating drought, and protecting against frost and fires. The
ordinary practice is to choose a bog which has a creek running through
it, or through which some creek or ditch may be diverted. At the lower
side of the bog flood-gates are provided, so that when the gates are
shut, the water backs up and floods the area. It is best that the bog be
comparatively flat, so that the water will be of approximately equal
depth over the whole area. At the shallowest places the water should
stand about a foot above the plants. The water is usually let on the bog
early in December and kept on until April or early May. No flooding is
done during the rest of the year unless there is some particular
occasion therefor.

All the wild and turfy growth should be taken off the bog before the
vines are set. This is done either by digging it off and removing it
bodily, or by drowning it out by means of a year's flooding. The former
method is generally considered to be the better. After the turfy growth
is removed, the bog is smoothed, and covered 2 or 3 in. deep with clean
sand. The vines are now set, the lower ends of them being shoved through
the sand into the richer earth. In order to prevent a too rapid and
tangled growth of vine, it is customary to resand the bog every three or
four years to a depth of one-fourth or one-half inch. When sanding is
not practicable, the vines may be mown off when they become too
luxuriant.

The plants for setting are merely cuttings or branches of the vines.
These cuttings may be 5 to 10 inches long. They are inserted into the
ground in a hole made by a crowbar or stick. They are usually planted at
distances of 12 to 18 inches each way, and the vines are allowed to
cover the entire ground as with a mat. In three years a good crop should
be secured, if the weeds and wild growth are kept down. A crop ranges
between 50 to 100 barrels per acre.

CURRANT.--As the currant is one of the hardiest and most
productive of fruits in the North, so is it often neglected, the patch
allowed to become foul with grass, never thinned or trimmed, the worms
eating the leaves until, in the course of time, the plants weaken and
die. Along the fence is no place to plant currants, or, indeed, any
other fruit; plant out in the open, at least 5 feet from anything that
will interfere with cultivation.

No fruit crop will respond more readily to good care than the currant.
Clean cultivation and a liberal use of manure or fertilizers will
certainly be followed by well-paying crops. One-or two-year-old plants
may be set, 4 by 6 feet. Trim the bush by cutting off most of the
suckers below the surface of the ground. The currant should have cool
moist soil. If the season is dry, a mulch of straw or leaves will assist
the plants to establish themselves.

Currants are easily propagated by mature cuttings of the new or previous
year's canes.

The red and white currants bear mostly on two-year-old or older wood. A
succession of young shoots should be allowed to grow to take the place
of the old bearing wood. Cut out the canes as they grow older. The
partial shade afforded by a young orchard suits the currant well, and if
the ground is in good condition, no bad results will follow to the
orchard, provided the currants are removed before the trees need the
entire feeding space.

A currant patch should continue in good bearing for 10 to 20 years, if
properly handled. One very important point is to keep the old, weak
canes cut out, and a succession of two to four new ones coming from the
root each year.

To combat the currant worm, spray thoroughly with Paris green to kill
the first brood, just as soon as holes can be seen in the lower leaves
--usually before the plants are in bloom. For the second brood, if it
appear, spray with white hellebore (p. 203). For borers, cut out and
burn the affected canes.

_Varieties of currants._

In most sections the Red Dutch will be found to be the most satisfactory
variety, as the plants are much less injured by borers than are Cherry
(Plate XXIII), Fay, and Versailles, which are larger and better
varieties, and are to be preferred in sections where the borers are not
troublesome. Victoria is a valuable market sort where borers are
numerous, as it is little injured by them. The same is also true of
(Prince) Albert, which is little attacked by currant worms and is
particularly valuable as a late sort. White Dutch and White Grape are
valuable light-colored varieties, and (Black) Naples as a variety for
jelly. London (London Market) is also proving to be satisfactory in
some sections.

[Illustration: Fig. 276. Lucretia dewberry.]

DEWBERRY.--The dewberry may be called an early trailing blackberry.
The culture is very simple. Support should be given to the canes, as
they are very slender and rank growers. A wire trellis or large-meshed
fence-wire answers admirably; or (and this is the better general method)
they may be tied to stakes. The fruits are large and showy, which,
combined with their earliness, makes them desirable; but they are
usually deficient in flavor. The Lucretia (Fig. 276) is the
leading variety.

Lay the canes on the ground in winter. In the spring tie all the canes
from each plant to a stake. After fruiting, cut the old canes and burn
them (as for blackberries). In the meantime, the young canes (for next
year's fruiting) are growing. These may be tied up as they grow, to be
out of the way of the cultivator. Dewberries are one to two weeks
earlier than blackberries.

FIG.--The fig is little grown in the East except as a curiosity,
but on the Pacific coast it has gained considerable prominence as an
orchard fruit. Figs will stand considerable frost, and seedling or
inferior varieties grow out-of-doors without protection as far north as
Virginia. Many of the varieties fruit on young sprouts, and, inasmuch as
the roots will stand considerable cold, these varieties will often give
a few figs in the northern states. Figs have been fruited in the open
ground in Michigan. In regions having ten degrees of frost, the fig
should be laid down in winter. For this purpose the plants are pruned to
branch from the ground, and the soft tops are bent to the surface and
covered with earth. In commercial cultivation, fig trees grow large,
and they stand 18 to 25 feet apart; but in gardens where they are to be
bent over, they are to be kept as bushes.

Adriatic is the most commonly grown white fig. Among the other varieties
are California Black or Mission Fig, Brown Ischia, Brown Turkey, White
Ischia, and Celeste (Celestial).

[Illustration: Fig. 277. One of the English-American gooseberries.]

GOOSEBERRY.--The gooseberry differs little from the currant in its
requirements as to soil, pruning, and general care. The plants should be
set 3 to 4 feet apart; rows 5 to 7 feet apart. Select a rich, rather
moist soil. The tops need no winter protection. If mildew and worms are
to be kept in check, spraying must be begun with the very first sign of
trouble and be thoroughly done.

The propagation of the gooseberry is similar to that of the currant,
although the practice of earthing up a whole plant, causing every branch
thus covered to throw out roots, is practiced with the European
varieties. The rooted branches are cut off the following spring and
planted in nursery rows or sometimes directly in the field. In order to
succeed with this method, the plant should have been cut back to the
ground so that all the shoots are yearling.

Since the advent of the practice of spraying with fungicides to prevent
mildew, the culture of the gooseberry has increased. There is now no
reason why, with a little care, good crops of many of the best English
varieties may not be grown.

A large part of the gooseberry crop is picked green for culinary
purposes. Several of the English varieties and their derivatives have
proved of value, having larger fruits than the natives (Fig. 277).

_Varieties of gooseberries._

For ordinary use the Downing can generally be recommended. It is hardy,
productive, of fair size, and greenish white in color. Houghton is even
more hardy and productive, but the fruit is rather small and of a dark
red color. Among the varieties of European origin that can be
successfully grown, if the mildew can be prevented, are Industry,
Triumph, Keepsake, Lancashire Lad, and Golden Prolific. Among other
varieties that are promising are Champion, Columbus, Chautauqua, and
Josselyn (Red Jacket).

GRAPE.--One of the surest of fruit crops is the grape, a crop each
year being reasonably certain after the third year from the time of
setting the vines; and the good amateur kinds are numerous.

The grape does well on any soil that is under good cultivation and well
drained. A soil with considerable clay is better under these
circumstances than a light, sandy loam. The exposure should be to the
sun; and the place should admit of cultivation on all sides.

For planting, 1-or 2-year-old vines should be used, being set either in
the fall or early spring. At planting, the vine is cut back to 3 or 4
eyes, and the roots are well shortened in. The hole in which the plant
is to be set should be large enough to allow a full spreading of the
roots. If the season should be dry, a mulch of coarse litter may be
spread around the vine. If all the buds start, the strongest one or two
may be allowed to grow. The canes arising from these buds should be
staked and allowed to grow through the season; or in large plantations
the first-year canes may be allowed to lie on the ground.

The second year one cane should be cut back to the same number of eyes
as the first year. After growth begins in the spring, two of the
strongest buds should be allowed to remain. These two canes now arising
may be grown to a single stake through the second summer, or they may be
spread horizontally on a trellis. These are the canes that form the
permanent arms or parts of the vine. From them start the upright shoots
which, in succeeding years, are to bear the fruits.

In order to understand the pruning of grapes, the operator must fully
grasp this principle: _Fruit is borne on wood of the present season,
which arises from wood of the previous season._ To illustrate: A growing
shoot, or cane, of 1909 makes buds. In 1910 a shoot arises from each
bud; and near the base of these shoots the grapes are borne (1 to 4
clusters on each). While every bud on the 1909 shoot may produce shoots
or canes in 1910, only the strongest of these new canes will bear fruit.
The skilled grape-grower can tell by the looks of his cane (as he prunes
it in winter) which buds will give rise to the grape-producing wood the
following season. The larger and stronger buds usually give best
results; but if the cane itself is very big and stout, or if it is very
weak and slender, he does not expect good results from any of its buds.
A hard, well-ripened cane the diameter of a man's little finger is the
ideal size.

Another principle to be mastered is this: _A vine should bear only a
limited number of clusters,_--say from 30 to 80. A shoot bears clusters
near its base; beyond these clusters the shoot grows on into a long,
leafy cane. An average of two clusters may be reckoned to a shoot. If
the vine is strong enough to bear 60 clusters, 30 good buds must be left
at the pruning (which is done from December to late February).

The essential operation of pruning a grape vine, therefore, is each year
to cut back a limited number of good canes to a few buds, and to cut off
entirely all the remaining canes or wood of the previous season's
growth. If a cane is cut back to 2 or 3 buds, the stub-like part which
remains is called a spur. Present systems, however, cut each cane back
to 8 or 10 buds (on strong varieties), and 3 or 4 canes are left,--all
radiating from near the head or trunk of the vine. The top of the vine
does not grow bigger from year to year, after it has once covered the
trellis, but is cut back to practically the same number of buds each
year. Since these buds are on new wood, it is evident that they are each
year farther and farther removed from the head of the vine. In order to
obviate this difficulty, new canes are taken out each year or two from
near the head of the vine, and the 2-year-or 3-year-old wood is
cut away.

The training of grapes is a different matter. A dozen different systems
of training may be practiced on the same trellis and from the same
style of pruning,--for training is only the disposition or arrangement
of the parts.

On arbors, it is best to carry one permanent arm or trunk from each root
over the framework to the peak. Each year the canes are cut back to
short spurs (of 2 or 3 buds) along the sides of this trunk.

[Illustration: Fig. 278 Bag ready to be applied.]

Grapes are set from 6 to 8 feet apart in rows which are 8 to 10 feet
apart. A trellis made of 2 or 3 wires is the best support. Slat
trellises catch too much wind and blow down. Avoid stimulating manures.
In very cold climates, the vines may be taken off the trellis in early
winter and laid on the ground and lightly covered with earth. Along the
boundaries of home lots, where grapes are often planted, little is to be
expected in the way of fruit because the ground is not well tilled.

[Illustration: Fig. 279 The second stage in adjusting the bag.]

The grape is subject to many insects and diseases, some of which are
very destructive. The black-rot is the most usual trouble. See p. 209.

To produce bunches of high quality and free from rot and frost injury,
grapes are sometimes bagged. When the grapes are about half grown, the
bunch is covered with a grocer's manila bag. The bags remain until the
fruit is ripe. The grapes usually mature earlier in the bags. The top of
the bag is split, and the flaps are secured over the branch with a pin;
Figs. 278, 279, 280 explain the operation.

[Illustration: Fig. 280 The bagging complete.]

In all the above discussion, the so-called native grapes alone are
considered. In California, the European or vinifera types are grown, the
requirements of which are radically different from those of the
eastern kinds.

[Illustration XXII. Wall-training of a pear tree.]

_Varieties of grapes._

Under nearly all conditions, the Concord will be a valuable black
variety, although Worden, which is a few days earlier, may be
preferred by many. Moore (Moore Early) has been our best very early
black variety, but is likely to be superseded by Campbell, which is a
stronger vine, more productive, bunches larger, fruit of better quality,
and of superior keeping qualities, making it valuable for shipping
purposes. Catawba, Delaware, and Brighton are among the best red
varieties, although Agawam and Salem are much used. Winchell (Green
Mountain) is the best early white variety, and in most sections Niagara,
a late white sort, does well. Diamond (Moore Diamond) is a white grape
of better quality than Niagara.

_Grapes under glass_ (S.W. Fletcher).

The European grapes rarely thrive out of doors in eastern America. Grape
houses are necessary, with or without artificial heat. Fruit for home
use may be grown very satisfactorily in a cold grapery (without
artificial heat). A simple lean-to against the south side of a building
or wall is cheap and serviceable. When a separate building is desired,
an even-span house running north and south is preferable. There is no
advantage in having a curved roof, except as a matter of looks. A
compost of four parts rotted turf to one of manure is laid on a sloping
cement bottom outside the house, making a border 12 feet wide and 2 feet
deep. The cement may be replaced with rubble on well-drained soils, but
it is a poor makeshift. Every three years the upper 6 inches of the
border should be renewed with manure. The border inside the house is
prepared likewise. Two-year-old potted vines are planted about 4 feet
apart in a single row. Part of the roots go through a crevice in the
wall to the outer border and part remain inside; or all may go outside
if the house is desired for other purposes. One strong cane is trained
to a wire trellis hanging at least 18 inches from the glass, and is cut
back to 3 feet the first year, 6 the second, and 9 the third. Do not be
in a hurry to get a long cane. Pruning is on the spur system, as
recommended for arbors on p. 430. The vines are usually laid on the
ground for winter and covered with leaves or wrapped with cloth.

As soon as the buds swell in early spring, tie the vines to the trellis
and start out one shoot from each spur, rubbing off all others. After
the berries begin to color, however, it is better to leave all further
growth to shade the fruit. Pinch back each of these laterals two joints
beyond the second bunch. To keep down red spider and thrips, the foliage
should be sprayed with water every bright morning except during the
blooming season. At least one-third of the berries should be thinned
from each bunch; do not be afraid of taking out too many. Water the
inside border frequently all through the summer, and the outside
occasionally if the season is dry. Mildew may appear in July. The best
preventives are to syringe faithfully, admit air freely, and sprinkle
sulfur on the ground.

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