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Show INCREASED DEMAND FOR BLACKBERRIES About as Profitable as Any Other Berry Crop Large Crops Obtained Each Year. Growers are discovering of recent years that the common, homely blackberry black-berry is after all about as profitable as other berries when everything is taken Into consideration. The blackberry will not only grow under adversities that would not be endured by other species of fruit plants but it is a surer bearer year after year than either the strawberry or raspberry, and uniformly produces large crops. The demand for this berry on the market is constantly on the increase, as housekeepers are finding it is the easiest to put up In cans, the least expensive ex-pensive to buy, is relished equally to any in the winter for Its tart flavor, and makes the best of all pies. Yet though it will flourish under neglect that would kill the raspberry, the blackberry responds just as readily read-ily and just as profitably to good treatment treat-ment as its brothers. It, too, has its requirements if its higher perfections are to be attained, if it is to do anything like its best. The first and greatest requisite for successful blackberry culture is a deep, loose, rich soil. Moisture is the most Important point of all and so bottom land is the best location but it must be well drained and not seepy or swampy. The blackberry makes a very extensive exten-sive root system and will travel for yards in search of food; this enables it to mature a crop with less fertilizing fertiliz-ing than other berries, but still the blackberry will repay high feeding and an abundant supply of plant food in the ground is fully as large a fold as any plant that grows. What the blackberry will bear under un-der most favorable conditions and thd size its berries will reach would sound well nigh Incredible to many, and H is a source of constant wonder and admiration ad-miration to those who see it annually. It is quite possible to grow blackberries black-berries by the acre in the same pro-" fusion as' these, by simply . giving the same conditions of soil and cultivation cultiva-tion ; and I am thoroughly convinced that such Intensive cultivation would pay far better than the common methods meth-ods in vogue which cost less. It is not a great task to make an acre of naturally deep loamy soil as rich as the average garden. Provide plenty of humus by plowing under big crops of some legume, such as red clover clo-ver and cow peas and then give it a heavy coat of stable manure in addition, addi-tion, or stable manure alone will do If there is enough at hand. It will pay not to allow a single w-eed or blade of grass to grow. Then reproduce natural conditions as far as possible which means coolness of soil and abundance of water for the roots by mulching the rows with manure or litter, and if you will put it on thick enough to prevent the growth of weeds and grass you will be killing two birds with one stone. A heavy mulch for two feet on both sides of the row and the rest of tin middles constantly kept loose with the cultivator would be an ideal way of raising the blackberry. I venture to say that an acre of this kind would produce berries that would sell for as much as is usually realized on five acres; not only would there be more berries but they would be so s perior in size and looks that they would sell for much more per crate, find more ready buyers and cost less to pick. |