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Show hlacki5Ekuif;s will give good returns (Uy IHl. A. H. CO!. 1IY, Horticultural 1 ii-imrtiMunt, llllnoiu CuIIiko of AkiI-culturti,) AkiI-culturti,) Very few In really know how delicious a fruit Iho blackberry la, or realize the place It can Ml In our midsummer mid-summer diet. They know blackberries only as the hall'-rlpe, hard, Hour, Julce-less, Julce-less, partly red fruit commonly nvall-ablu nvall-ablu on the market. The blackberry deteriorates de-teriorates very ipilclJy iil'ler picking ami will not sland to hi; shipped lung distances. If It Is lo have Hie ipiallty and flavor to which it Is Justly entitled It must be picked dead ripe and eaten ut once. . The place for Ihe blackberry Is In the home garden or In the com nierclal patch within easy trucking distance dis-tance of a local market. There are many such places In Illinois misapplied Willi quality frull. Itlacliberrles yield heller than oilier small fruits, a fair average yield over the country being 3,000 to O.IKIO quarts an acre. . Some of Ihe best growers In Illinois, however, report a yield of only 2,-KHJ quarts, with the average for the slate far below this figure. There seem to be three Important limiting factors In raising blackberries In Illinois. One of these Is the low price which sometimes prevails when there are competing crops of oilier fri'JIs. Another Is the disease and In-tied In-tied problem, and the third is tlie effect ef-fect of dry weather. As for the first dlfllcuily, tlie proper selection of varieties with fruit well grown, properly ripened and presented attractively usually will result in good prices. There Is big money In growing quality blackberries. Prices range from if-1 to $0 a 2-1-qunrt crate. J The disease factor Is a serious one In some sections. Crown gall, orange rust, anlhracnose and leaf spot are common In neglected plantations and spread by Infected nursery stock Into new areas. Stock of such character should be rejected and Infected plants In the plantation should be dug up and burned not allowed to lie on the ground at the first appearance of these diseases In the spring. Anthrac-nose Anthrac-nose and leaf spot can be controlled by sjiraylng, as can also the few- Insects which occasionally work on the foliage. The most Important need In the successful suc-cessful plantation Is In lessening the effects of dry weather, since the blackberry black-berry Is largely water and ripens at the hottest season of the year. This trouble can be almost wholly avoided, first through proper selection of a site that does not suffer quickly from dry weather and second through practicing practic-ing correct cultural methods. The site should have a northern or northeastern exposure. The soil should be deep and mellow, and an especially Important requisite Is plenty of humus. Water drainage, either natural nat-ural or artificial, also must be provided. provid-ed. lead canes and the surplus plants must be pruned out and the laterals of those that remain headed In. Success or failure, however, depends finally upon the treatment of the soil. If manure or leguminous crops plowed under furnish part of tlie humus content con-tent of the soil, other fertilizers prob-nbly prob-nbly will cot be needed until the plantation plan-tation is in full bearing. Moisture conservation Is an important need. Mulching with strawy manure is practicable prac-ticable In small plantations. This mulch should be put on In the winter, not In the late spring. Where cultivation is practiced it must be early, often and shallow and must not under any circumstances be neglected. It is the price of success. It lias been said that quality varieties given quality care will result in quality qual-ity fruit. This Is especially true of blackberries. |