DATE DUE 1

UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS
LIBRARY

385

I

f

UNIVI

THE FAMILY

tiTRAWBERRY PATCH

and the way to
MAKE IT A SUCCESS.

Co)3yright 1911, by William Boulton.

ALPENA, MICHIGAN.

0

Price 50 Cents.

jl ,

It' >L( =S

STRAWBERRY CULTURE.
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Every one, fortunate enough to possess a
garden, should have a portion of it devoted
to the growing of strawberries.

The family strawberry patch should be
considered the most important part of the
garden. It will certainly confer the most
benefit with its bounteous gift of large and
luscious strawberries.

To grow strawberries successfully is not
very difficult and does not require an expert
gardener. Any person, possessed of ordin-
ary intelligence, can grow the big, juicy,
queen of fruits, who is not afraid of a little
labor and will strictly follow a few simple
rules, but these rules must be strictly fol-
lowed. They are not many, neither are they
difficult to learn and master.

It is the object of this little book to tell
the amateur gardener hov/ the absolute, yet
simple, work should be performed to attain
success.

This is not a scientific treatise, but is just
merely a plain and sim^ple statement of what
a person must do in order to be successful

36323

Strawberry Culture,

with the little, but much desired garden
straw beri-y patch.

0 0 o

THE SOIL.

The first thing to be considered is the soil.
Now, the straw^berry is a hardy plant and it
will grow and produce fruit on any reason-
ably fertile soil, but it does better on some
soils than on others. The best is sandy loam.

A person can not always select the best
snL He has to use such as his garden pro-
vides. If it is heavy clay, it will have to be
lightered by prober cultivation and the use
of p'eity of barnyard manure. If it is
light sand, it must also have an iibundance
of barnyard m.anure to m.ake the necessary
liumus and also to make the light, i)orous,
sandy soil able to retain both the plant food
and the mioisture. It should also be com-
pressed by rolling.

While strawberry plants will grow and
produce fruit en almxst any kird of soil,
even among grass, yet the am.ount cf fruit
] reduced, and the quality, is r.ot such as is

By William Eoulton.

desired or profitable. To get the big, juicy,
delicious fruits and abundance of them, the
plants must have a fertile soil, well drainer?,
and well cultivated, such as is generally
termed intensive cultivation. It must bo
mellow and v/ell mixed with the plant food
that a strawberry plant needs t ) do its best.

A soil that is rich enough to raise a good
crop of potatoes or other garden vegetables,
will grovf a big crop of stra,Vv^ berries. The
ground should not be too rich, but consider-
able phosphorous and potash is necessary.

We will suppose that the piece of ground
selected h^s been well manured and a crop of
potatoes or other vegetables has been grown
upon it and the weeds kept down. Now
spread over that tract a layer of well rotted
manure, cow manure preferred, to a depth
of at least one inch, and scatter over it a
fertilizer, containing nitrogen, phosphoric
acid and potash, at the rate of 400 pounds
to the acre. ^

A fertilizer having 3 per cent of nitrogen,
7 per cent of phosphoric add, and 9 percent
of potash, will be about the right composi-

4. Strawberry' Culture.

tion. A large per centege of nitrogen is not
needed in strawberry fertilizers, as it would
have the tendency to make the plants run
more to foliage than fruit.

The next operation is to dig or plow the
ground and give it several cultivations with
a wheel hoe. If you do not have a wheel
hoe, then use the garden rake and give the
surface of the soil a good raking, so that
there will be no lumps and the soil will be
mellow and loose enough so the roots can
easily push their passage through it.

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MOISTURE.

The strawberry plant requires plenty of
moisture, yet its roots must not be in stand-
ing water. There must be sufficient drain-
rge to remove all the surface water for
several inches below the ground surface,
generally termxed standing water.

The mxOisture, that is in the subsoil, must
l:e retdrcd, so that the plants can have a
j.e£ervoir cf water to draw from as needed.
The subsoil water can be largely retained by

By William Boulton. 5

making a dust mulch. The dust mulch is
simply the ground surface that has been m.ade
very fine, to a depth of about two inches,
with a rake or cultivator, and thus becomes
loose and dry. It prevents what is termed
capilliary attraction from drawing the stor-
age water to the surface, from where it
would be absorbed by the atmosphere and
thus wasted.

To maintain the dust mulch, the ground
must be raked or cultivated about once a
week, and also as soon after a heavy r^in
as the ground will permit. A heavy rain
makes a crust on the ground, and the ca-
pilliary atiraetioii goe^ to work to draw the
storage moisture to the surface. The ground
must be loosened on the surface after a
heavy rain, and if there has been no heavy
rain, the raking or cultivating must be done
about every seven days.

To preserve the storage water is one of
the most important acts in growing straw-
berry plants.

Making a dust mulch also tends, to a great
extent, in preventing weeds from growing,

Strawberry Culture.

for as the surface is loose and dry to a depth
of about two inches, weed seed can not
sprout for lack of any moisture. The dust
mulch, therefore, does two very necessary
acts — it prevents a waste of water and it
prevents weeds from g-rowing.

READY TO PLANT.

You are now ready to set out the straw-
berry plants. The ground has teen thorough-
ly broken by the spade or plow. It has been
frequently cultivated, and the soil is in a
mellow condition, Sufficient manure and
fertilizer has been spread over the patch and
has been well mixed with the soil. Al-
ready the chemistry of nature has begun
the important work cf preparing the food
for the plants, so that it will be in a good
condition for the roots to feed upon. The
light sandy parts have been rolled to com-
press the soil and prevent leaching. You
have kept the ground surface well broken
up, making a fine dust mulch, and have thus
prevented the capilliary attraction from
v/asting the stored up water. There is not

I;v William Boalcon.

a weed to be seen and the tin'e has arrived
to set out the j^oung and thrifty plants.

KIND OF PLANTS TO GET.

There is only ore kind of the strawberry
plants that should be used. They must be
from thrifty parents and be free from dis-
ease.

Plants, taken from a bed that has born
fruit, should not be used, because such are .
not vigorous and they will only cause failure
and disappointment. The plants must come
from parents that have born neither blos-
soms or fruit. The reason is that a straw-
berry plant can not produce blossotns^ and
fruit and also produce strong and healthy
plants. It has not sufficient strength to do
so. It is one of the most important facts
you must keep in mind, if you would be suc-
cessful in growing big crops cf fu e berries,
and you must not forget it.

You can get good, healthy, strawberry
plants from any reliable nursery, bat do not
go far south of your own Lititude. You can

8. Strawberry Culture.

also have a propogating bed and grow yovur
own strawberry plants.

The kind of plants you use is one of the
most important things in regard to being
successful in growing big crops of large
strawberries.

There are two distinct series of straw-
berry plants, but they can be distinguished
only by their blossoms. One is the female,
known as the pistolate, and the second is
the male plant, known as the bi-sexial.

The female plant has only pistils in her
blossoms. The male plant has both pistils
and stamens or anthers.

The female plant is therefore unable to
fertilize her blossoms with polen and has to
depend on male plants for the necessary
lX)len. Without the fertilizing polen the
female plant might have a vigorous growth
and abundance of blossoms, but would have
very little fruit, and what she had would be
of inferior quality. The m.ale plant is able
tx) fertilize its own blossoms.

Therefore, in making a bed of strawberry
1 -kints, you -.nust not plant all female or

By William Boulton. 9.

pistilate varieties. You must, without fail,
plant both male and female, in rows parall-
el to each other, and not far distant,

In making your strawberry bed, it is a
good plan to use both kinds, because the
female plant does not have to use a great
deal of her strength in producing polen, and
can thus devote her whole strength to plant
growth and fruiting, while the male plant
will supply the necessary polen.

There are numerous kinds of strawberry
plants, as regards the fruit. Some are early;
some are medium, and others are late, and
each grower will J;iave to decide which is the
best for his purpose. Some kinds do well on
one kind of soil, and others flourish on other
kinds of soil. Study the catalogues of the
strawberry plant propagators, but (do not
beheve all they claim for their plants.

If you know of any one who is growing-
strawberries successfully in your neighbor-
hood, ascertain from him what kinds of
plants do best in the region you live in.

If you are not able to get the necessary
information, we would suggest that you

10. Strawberry Culture.

select an early kind of the male species, and
set out one row, which ought not to be less
than 25 feet in length, for a family straw-
berry patch. Then set two rows of Warfield,
then a row of Dunlaps, after which you can
set out a row or two of a late kind.

Some male plants have but little polen,
while others have it in abundance. Be sure
and get good, thrifty plants and be positive
that they are not ^11 -of the female variety.

There is another thing to be considered.
What kind of fruit do you prefer? Remem-
ber that you are going to grow strawberries
for yourself and family. Some plants pro-
duce bright red berries; others are dark red
and some are still different. Some berries
are sweet; some slightly acid, and some are
very acid in their taste. Which do you pre-
fer? " Decide that question before you order
your plants. The propagator's catalogue
will gi^e you full infonriatlon in regard to
the color, taste, sex, and other information
desired.

Do not deal with a strawlerry plant grow-
er unless you have every reason to belie s'e

By V/illiam Boulton. 11.

he is reliable. Pay him his price. Most of
the prices, from reliable grov/ers of strawr
berry plants, range from 25 cents to 75 cents
for 25 plants. By 50 or 100 plant lots they
are less per plant.

, MARKING THE GROUND.

The next thing is to mark th^ ground so
that the plants, when set out, will be in line
two ways.

The rows for the garden patch should be
SO inches apart. For field culture the di&r
tance between the rows is greater, to permit
of a horse being used to draw the cultivator.

In the row, the plants should be set at a
distance of 18 inches from each other, for
the garden patch, which, after the double
hedge row has been made, will leave all the
plants, including the four runner plants and
their mother plant, at a distance of six inr
dies from each other in each row.

'riie marking is done by a v/heeled rig, or
by a sort of sled, which, being drawn over
the ground, leaves three or more marks on

12. Strawberry Culture.

the soil, the length of the plot, and distant
from each other 30 inches, The marker is
then arranged to mark at distances of 18
inches, and drawn at right angles to the 30
inch ones.

Where the marks cross each other is the
place where the plants should be set. That
method arranges your plants in straight lines
both lengthways and crossways.

Several benefits are derived from setting
the plants in straight lines. It is very much
easier to cultivate them. You can also cross
cultivate them until the new plants set, and
it presents a pleasing and workmanlike ap-
pearance. Do not have crocked rows.

For marking the rows for your little gar-
den strawberry patch, a much more simple
plan can be used. Get a garden string and
a stick 18 inches in length. Drive a stake at
each end of the first row and stretch the
string from one stake to the other. Set
the plants right under the string and use the
18 inch stick to designate the distance the
plants are to be set apart. Then move the
stakes 30 inches, and thus continue until all

By William Boulton. 13.

the rows of your little stravv^berry patch are
planted.

TRIMMING THE PLANTS.

You are now ready to set out your straw-
berry plants. In the northern states the
only time to set out strawberry plants is in
the spring, just as soon as the ground can
be got ready.

If the plants are set out in the fall, they
will not have grown sufficient roots to enable
them to winter in safety, therefo're do not
set out your plants in the fall. The spring
is the only safe time to set out the plants
in the northern states.

Your ground is ready, and it is in beauti-
ful condition. The soil is mellow to a depth
of eight inches. It has a fine surface, and
is free from lumps. It has plenty of avail-
able food for the plants to feed upon, and
])elow the surface there is a good storage of
moisture.

The plants have arrived from a reliable
grower, and they are in good condition, hav-

14. Strawberry Culture.

ing plenty of roots and being well protected
with moss to keep them from drying up.

Now indelibly impress on your mind a very
important fact regarding strawberry plants.
Yoa must not let the roots get dry, because,
if the roots get dry, you might as well throw
the plants away, for their chance of living
is very slight. Therefore be exceedingly
careful not to expose them to sunlight or to
the wind.

Get a small basket, one that will hold
about a peck. Place a damp newspaper in
the bottom. Then put in the plants and
cover with another dampened newspaper.

Before you take the plants to the garden
patch, you must trim the plants and roots.
Take a plant in your left hand, grasping it
just below the crown. Notice how long the
roots are. If you were to plant it in the
shape it came from the nursery, you would
n3t be able to set it in the grou ad, without
having the roots bent or doubled. You can
see that fact from the length and number of
tie roots of the thoroughbred plant in your
iiand. It must be trimn:ed.
. With a pair of sher.rs cut cu all the old

Bv William Boulton. 15

runners and dead leaves and i 11 the live ones
except just one. Let the leaf, yo.i leave on
the plant, be the bast one. Now cut off all
the roots about an inch below your hand,
and the plant is then ready to be set in the
ground. The trimming must be done undex'
cover. On no account do it out doors, for
fear of dryir g the roots.

There are two good reasons for trimming
off the ends of the roots. First, i t permits
the planting of the stravf berry plant without
having any of the roots doubled up. Second,
it permits the cut ends to callous and throw
out numerous laterals or feeders. In other
words trimming the roots causes the plant
to grow more feeding roots.

For setting out strawberry plants, there
is nothing better than the strawberry dib-
ble. There are various kinds of dibbles, but
the strav/berry dibble is made of steel, te^n
inches long and four irches vnde, without
including the handle, and weighs nearly two
pounds. The bevel at the lower end is
ground sharp. It retails a ^v> cents.

The use of the dibble permits you to set

16. Slrawberry Culture.

the plant v/ithout withdrawing it. It pre-
vents the dirt from falling back into the
hole you have just made. It does not allow
the soil to dry and it makes a sufficiently
large hole to allow the plant to be easily and
properly set in its place.

If you can not get a dibble, use a spade,
or make one out of a piece of maple board.
The wooden one can be used where the
ground is not heavy clay or stony.

Take the dibble in your right hand and
stick it straight down into the soil, just in
froat of you, to the depth of the blade. It
is easily done, as it hes a sharp point and
edges. Then press the dibble from you and
make a "V*^ shaped hole, which will be
about four inches wide at the top. Keep
the dibble pressed against the dirt to keep
it from falling into and filling up the hole.
Now, with your left hand, get a plant from
the covered basket. Give it a slight shake,
t3 straighten the roots, rrd place it in the
l\ole made by the dibble. Spread the roots
out fan shape, and let them rest against the
^Ide of the hole res rest you. The crown of

Bv Wiiliam Boulton. 17,

the plant must be just above the surface <j-'
the ground. Now remove the dibb'e aiiJl
the dirt will fall against the roots, just set.
Then press the dirt so that it v/iil be nrni
against the roots.

The packing of the dirt against the roots
is very important, as it gives the roots a
better chance to commence feeding, and al-
so improves their ability to get moisture.

One good way to pack the soil about the
roots is to place your feet, one on each side
of the plant, and your v/eight will be suffi-
cient to pack the f^ oil.

The crown must not be buried, neither
must the roots show above the surface.

Roots exposed to the. sun and wind dry
and the result is death to the plant or it is
permanently damaged. Put all the other
plants in the same way and 18 inches apart.

Bending down is not the easiest kind of
work for a grown person, and you will find
it to your advantage to attach a cap to your
knee, of some waterproof material, and then
when you are ready to use the dibble, drop
on one knee.

18. Strawberry Cuiiure.

When the row is finished you can change
labor by taking- a rake and smoothing the
ground along the row last planted, removing
all signs of your feet marks, and leaving the
surface in good condition to form a dust
mulch. Now go on and do the remainder
of the rows in the same way.

When the planting is finished, and it will
not take you very long to set all the plants
in your little patch, you can then* view the
scene with pleasure and satisfaction, know-
ing that you have done good work.

You have prepared the ground properly.
It is mellow and has plenty of plant food and
moisture. You have planted first class
thoroughbred plants, free from disease or
plant v/eakness. There are no weeds to be
seen, and the surface has been raked fine,
forming a dust mulch, which prevents ca-
pilliary attraction from exhausting the under
surface of moisture. Along the various,
rows, at intervals of 18 inches, you can see
the tiny green leaves of the plants.

There is now no more work to be done, for
t.t lcc.st a v/eek, unless a heavy rain ccnies

By William Boulton. 19.

and makes a hard crust on the .rround sur-
face. That crust must be broken as soon
as you can — that is, when the ground hr.s
dried sufficiently to permit the rake or the
wheel hand cultivator to loosen the crust and
restore the dust mulch. The crust breaking-
must not be done when the ground is muddy.

ONLY ONE LEAF.

Why are all the leaves cut off except one?
Why not leave all the foliage on the plant
when it was set in the ground?

The reason for cutting off all the leaves,
except one, is that the young plant will have
to be in the ground for some time before its
roots are able to take plant food and moisture
from the soil, and during that time the plant
has to feed upon itself.

The plant must have a leaf in order to
live, because leaves are as necessary as are
the roots, but the more leaves, the more
substance required from the roots, and there-
fore it is necessary to remove all the leaves

Strawberry Culture. 20.

»except those that are actually needed for the
plant's existence. One leaf will do the work
required, but the plant must have one.

PwEMOVE THE BUDS.

Sometime after planting, j^ou will notice
that the new plants have produced fruit buds
and many of them. They must be removed.
This is very important, for on the removal
of the buds depends the success of your
plants. It must not be neglected.

V*Tiy remove the buds from the plants?

Because the young plants have not suffi-
cient roots and foliage to properly sustain
the plant, grow runners, and also produce
blossoms, polen and fruit.

The plants have been in the ground but a
short time, and what roots they have are
reeded exclusively to maintain a vigorous
grov/th of the plant. To increase its burden,
by rdding the exhausting work of producing
blosscms and fruit, is mali ag it do more
llian it is able to do, and the result is the

By William Bjulton. 21.

same as if you were to make a child do a
man's labor.

The plant would be so exhausted by its
double labor that it would be permanently
disabled. The final result would be that it
would not produce a good crop of fruit and
it would produce v/eak offsprings,

The entire work of roots and leaves must
be devoted, the first year, to making a strong
and vigorous mother plant and her runners.
Therefore do not fail to remove the bud?.
Do so before the buds develop into blossoms

The buds can be easily remioved by pinch-
ing them off with the thumb and forefinger,
or a pair of sheers can be used. The first
plan is the best, and you can do the v/ork in
your little patch in a few^ m.inutes. You can
not get all the buds the fxrst time going over
the patch, and you must afterwards keep
close watch and when you see a bunch cf
the fruit buds, or a blossom, be sure and re-
move them.

The plants m.ust have the exclusive use of
the ground, and their progress mtirt not be
hindered by v/eeds, bads, blossoms o: fruit.

22. Strawberry Culture.

If you are anxious to see what kind of
fruit your plants will bare, you can leave a
few blossoms on two or three plants.

ARRANGING THE RUNNERS.

The next important operation is attending
to the new runners,

You are going to form what is termed the
double hedge row, because that is the best
v^ ay to grow strawberry plants, in order to
get big crops of juicy berries.

The double edge row system of laying the
new plants, consists in allowing the mother
plant to produce but four runners, or new
Ijlants, and all the rest are considered the
same as weeds and cut off.

A double edge row would look as follows
when completed:

12 12 12

. M M M

3 4 3 4 3 4

The letter ''M'' represents the mother
plants and the figures 1, 2, 3, 4, the four

By William Boulton. 23.

new plants. You have now three rows, in-
stead of one, and each will be about six.
inches apart.

The plants, you set out in the spring, are
called the mother plants, and their offsprings
are the runners or new plants. They are to
be arranged so that each plant will be about
six inches from the mother plant, and the
same distance from each other. That dis-
tance apart gives each plant sufficient room
and plenty of territory to draw nourishment
and moisture from. It also allows plenty of
sunlight to get to the plants and fruit, and
yet the plants, if in proper condition, will
furnish sufficient shade for the fruit.

If the plants are allowed to run at random
and fill up the space, there will be such a
great dem.and on the soil for nourishment
and moisture, that they can not be furnish-
ed, and the result wiiT be a lot of small and
undesirable berries.

Some of the runners are long and some
are short, and thus you will have to place
the new plants where you want them, and
not let the runners zet '"^^

24. Strawberry Culture.

The little plant, at the end of a runner,
is called a node, and you will frequently
find that it has difficulty in getting its roots
into tl e ground, especially if dry weather
and cultivation has made the surface dry.
la that case, place the young plant where
you want it, and then place a little dirt on
the runner, just back of the node, to hold it
cown. That mode of anchoring it will keep
the wind from blowing it away from the
spot selected for its home, and wii! also help
it to get its roots into the ground.

If it should happen that some of the
mother plants have died, or been killed by
insects, then let the new plant send out its
runner and thus fill up the gap .

Af ;er a new plant has got its roots firmly
fixed in the ground, it does not need any
n:ore assistance from the miother plant, and
the stem, t?;at connects the two, can be cut
Vvithout doing any injury.

It is not absolutely necessary to cut the
stem and separate the mother from her olT-
spring, but by doing so, you will find it much
more easier to work the pointed hoe be-

By William Boulton. 25.

tween the plants, as the runners, if not cut,
would catch the hoe and prevent thorough
work.

o 0 0

PROPAGATING BED.

If you desire to grow your own plants,
for setting out the next spring, do not re-
move any of the new runner plants at the
ends of the row, for a distance of three or
five feet, according as to the number of
plants you will want. Let both the mother
plants and the new plants make all the run-
ners they can, and when they are through,
the space between the rovv^s will be almost
covered with plants.

From that mass of plants you can dig
what you need the next year.

That part of the strawberry patch would
be the propagating bed or nursery.

During the latter part of the autumn, you
should cease the work of cultivating, for
this reason : Cultivating the ground permits
the air to enter, and it causes the chemical

Str:i^berry Calture.

agents of nature to work vigorously, with
the result of increasing the plant growth.
Now, by that time, your intensive mode of
cultivation has caused a satisfactory growth
of the plants, and what you want now is to
have the plants produce plenty of crowns.

The crowns are produced in the fall, and
they can be greatly assisted by delaying the
plant growth. It is best done by <:easing
cultivation.

You have done such good work during the
summer, that the v/eeds have been kept oiit
of the patch, and there is very httle chance
for the weeds to grow so late in tlie year.
Therefore you can safely cease battling
against the weeds until next spring.

0—1-0 0

MULCHING.

As soon as the ground is frozen, you must
cover the entire patch with straw, which is
the best thing you can use for a protector.
If you can not get straw, get marsh hay,
but keep in mind the plants m.ust be covered.

By William Boalton. 27.

The straw should be about two inches tl.ick
all over the patch.

Freezing alone does not injure the plants.
It is the frequent thawing and freezing in
the spring that does the injury. The thay/-
ing and freezing raises the plants out of the
ground and breaks the roots, resulting in the
destruction or injury to the plants.

Even if they survive, they will be of very
little benefit to you as fruit ^.roducers, and
that is v/hat you have labored so hard for,
plenty of big juicy berries.

There are two other good reasons for cov-
ering the ground wth straw. It serves as a
mulch to keep down the weeds and preserve
the stored moisture, and it has a tendency
to keep the ground frozen until the change-
able weather in the spring is over.

If the reasons stated did not exist, you
would still have to cover the ground with
straw. If you had no straw on the grounct,
every rain, during the fruiting time, would
splash mud over the berries, and you W.d
not like to eat strawberries seasoned witn
sand and mud. Tlierefore the ground must

28. Strawberry Culture.

be covered with straw at berry picking time,
so the fruit will be clean. It is very impor-
tant and must not be neglected.

In the patch that is well mulched with
straw, you can go to it right after a heavy
rain and pick berries free from dirt. Bare
in mind that it is not the proper thing to
pick berries when they are wet, unless you
desire a few for immediate use.

You can not ship wet berries without hav-
ing them spoiled.

Now be sure and cover your entire straw-
berry patch with, at the least, two inches of
straw, as soon as the ground is frozen.

It will not do to cover the plants until the
ground is frozen, as it would injure them,
and be liable to smother them. Wait until
v/inter has put the plants to sleep before you
spread their bed clothes on.

o- 0 0

REMOVING THE MULCH.

When spring comes and the frosts are out
of the ground, just take a look at your
strawberry plants, and if you see them

By William Boulton.

sending out above the surface their ^r^en
leaves, you will know the time for action hais
again arrived.

You must then remove the straw hon
above the plants, so they can see daylight,
but do not remove any of the straw from b -
tween the cows. This is very important,
because the plants can not be expected to
thrive when covered with straw. Beside-s
the danger of smothering the plants, when
beneath a heavy covering, it is necessary to
remove the covering to make them hardy
^nd not get bleached.

The straw can be retnoved from off the
plants with a rake or a fork, but use them
with great care, so as not to pull up any of
the plants. The ground being soft, at that
season of the year, it is easy to pull out a
plant.

Do not walk up and down the rows any
more than is actually necessary, because
walking on the moist ground will pack it
hard.

If you v/ish to loosen the ground, after the
plants have got a good growth, and th:; soil

Stra^Aberry Culture.

is somewhat dried, you can move the straw
from the center of the rows and pile it
against the plants. Then run the cultivator
up the center of the row, but do not go close
to the plants, for fear of cutting roots, and
then replace the straw back to its place.

That will not only loosen and mellow the
ground but v/ill admit the air to set the
chemical agents to work more vigorously.

In the spring you v/ill set out your second
bed, the same v/ay as you did the first, and
then there is but little to do until the time
comes to gather the fruit, except to remove
any weeds that may show themselves.

o 0 o

THE WORK YOU HAVE DONE.

While you are waiting patiently and eager-
ly for the ripening of the big, juicy berries,
you naturally look back, mentally, over the
past year and review your labor.
. You first enriched the soil by covering it
with stable manure to the depth of at least

By William Bot^ten. ei.

one inch, and you furnished an admirable
assistant in the shape of* f ertilizer at the rate
of 400 pounds to the acre, containing three
per cent of nitrogen, seven per cent of phcs-
poric acid, and nine per cent of j^otassium.

You did not need a large per cent of ni-
trogen, because the strav/berry plant does
not require as much mere plant as do many
kinds of vegetables, but it does require con-
siderable phosphoric acid and potash to pro-
duce fine, large and well colored berries.

You then procured fii*st class thoroughbred
plants, that you knew were free from any
disease and came from strong, healthy and
vigorous mother plants, because you obtain-
ed them from a reliable grower. You were
careful not to set out plants that were taken
from fruit bearing beds and were thus of a
weak nature.

You trimmed the plants properly, set
them in the ground correctly, and then kid
them so that the roots were not doubkd or
bent, and that the mellow and v/ell culti-
vated soil was firmly pressed against tliem.

You picked off all the. fruit buds, so that

32. Strawberry Culture.

the entire growth should go towards the
building up of vigorous plants, and you did
not weaken them by making them do more
work than they were able to do in their
infancy,

You kept down the >veeds, so that the
plants would not have to share the supply
of nutriment and moisture with thieving and
unwelcome grafters, and your strawberry
plants had the entire resources of the ground
in their vicinity, to themselves and for their
sole use.

You maintained a dust mulch, and thus
kept your pets from suffering from thirst
during the droughts of summer and fall.

You arranged the runners in double edge
row and saw that the plants w^ere at least
six inches from each other, and then cut off
the surplus runners.

Wlien the ground was frozen, you covered
the entire patch about two inches deep with
nice wheat straw, and in the spring you re-
moved such straw as was directly above the
plants, £0 they would not get bleached, in-
jured or Vv^eakened.

By Yvilliam Boulton.

The last thing j'^ou did was to loosen the
soil and remove v/hat fev/ weeds appeared,
and it does your eyes good to gaze on the
large, well developed, healthy plants, with
their loads of green berries, some of which
are beginning to show a beautiful red color,
a sure sign that the much, longed for time
is near at hand when you can have a royal
feast of the queen of fruits.

Yes, you have faithfully done your part of
the contract and the strawberry plants are
now sure to do their part.

0 0— — o

PICKING THE FRUIT.

And now the time has arrived when you
are to be well rewarded for your care, labor
and expense.

The berries have begun to ripen, and the
big, red, juicy fruits are nestling amjd the
dark green leaves, making a pretty picture,
and bringing to your mind visions of straw-
berries and cream and the big and delicious
strawberry shortcake.

i. Strawberry Culture.

The berries must be picked properly. You
clo not want a lot of bruised and mashed
berries on your table. In picking them do
not squeeze the fruit, because a little press
of the fingers will bruise them; they are so
jiicy.

Take hold of the stem, about half an inch
from the berry, and with your thumb and
fore finger nails cut off the stem. It is very
easily done, and you will scon learn the
kni.ck of picking the fruit in the right way.
Ee careful and do not injure the stem of the
lunch, or you will spoil all the berries on it.

To hold the fruit, when picked, you should
buy or make a carrying tray. It will hold
four cne quart baskets, and is easy to carry
i.bcut the patch.. In one box place*the very
1-^rge ones — the giants of their species, to
I e used as presents to particular friends and
for swell ocean ons at your own table. In
two other baskets place all the rest of the
good strawberries, and in the fourth basket
put the few small ones and those that are
only partly developed, for there will be a
few of the pistilate kind that have not been

By William Bcuiton.

fertilized hy polen from the male phruts,
and are imperfect.

As you plante<I very early, medium early,
late, and very late species of plants, youi'
strawberry season will last for at least 20
days, and during that time you can pick many
quarts of the big, juicy berries every day.

For nearly a month your table will be sup-
plied with the choicest fruit that grows on
the earth, and what will give you added
pleasure, is the knowledge that it is the re-
sult of your own labor. You do not now
have any regrets for the labor and money
expended.

o 0 o

SPECIES DIFFER.

You will also find considerable difference
among the various kinds, in regard to the
way they produce fruit. Some have long
and firm stems, that hold the bunches of
berries well above the ground. Some have
weak stems and their fruit lays on the
straw. Others will have their berries well

Strawberry Culture.

scattered among the leaves and cunningly
hidden amid the foliage. Before you lies a
big bunch of berries. Lift it gently, so as
not to break the stem, and often you will
be surprised to find underneath, where they
were hidden from sight, several big, juicy
berries.

While you are picking your berries, keep
a clcse watch on the many green bunches,
and if there is no straw under them, ^gently
raise them and place straw under. You will
save lots of big berries by so doing. The
big berries are too"delbwo«^a,|3^^|pUe4 te,,
reglect. ' ' " " ;|^j|jj^^^

If a berry touches the gi'ound it will be
spoiled.

You will also find you have assistants in
] icking the fruit. Frequently you w^ill find
V berry that has had a gap eaten into it.
f^licvdng tl e rich, creamy and tempting in-
aide. Some v/ere done by birds and others
])y insects, but the loss is not very exten-
sive. The birds and insects know which are
ti e ripest and l)est berries. They are good
judges of a fine strawberry.

By William Boulton. 87.

PREPARING THE SECOND CROP.

The strawberry fruit season being over,
and a very pleasant and profitable time it
has been for over three weeks, it is new
time to prepare the bed for the second crop.

The first thing to be done is to cut off all
the strawberry plant tops, just above the
crowns. You can do it with a scythe or
a hand grass cutter or sickle.

When it is possible to do so, you let the cut
off tops lay on the ground until they are dry
and then, when there is a brisk wind in th<3
nght direction, you set fire to them and
burn them up. In doing so you destroy a
great many insects, besides laying a coat of
ashes on the ground and destrojing a lot of
inibbish, consisting of the old straw mulch-
ing and the cut off strawberry tops.

The firing must be done v/hen the wind is
blov/ing freshly, so that the fiam.es can pass
quickly over the berry patch and thus do no
damage to the plants. A slow fire would be
apt to injure the crowns of the plants.

In your lot, if the strawberry patch is
close to the house or any building, it would

t 8. Strawberry Culture.

be exceedingly dangerous to fire the mulch
and dry out cut off plants, so you will have
to adopt a different plan. You must rake
up the mulch and dry plants into heaps and
then remove them to a safe place to burn,
and if it is impossible to burn them safely,
then make a pile of them and let them rot.
It is best to destroy the cut off plants, be-
cause if the leaves are infected, the burning
v/ill remove all danger of the disease spread-
ing to your newly set out plants as well as
the old ones.

The next operation is to dig up the ground
between tlie rcv/s to v/ithin a few inches
of the plants. In doing so you will cut oft
many of the old roots, but that will cause no
damage, as they are of but very little use.

If you would examine the roots of the old
I)lants, you would see that they are black
r.nd wirey. v/hile those of new plants are
w^hiteish.

It is necessary to cover the crov/ns to cause
the old plants to grow new runners. -

Now take a rake and pull the dirt from
the center of the rows and cover the crowns

By Vvilliam Boulton. 39.

of the plants about an inch deep with dirt.
The object of covering the crowns with dirt
is to make the crowns throw out new roots,
and it is the only way it can be done.

Taking the dirt from the center of the
rows will leave a slight hollow in the center
of the row. It gives you a good chance to
place manure, not only filling the depres-
sion, but furnishing more plant food, for the
the rains v/ill leach the fertilizing matter
from the manure and send it to the roots in
available shape for the new roots to feed
on and thrive luxurantly.

All you have to do now, until fall, is to
cultivate and keep the v/eeds down. After
the plants are well above the ground, you
must thin them where ever necessary. In
thinning, remove the weakest plants. When
the ground is frozen, you must again cover
the plants with strav/.

o 0— — 0

BEST V/AY FOR A SMALL PATCH
In most gardens the ground is limited in
size, and it may not be possible for you to

40. Strawberry Culture.

spare tliree tracts for the use of the straw-
ben y plants. In that case, do not try to
raise a second crop, but destroy the plants
i^s soon as the first crop of strawberries are
gathered.

Of course you will plant a new bed each
: ear, and you will thus have two beds, one
merely of new plants, from which the buds
I re to be removed, rnd the other patch will
be your one year old fruit bearing bed.

With the one crop system of strawberry
culture, you do not have to go to the labor of
iovering the crowns, or covering the plants
with straw, and there is no danger from the
vrinter, besides the second crop of berries
is not so large or as fine as the first one.

o 0 0

NO THREE CROPS.

No attempt should be made to raise three
crops successively from the same strawberry
bed. After the second crop has been picked
dig or plow under the plants.

Strawberry plants have not vigor enough
to grcv/ three large crops of fine berries.

By William Boulton. 41.

The cne ye^r Fystem of strawberry plar t
( ulture would not do for field culture, as the
expense of setting" out new plants, for or.o
year's fruiting*, on an acre or more, would
be too great to be profitable, and conse-
(juently, if engaged in strawberry culture,
on a larg-e scale, a second crop must be ob-
tained, for financial reasons only.

0 0 o

MISCELLANEOUS MATTERS.

It will sometimes occur that you have not
been able to get your ground ready at the
time your plants arrived from the nursery ,
owing to rains or a delayed and unexpected
addition of winter. In that case you must
heel the plants.

Heeling the plants consists in digging a
"V shaped trench, the depth of which is
about eight inches. Then take the plants
that cam^e from the nursery, remove them
from the package and lay them along one
side of the trench, being very careful to see
that the roots of every plant lays against
the dirt and are straightened out. Thei

42. Strawberry Culture.

bring the dirt back again so that the roots
are covered and only the crowns and leaves
show above the ground. Press the dirt
firmly against the roots.

The plants can remain in the trench for
several days without injury.

If you have a propagating bed, you do not
need to heel the plants, as you can dig them
up when they are wanted.

There is one thing you must not forget.
The plants should be set in the ground be-
fore they have begun to get a vigorous
growth. They should be planted while
somewhat dormant, because if they get well
r.dvanced and are then dug up, it will cause
a delay in growing when set in their nev/
l^ed, as seme of their rescurces will have
Ix^en expended in unnecessary growth. By
planting them while they are dormant, you
get the entire strength of the pknt. The
plants you dig up will, of course, show one
or more leaves, but not very large.

Do not set out a plant in your new bed
ui.less it has one healchy looking nev/ leaf,
'.■ brow r.vvay those that shovr no life.

By William Boaltx>n. 43.

A good healthy bearing strawben-y plaivt
ought to produce one quart of strawberries
each season.

To cover an acre of strawberry plants will
require about three tons of straw.
I Senator Dunlap and Pride of Michigan are
good plants to use, if the hill system is fol-
lowed. They are vigorous plants.

An acre of strawberry plants oiiglit to
bring the grower from $300 to $500 worth
of fruit, from which expenses are to be
deducted.

A wagon load of manure will weigh about
one ton, if there is much straw mixed with
it, and if free from straw it will weigh one
and a half tons. About 15 wagon loads of
manure are required to properly fertilize an
acre of strawberry plants.

There are two other systems of growing-
strawberries, besides the double hedge one.
One is the hill plan, and the other is the
single hedge style.

The hill system consists in cutting oif all
the runners that the mother plant throws
out. It causes the m.other plant to develop

44. Strawberry Culture.

a large plant growth and an increase in the
number of crowns. By the single hedge
row system you will get large berries, but
not as numerous as by the double hedge row
plan,

The plants to set fcr the single hedge row
are those that naturally liave a large foliage,
such as the Pride of Michigan, Donan, Dun-
lap, and others.

The double edge system is the best. If
one plant in the hill or single hedge row is
killed, it leaves a large gap, while the loss
of a single plant in the double edge row is
hardly noticed.

The single rcw^ system consists in allow-
ing the mother plant to throw out only two
runners and one is set on each side of the
mother plant, about six inches distant and
in line, so that the entire row v/ould be but
a single plant wide.

The double row system, when rightfully
com.pleted, makes three separate rows, six
inches apart.

WHITE GRUBS. One of the most dis-
tructive enemies of strawberry plants, is the

By William Boulton. 45.

white grub, the offspring of the June bug.

The destructive pests work under ground
and eat all the roots off the plant and then
go to another and continue their work of
destruction.

There is no way of destroying them with
poison, as they can not be reached.

If your ground is infested with the white
grub, do not set strawberry plants in it, for
to do so would be merely expending your
time and money and getting no reward i i
the shape of big, juicy, berries, unless yoii
can find a way to destroy thenl.

You say your garden is infested with the
white grub$jj. and yet you are determined to
have a strawberry patch. You wonder if
there is not some way to free the ground of
most of the pests so that the damage done
by those left will not be extensive.

There is one way to rid your patch of most
of the v.'hite grubs, but it requires a great
deal of labor.

The white grubs were introduced into your
garden with that old manure you placed on
it £om3 time ago. The June bug prefers an

46. Strawberry Culture.

old manure heap as the best place it can
find to deposit its eggs and breed its young.

In the fall you dig up the ground, you in-
tend to ^et strawberry plants in the follow-
ing spring.

The proper \vay to dig is to sink the shovel
or spade into the ground as far as the depth
of the blade and as straight down as you
can conveniently. Then, use the handle as
a lever to break the ground, raise the dirt
about a foot and let it fall as you turn the
blade of the shovel over.

The dirt falls several inches and the fall
canses it to break into fine pieces, and that
is what you principally dig for; to make the
soil loose and mellow.

Watch carefully when the dirt scatters,
and if there is a white grub in it you will
see it and of course kill it.

In digging, leave an open space in front.
Do not fill up the hole just made by dropping
the dirt back into it. When you have dug a
row, there will be a sort of ditch in front of
you and that you will fill with dirt from the
next digging. It leaves a placo to push i n

By William Boulton. 47.

the leaves, etc., which lies on the ground.

If you have any hens, turn them into the
garden and they v/ill get some of the grubs
that escaped you. The frosts, that will soon
come after the digging, v/ill also help you to
lesson the number of your enemies.

Give the patch another digging in the
spring and watch every shovel full of dirt
as it falls to the ground for any white grub
that escaped the former search.

After the plants are well grown, you may
notice one that does not have an healthy ap-
pearance, and if you take hold of the foliage
and pull slightly, you will raise the plant
from the ground. Look at it and you will
find the roots have been all eaten off. Dig
down in the ground, where the plant was,
and you will find a big v/hite grub. Kill it,
or it will travel to another plant and continue
the vvork of destruction of your pet plants.

PLANT ENEMIES. Rust and blight are
also enemies of the strawberry plant. The
first symptoms of the disease are small browni
spots on the leaves. The plants can be safe-
ly protected from blight by spraying with

48. Strawberry Culture.

the bordeaux mixture. It sliould be applied
l/efore the plants are infested with blight^
as it does not cure but merely prevents.

Spraying wnth the bordeaux covers the
leaves with a thin coating of chemicals and
thus prevents blight. The best is known as
the 4-4-40, and consists of four pounds of
copper sulfate, four pounds of lime, and 40
gallons of water.

The curling up of the leaves indicates an
attack of mildew\ Lack of moisture will
also cause the leaves to curl.

The leaf roller is an insect that rolk the
leaves about it so as to make a shelter for
it to hatch its offspring. It can be prevent-
ed by spraying with kerosene mixture, if it
is done before the leaves are curled.

One of the best cures for blight and other
diseases, is to remove the old leaves, after
the fruiting season is over, and burn them,.

o 0 0

SPRAYING MIXTURES.

Leaf chewing insects can be kept off tho

By William Boulton. 49.

strawberry plants by a spraying mixture of
paris green or arsenate of lead.

Arsenate of lead is the best, as it is not so
liable to burn the foliage. To prepare it for
the plants, take two and a half pounds of
arsenate of lead and dissolve it in three gal-
lons of hot water; stir until it assumes a
creamy appearance and then add sufficient
water to make 50 gallons. Smaller amounts
can be made by using less arsenate of lead.

To make the paris green mixture, take
eight ounces of paris £:reen and two pounds
of lump lime. Now add two gallons of hot
water. ICcxpstirrirg the mixture to pi-e-
vent burning, and when cool, add sufficient
water to make 40 gallons.

Bordeaux mixture is made by putting four
pounds of blue vitriol in a coarse sack and
cmersing it in a barrel in which there are 20
gallons of vvaler. The sack is suspended in
the barrel eo that the bottom of the sack
will just set in the water. Then pour three
gallons of hot water over four pounds of
lump lime. Stir to prevent burning, and
when thoroughly slacked, add enough water

50. Strawlerry Culture.

to ir: ke twenty gallons. When cocl, mix
with the blue vitriol, by pouring, the two
mixtures into a third barrel at the san:e
tim.e.

The bordeaux mixture is not a cure, but a
preventive. It covers the leaves so that
they are copper plated, and thus prevents
blight from damaging the leaves.

You must not spray your strawberry plants
when they are in bloom or in fruit. Poison
is a dangerous article to put on blossoms and
fruit. Spray before the blossoms come.

o 0 o

ROOTS and PLANTS.

Your labor amcng the strav/berry plants,
so far, has taught you that there must be
both a good root s:y-stem and a good foliage.
Both are necessary to make a perfect plant
that is capable of producing a big crop of
juicy berries.

The intensive cultivation and rich fertili-
zation of the ground, has put the soil into a
nrst class condition for the roots to thrive,
and caused nature's chen:ical c gents to take

By William Boulton. 51.

vigorous action in making proper plant foo 1
for the plants, and the ground is so mellow
that the roots can easily force their way
into it. You have watched the foliage very
closely and sprayed them when necessary,
and the result 's strong and healthy plants.

The way the roots and foliage are depen-
dent on each other can be learned from the
following description of the way each per-
forms its allotted and necessary task:

A healthy plant must have vigorous and
healthy roots, and the roots have various
necessary tasks to perform. They act ej&
guys or anchors to prevent the plant from
falling to the ground, or being blown away
by the winds. They pump up water from
the ground and give the plant all the mois-
ture it requires, if such is within reach of the
little rootlets. They collect the right kind
of food out of the earth and convey it to the
plant for its support.

It is therefore necessary that the roots be
in gool working condition to do their work
properly. The plant can not get along with-
out water and ground food, and it depends

52. Strawberry Culture.

to a great extent upon the roots doing- that
absolutely necessary work.

It must be evident to you that, in order
to have the roots able to properly supply the
plant with food and water, their surround-
ings must be all right.

The soil must have sufficient moisture; it
must have plenty of plant food, and that
food must be in shape so that the plant can
digest it and thrive; it must have a soil that
is firm enough to hold the roots so they can
anchor the plant, and the soil must be mel-
low enough to permit the little roots to
easily spread through it.

That condition you have attained by dig-
ging and cultivating the land to make it
mellow; by putting on plenty of barnyard
inanure, and getting it well mixed with the
ground; by loosening the ground sufficient
to permit plenty of air to enter and set the
chemical agents of nature to work to make
the raw manure into available plant food;
by roiling the ground, when necessary; by
making a dust mulch, so as to prevent ca-
pilliary attraction from wasting your supply

By William Boulton. 53.

of water. The conditions you made are just
right for the little roots to spread about the
g-round and do their assig"ned work properly.

A plant, to be thrifty, must also have a
good and healthy foliage. If the leaves aro
withered with rust or other leaf diseases,
or are badly mutiliated by chewing insects,
they are not able to do their allotted work,
and the result is a stunted or dead plant.

Both roots and leaves must be in good
condition to make a healthy and thriving
plant. They work in conjunction in the
follov/ing manner:

The roots spread all around the plant
under the ground. Their number is large,
and the parts that collect the required plant
food and m.oisture, are at the ends of the
roots.

Now, if the barn yard manure, you put
in the ground, is lumped in piles, it is of very
little use to the plants, for in its original
shape it is not available for the little root-
lets to feed upon. If it is available and is
not well scattered, only a few roots could
feed upon it, while the many others would

54. Strawberry Culture.

starve, resulting in the plant being insuffi-
ciently fed. It is therefore absolutely nec-
essary that the manure and fertilizer must
be well mixed with^the soil, so that all the
roots can reach it.

When well mixed with the soil the manure
is soon rotted and the chemical agents of
nature then changes the unavailable fertili-
zers into available food.

Mr. Kellogg, who was a great authority
on strawberry culture, said that raw manure
was poison to the strawberry roots.

If you were to come home v/earied and
feeling that a dainty article of food would
tend to make the world look brighter, and
w'hen you had sat down to supper and the
cook would set before you a big dish of dry
flour, do you think you could enjoy it? You
could not eat it, for it v/ould not be in avail-
able shape for a human being. But let the
cock take that flour and mix it with some
water, butter, salt and other ingredients, and
then roll the dough into the proper shape
r.nd put it into a hot oven and let the heat
perform its chemical operation of changing

By William Boulton. 55,

its composition, and then let the cook place
in it a lot of fine, juicy strawberries, with
plenty of sugar, and then the flour would be
in an available shape--that of a delicious
strawberry short cake. How you would en-
joy it.

It is the same with the raw fertilizer.
The plant can not feed upon it and thrive
until it has changed its form and become
available.

That teaches you hov/ necessary it is that
the soil must be well tilled, well w^atered,
and have plenty of plant food well mixed
with the soil, and also have sufficient heat
and air to set the chemical agents of nature
to work.

The water, mixed v/ith dissolved plant
food, is pumped up by the roots to the leaves
and that shows very plainly to yoi th it the
plant food has to be in perfect condition, so
that the water in th3 soil can dissolve it.
It also shov/s plainly the necessity of having
sufficient water to d ) the work.

On the under side of the leaves there are
hundreds of minute holes, known as pores.

56. Strawberry Culture.

They serve as breathing places and emit all
the water sent up by the roots that is not
needed by the plants.

Experts, who have made a study of the
plants, state that the amount of water pump-
ed up by a plant, during* its life time, will
weigh from 300 to 500 times the weight of
the plant when dry, and that a strawberry
contains 97 per cent of water.

It shows the reason why it is absolutely
necessary to preserve the water supply by
dust mulching,

The leaves have the power of drawing
carbonic acid gas from the atmosphere.
That gas is composed of carbon and oxygen.
The two gasses are then separated and the
oxygen released and sent back into the at-
mosphere, while the carbon unites with the
water and plant food, that Vvas pumped up
by the roots, and forms into starch. The
starch is then changed into sugar and car-
ried throughout the plant, and again be-
comes starch and feeds the plant.

Eeat and light are therefore necessary to
enable the plant to do the work just describ-

By William BouHon. 57.

ed, and it is therefore very evident that the
l^round should have sufficient heat and the
leaves should have plenty of sunlight, other-
wise they v/ill not be able to perform their
work properly.

It is necessary, therefore, that the straw-
berry plants should not be close together, so
as to exclude the sun light from a large part
of the leaves, in addition to the fact that the
roots must have sufficient feeding ground in
order to obtain sufficient nurishment.

o 0 0

IMPORTANT RULES.
You must impress on your mind so strong-
ly, that you will not forget, the following
rules, if you desire to have success in grow-
ing big juicy, strawberries and plenty of
them:

1. You must have good, healthy plants,
produced by a mother that has not bom
fruit and from Vv'hich the buds have been
picked.

2. Your ground must be well cul A vated,
so that it is mellow and well aired.

58. StrawbeiTy Culture.

^ 3. The ground must have plenty of air,
to cause the chemical agents of nature to
work vigorously, but it must not \:e so loose
so as to let capilliary attraction waste the
stored up water.

4. There must be plenty of barnyard
manure in the ground, and it m.ust be well
mixed with the soil, so it will decay easily
and be in reach of all the little rootlets.

5. The plants must be trimm.ed and set
in the ground so the crown is just above the
surface.

6. The buds must te removed from the
new plants, so all the strength of the plant
v/ill be used in the building up of foliage and
roots.

7. A dust mulch must be made by culti-
vating with a cultivator or rake, so as to
preserve the water supply and to prevent
loss of water by evaporation.

8. Only four runners must be allowed to
each mother plant, set in double hedge row,
and all the other runners cut off.

9. The ground m.ust be covered with
I'travr', both to act as a mulch, to keep down

By William Boulton. 59.

the weeds, and to keep the strawberries
clear of dirt.

10. After the fruit has all been picked
off the plants, the tops must be cut off and
burned or removed from the patch.

11. The ground must be kept clear of
weeds, because they use up the plant food,*
pump up the water and shade the straw-
berry plants.

12. After mowing off the old strawberry
leaves, the ground, between the rows, must
be loosened, to m.ake it easy for the new
roots to force their way through, and the
crowns must be covered with dirt to the
depth of about an inch, so that new roots
can shoot out. The plants must also have a
straw blanket for a winter covering.

o 0 0

FIELD CULTURE.

The growing of strawberries, en a large
scale, by the acre, is the sam.e as for the
garden patch, with some exceptions.

Tlie rov7S are placed four feet apart and
the plants are set in the rcw^s 20 inches from

CO, Strawberry Culture.

each other. Horse cultivation will be need-
ed, as it could not be done profitably with a
wheel hoe or hand hoe.

The rows are made wider to allow a horse
cultivator to be used.

Of course a person can not enrich acres
of strawberries the same as can be done with
a small garden patch, for the reason that
sufficient stable manure can not always be
obtained.

But whether on a large scale or sm.all one,
the gi'ound must be vvell cultivated, good
plants used, vreeds kept down, straw mulch-
ing spread on the ground, and the soil sur-
face kept loose, so as to prevent a waste of
moisture by needless evaporation.

Some plants, that thrive on a soil that has
considerable clay in it, would not be a suc-
cess on a sandy soil, the Gandy for instance.

Some bi-sectials have an abundance of
polen, while other bi-sectials are very defi-
cient. In experimenting with new kinds of
strav/berry plants, you miustkeep tliese facts
in mind.

Tne catalogues of reputable growers of

By William Eoulton. 61.

strawberry plants, will give you rll the ir-
forrration you rxeed, in regard to fruit, size,
color of berry, kind cf soil, polen supply,
and many other things you will find necess-
ary to know, if your ideal is to be achieve h

If you should sell any berries, give yoi r
customers good, honest measure, and do not
put a lot of inferior berries in the Lottcm cf
the boxes, and cap off with large and fine
fruit. If you promise a custom.er a quart of
first class berries, fulfill your promise. It
pays to be honest.

After you have set cut all your £lrav:-
berry plants, you should drive a stake at
the commencement of each r^v/ and paint
the name of the plants on it. You will fird
it very convenient the next season in desig-
nating where the different kirds of plants,
you set out, are located. The memory is
sometimes confusing and gives yoi va-ong
information in regard to the kind of straw-
berry plants in the various rows. A glance
at the s'gn poit, at the head cf each row,
tells yju, without delay cr mistake, whet
kind is in that row.

62. Strav/berry Culture.

Do not put strawberries in a tight box of
pail, unless they are for immediate use.

If the berries are left all night in such re-
ceptacles, in a warm close room, they wouUl
be somewhat musty in the morning.

If you want to keep strawberries a day or
two, place them in baskets, through which
the air can pass, and set them in a cool place i
where the air is fresh. '

To get ihe full benefit of the strawberry, j
it should be eaten the same day it is picked. !

During a dry season it may be necessary ;
to water the plants, especially at the time '■
they are learirg fruit, tcciiuse a plant with ;
30 or 50 berries on it needs plenty of water. ■

One good way to supply the moisture is i
to dig a httle trench in the middle of thf..
1^0 ws and run the water from the higher '^
part. It will then soak through the grounv '"
to the strav/ berry plant roots and carry
])lant food with it. '

For the little garden patch use a watering i
can, v;ithcut the sprinkler, and pour the ^
water on the mulching in the middle of the :
rows. '