Winter Meeting. 325 



'^5 



seasonable, and the proper treatment has l^een given will be 20 to 24 

 inches in width. 



Now, instead of putting the rolling coulters on the cultivator and 

 treating your plants as you would an Osage hedge that was getting 

 too high, stop^the cultivator and watch conditions closely. Do not 

 concern yourself about the plants that form in the spaces. There is 

 something more important for 3'ou to do just now. This is the time 

 that the average grower makes a vital mistake. This is the time- 

 that the writer in the early days of his strawberr}' experience care- 

 fully cultivated between the rows and watched for every little weed 

 to appear, but failed to note that his plants were getting thicker 

 and thicker, now two inches, now an inch, now half an inch apart, 

 now two, no three plants in depth all over those rows. They were 

 beautiful to look upon, but, alas, yielded a very large crop of disap- 

 pointment only. 



I was partly excusable for this mistake as in my search for in- 

 formation on the subject of strawberry growing I think all writings 

 consulted emphasized the importance of watching the weeds to de- 

 stroy them as they appeared. 



Let me emphasize the necessity of watching the plants that they 

 do not pile up too high during the months of September and October. 

 My plan is to watch the plants closely, and as soon as I find a sufficient 

 number of them firmly rooted, go over the rows with light four or 

 five tined potato diggers, scratching across the rows and tearing out 

 all weak plants that are running in profusion in every direction. It 

 will be necessary to pull many of them off with the hand after draw- 

 ing them out into the spaces. Men, to do this, should have good 

 judgment, and to be valuable, must keep their minds on the work. 



One thorough treatment may be enough, but if the weather is 

 very wet, two will be needed. 



This brings us along to, say November ist. Now get the cul- 

 tivator again and destroy the plants between those rows, cutting 

 them down to the width we left them when cultivation ceased. Fin- 

 ish the treatment of the season by following with hoes carefully, re- 

 moving all mutilated plants and all of those innocent-looking weeds 

 which come up in the fall, grow all winter and blossom and produce 

 seed at the time the strawberry ripens its crop. Their name is legion, 

 and they sometimes do great injury if not removed. 



Now you can leave the strawberry fields for a few months unless 

 you linger to put up the sheds that will be needed in the spring. 

 Mulching for best results should be done in the spring to avoid the 

 strong growth of wheat, cheat, etc., which invariably follows the ap- 



