28 . MINNESOTA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



Second. — Those who are rather careless and neglect their farm 

 work to attend to their berry patch, and neglect their berry patch to 

 attend to their farm work; hence they raise quantity at the expense 

 of quality, and they too, come out on the wrong side of the ledger. 



Third. — Those who follow this plan: that in order to grow for 

 profit we should aim to grow the very best -for the best is none too 

 good for the labor and expense in growing it. There is little or no 

 profit in small and inferior fruits of any kind. The markets seem 

 to demand larger and brighter colored fruits each year, hence we 

 should plant only the very best of a few varieties; a much more 

 uniform grade can be offered. 



The best tiine to plant is in the spring, as soon as the ground will 

 do to work. Good plants as much as anyone thing effects the quick 

 start and vigorous growth of the strawberry crop. 



The strawberry crop was almost a failure in this part of the 

 countr}' the past season. We were troubled more than usual by 

 berries not developing. They seemed to draw together at the end'and 

 were knotty and small. I think this was not the lack of pollen, for 

 the perfect flowering varieties were as bad as the pistillates. I 

 think this was caused by the hot, dry, southern wind, which cooks the 

 pollen when in full bloom. 



The stride that the horticulturists are making will soon bring- 

 them far on the road to success. 



STRAWBERRIES. 



CAN A FAR-MEK KAISE THEM? 



GEO. H. PRESCOTT, ALBERT LEA. 



(Read at tlie annual meeting of the Southern Minnesota Horticultural Society. 



The Minnesota farmer can raise almost anything, even a mort- 

 gage, if he really sets about it. 



First, it is necessary to have good plants. A good plant should 

 be large, with plenty of roots, and be not over one year old. Next, 

 the land should be in proper condition. The best preparation I 

 have found for strawberries is a piece of corn land that was kept 

 very clean tlie jear before. Do not plow that land again before 

 jou set the plants. It will throw up the weed seeds turned under 

 the year before and bother you the whole summer. 



What kinds shall the farmer plant? Some staminate kind, Wil- 

 son, if his land is heavy or claj^ subsoil, Glendale, if light or gravel 

 subsoil. The Wilson on sandy soil does not grow high enough 

 to keep the fruit out of the sand, while the Glendale will grow 

 tall and be better than on heavy land. 



When to plant. As soon as the frost is out of the ground, set 

 your plants Strawberry plants will grow in cooler weather than 

 some other i^lants and need plenty of moisture. Early plantings 

 get the earlj' rains, in fact, all that comes. To set the plants take a 

 garden fork and commence between two rows of corn stubble. 

 Insert the fork at an angle of fort3'-five degrees. Fusli the fork 

 from )ou enough so that another person can jMit the roots of 



