PACKAGES, TRAINING, POLLINATION 91 



the Crescent, in 1876, gave a new lease of life to broadcast 

 training, since this variety is remarkably prolific of run- 

 ners; but Crescents produced in this way were too in- 

 ferior to justify the practice. 



Since 1880 there has been a steady drift towards fewer 

 plants per acre and more uniform spacing. The first 

 step was to narrow the matted row. Soon after broad- 

 cast training had been superseded by the matted row it 

 was noticed that the best fruit was produced by the out- 

 side plants ; these were least crowded and were benefited 

 most by the tillage between the rows. The effort to 

 secure a larger number of these productive outside plants 

 was expressed in two ways; the distance between rows 

 was reduced from five or six feet to about three feet, 

 and each row was narrowed accordingly. There has 

 been a gradual widening of the tilled area between rows 

 and a corresponding reduction of the area occupied by 

 plants. The matted rows of 1865 were about five feet 

 wide, with narrow foot paths between; those of today 

 hardly average fifteen inches wide, with room for a culti- 

 vator to run between them. 



This restriction of the width of the matted row, together 

 with various means of removing surplus plants in the row, 

 has made it possible to produce a heavy yield of good 

 fruit under this method of training ; but those who have 

 sought to produce the highest grade of berries have been 

 forced to approach hill training even more closely. The 

 hedge-row, which has been supposed by some to be of 

 recent origin, was used under intensive culture before 

 1865. J. B. Moore, a market gardener of Concord, Mas- 

 sachusetts, grew a considerable acreage in triple hedge- 

 rows about 1870.^ He set two runners from every 

 1 Trans. Mass. Hort. Soc, 1870, p. 28. 



