244 Strawberry-Growing 



off the field with a horse rake. \Mien strawberries are 

 grown between rows of young fruit-trees, do not risk 

 burning. Should a heavy rain fall immediately after 

 mowing, and prevent burning for several days, the plants 

 may start to grow again ; if so, omit burning that year. 



Burning is more popular in the North, where much 

 mulching material is used, than in the South. Except 

 when insects or diseases are serious, equally satisfactory 

 results can be obtained with the plow, harrow or hoe, 

 and the humus-making material saved for the soil. 



Reducing the number of plants. 



Destroying the tops of plants does not remedy the chief 

 defect of old beds. In matted or spaced rows it is de- 

 sirable, also, to reduce the number of old plants, so as to 

 make room for the development of runners. Local cli- 

 mate, the plant-making ability of the variety, the stand 

 secured the first year and the age of the plantation deter- 

 mine the number of old plants that should be retained. 

 The older the bed, the fewer runners it will make. In 

 wet seasons, the plants of free-running varieties may be 

 cut out to approximately the same distance apart as when 

 the field was planted ; in very dry seasons it may be 

 necessary to leave nearly all the old plants in order to be 

 sure of a full stand. 



After they are mowed, the rows are barred off, or 

 narrowed to strips four to eight inches wide, so as to leave 

 middles of tilled land in which the new plants may root. 

 A light turning plow, bull tongue, double shovel, cultivator 

 or disk harrow may be used to advantage. A disk harrow 

 set to the desired width, with two or three of the center 

 disks removed from each gang, is an efficient tool for this 

 purpose when weighted heavily. Two rows are cut at a 



