818 THE AMERICAN FARMER. 



season, fastening in the first runners by hand if necessary, and narrowing the cultivator as 

 the &quot; matted hills &quot; become larger. This method requires little hoeing, and gives excellent 

 crops. In gardens, smaller &quot;matted hills&quot; maybe made by planting three or four plants 

 together every two or two and a half feet, or planting one plant and allowing it to make three 

 or four runners. 



Another plan for garden or field culture is to place a plant every two feet, with rows 

 two feet apart, and to cultivate both ways, keeping all runners cut off. It is sometimes 

 surprising to see what a vigorous growth, and what immense crops of large berries a single 

 plant will give, when allowed plenty of room and well cultivated. All of the above plans will 

 give good results, and they each have their supporters among different fruit growers or 

 amateurs. 



At the South, in garden culture, I am inclined to believe that where the &quot;hill system&quot; 

 can be practiced, excellent results will follow having the rows fifteen, eighteen, or 

 twenty-four inches apart, as the foliage of the plants will then nearly cover and shade the 

 ground, and less mulching will be required between the rows. The &quot;hill system&quot; is 

 probably preferable in gardens at the North, even on light, sandy soils, provided the plants 

 are kept well mulched. It will be seen that there is here an ample field for experi 

 menting, with its accompanying change of thought and recreation, for business or profes 

 sional men. During the first year, crops of lettuce, dwarf peas, bush beans, spinach, etc., 

 may be raised between the rows in gardens where the &quot;hill system&quot; is followed, and where 

 space is limited. 



To Prevent the Mixing of Strawberry Plants. Varieties only become mixed 

 from the runners intermingling so that the plants cannot be distinguished, or from young 

 plants springing up from seeds. This last, however, seldom happens, and when it does the 

 young plants are usually the same. The intermingling of runners may be prevented by 

 having the different kinds in rows five or six feet apart, and by keeping the cultivator 

 running occasionally during the summer. Another way is to have the different kinds eight 

 or ten feet apart. In the &quot;hill system,&quot; where the runners are kept cut, there is of course no 

 danger of their intermingling, even if the rows are only two or three feet apart. When two 

 or more kinds are planted in the same matted row, then the runners may be kept cut from 

 the plants that join, or may be turned away from each other, or a vacancy of a few feet may 

 be left in the row between the different kinds. When understood, it is a matter that can be 

 easily arranged. 



Cutting Off Blossoms. Most fruit growers, and especially those who grow fruit 

 for market, make a practice of cutting off all the blossoms from newly-set plants, as, when 

 left on, it prevents their making as strong a growth for the main crop of the second year. 

 If any are permitted to remain, it is only upon a few of the strongest plants, and then usually 

 only a single stem or blossom is saved as a sample, though usually the largest specimen berries 

 cannot be obtained except from plants that have been set out at least six or eight months. 

 In gardens where the fruit is wanted, the blossoms may be left on all except the smallest 

 plants; but if planted late in April, or in May or June, the grower will do much better to cut 

 off all except an occasional fruit stem. 



Cultivation. Strawberries should be hoed or cultivated at least three times the first 

 year: once in May, once in July, and again in August. If it can be done every two or three 

 weeks, from early in April until October, then a much stronger growth can be obtained. In 

 the end, it is about as easy to cultivate or hoe the ground frequently as to do it only a few 

 times in the season, as more weeds can usually be killed in an hour, when they are only 

 quarter of an inch high, than in three hours when six inches high and wedged in among the 

 plants. When the hoe or pronged hoe is used, the soil should at times be loosened or stirred 



