THE QUARTER ACRE STRAWBERRY PATCH. 



BY T. C. ROBINSON, OWEN SOUND. 



HOW CAN A STRAWBERRY CROP BE SUCCESSFULLY PRODUCED ON A SMALL 



SCALE ? 



^HIS is a burning question. Our 

 cities and large towns are well sup- 

 plied with berries, particularly in 

 the Western Peninsula of Ontario, 

 and the business of supplying them is well 

 done, if not overdone, by large growers in 

 the Oakville and Niagara districts. But 

 there are many villages and small inland 

 towns that are very poorly supplied, and the 

 price is consequently high. Such markets 

 offer the largest profits to the small grower, 

 and many a family with only a large garden 

 and small means might be greatly assisted 

 in the battle of life by raising one or two 

 thousand quarts. Hitherto such parties 

 have been hindered not only by lack of 

 familiarity with the best methods of culture, 

 but by the first cost of the plants. Many, 

 doubtless, would be glad to try it if they 

 could know how easily the strawberry can 

 be raised, how well certain varieties will 

 bear with very little manure, and especially 

 if they knew of some way of applying "com- 



mon sense and elbow grease " so as to re- 

 duce the preliminary outlay. 



Besides this class there is the multitude 

 who, finding the price of berries so high in 

 districts remote from the great fruit-growing 

 districts, would like to grow an abundant 

 supply for family use. It is to these classes 

 that the following plan may be of special 

 interest. 



First Then as to SolL — Any good garden 

 soil will raise good strawberries. A good 

 clay loam will perhaps raise the largest crop, 

 but the fruit will not be early, the soil will 

 require more labor to keep it nice and loose, 

 and it must be free from standing water at 

 all seasons, except just after a shower. A 

 good gravelly loam will often give remark- 

 able results both as to amount of crop and 

 size and quality of fruit. Probably the best 

 soil for the purpose is a well-drained loam 

 containing sand and clay in about equal 

 quantities. But even the lightest and poorest 

 sand or gravel that ever grew corn or white 



