STRAWBERRY 



5591 



STRENGTH OF MATERIALS 



after the first heavy bearing. Rotation of crops 

 is generally practiced by commercial growers. 

 One authority gives this advice : 



The strawberry is a cold-blooded plant, and is 

 never at its best in a very warm place. A north- 

 ern slope is more favorable, other things being 

 equal, than a' southern one. Land that has been 

 grass within a year or two is to be avoided, on 

 account of the probable presence of white grubs 

 in it. So also land that has been in strawberries 

 within a year is liable to contain insect enemies 

 or rust spores. The best results cannot be se- 

 cured where water stands for weeks within a foot 

 of the surface, during the growing season. People 

 are not generally aware also that large trees near 

 a strawberry bed are very injurious, on account 

 of the water they take from the soil. 



The ideal preparation is first to drain and 

 grade the bed, in the fall. Then cover the sur- 

 face with manure ; and in the spring rake off all 

 trash ; and then make fine the soil to the depth 



of six inches If one has any doubt 



about the fertility of land, in the spring, just be- 

 fore the plants come into bloom, apply a few 

 hundred pounds of a good fertilizer per acre. 

 Two hundred pounds of nitrate of soda, when 

 about half the fruit has set, will add to the crop 

 and to the luxuriance of the plant. I am satisfied 

 from long experience that a good coat of manure 

 applied in the winter is one of the best methods 

 to get a good crop of strawberries. Lime should 

 never be used on land for strawberries, nor a very 

 large amount of unleached wood ashes. 



Strawberries require a great deal of water, 

 and when the rainfall is insufficient some form 

 of watering must be resorted to. In a home 

 garden bed this can be accomplished by digging 

 holes every two feet in the row and pouring 

 from one to two quarts of water into each hole. 

 To prevent evaporation, draw a little dry earth 

 over the moistened place. As sprinkling merely 

 moistens the top soil and causes the ground to 

 cake, it is not a satisfactory method of supply- 

 ing water. Moisture can also be conserved by 

 continual stirring of the soil, for this cultiva- 

 tion causes the top layer to act as a mulch 

 and prevents the escape of moisture from be- 

 low. Commercial growers resort to irrigation, 

 by which the water is distributed through the 

 fields in a series of V-shaped troughs. 



Strawberry Enemies. The strawberry is at- 

 tacked by several insect pests and by various 

 fungoid diseases. Among the latter is blight, 

 or rust, which forms small purple spots on the 

 leaves. Bordeaux mixture (see INSECTICIDES 

 AND FUNGICIDES) is a standard remedy for all 

 fungoid diseases. Destruction of affected plants 

 and the burning over of old beds are recom- 

 mended as aids in fighting grub insects. The 

 strawberry weevil, especially troublesome in 

 the Southern states, is a small black beetle that 



preys on buds and blossoms. It may be de- 

 stroyed by applications of white hellebore and 

 kerosene emulsion. Kerosene emulsion is also 



Carbohydrates, 7.4- 



Protem, 1.0 

 Fat, 0.6 



Ash, 0.6 



FOOD ELEMENTS IN THE STRAWBERRY 



recommended for killing the strawberry leaf 

 roller, a small, yellowish caterpillar that attacks 

 the leaves. L.M.B. 



For illustration of other members of the Rose 

 Family, seg page 5081. Consult Fletcher's The 

 Strawberry in North America; Terry and Root's 

 A B C of Strawberry Culture. 



STRAW PLAIT, playt, braided or plaited 

 straw, employed in making hats, mats and 

 numerous small commodities. See STRAW. 



STREATOR, stre'ter, ILL., a city in La Salle 

 County in the north-central part of the state, 

 ninety miles southwest of Chicago and fifty-six 

 miles northeast of Peoria. It is on the Ver- 

 milion River and on the Chicago, Ottawa & 

 Peoria, the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe, the 

 Burlington, the Chicago & Alton, the New 

 York Central and the Wabash railroads. There 

 is an electric interurban line to Chicago. The 

 area of the city exceeds three square miles. In 

 1910 the population was 14,253; it was 14,304 

 in 1916 (Federal estimate). Interesting fea- 

 tures of Streator are a Federal building, a Car- 

 negie Library and parks. Near by are Starved 

 Rock and Deer Park. The surrounding coun- 

 try is agricultural, and near the city are valu- 

 able deposits of coal and clay. The industrial 

 establishments include manufactories of glass, 

 bottles, brick and tile, sewer pipe, automobile 

 accessories, carpet sweepers, metal specialties, 

 garters and banana crates. Streator was settled 

 in 1860, was incorporated as a village ten years 

 later, and became a city in 1882. T.G.B. 



STRENGTH OF MATERIALS, mate'rialz, 

 a term used to indicate the resistance offered 

 by such materials as stone, wood and steel to 

 stresses tending to change their shape. In the 

 construction of buildings it is necessary to se- 

 lect the material which will best withstand the 

 particular stress to be exerted upon it. Ma- 



