STRAWBERRY VARIETIES 431 



over all with a light coat of good manure, which the winter rains 

 will leach down into the soils. The result of the fall clipping and 

 enriching will be an early and strong start of the plant in the spring, 

 and a most abundant fruitage. 



Duration of the Plantation. Strawberry plants well cared for 

 and not visited by insect pests, have a long, productive, and prof- 

 itable life in California. Twelve-year-old plants are sometimes 

 reported as still producing abundantly. It is customary to count 

 from five to eight years as the profitable life of a plant, though 

 some growers replant after two or three bearing years. The ef- 

 fective duration depends directly upon preventing growth of new 

 plants and too close matting of the rows. 



Varieties of the Strawberry. Though all new varieties are 

 tried by California growers, and quite a number may be consid- 

 ered successful either for market or for home use, only a very few 

 may be said to be widely grown. In the Watsonville district, 

 which largely supplies San Francisco, the Melinda, which some 

 growers hold to be indistinguishable from the Dollar, was chiefly 

 grown, but Banner is displacing it and Nick Ohmer and Klondyke 

 gaining ground. In the southern Alameda and Santa Clara district 

 the Banner was at first grown exclusively by some large growers, 

 but is gaining ground in other districts. In the Florin district, 

 near Sacramento, growing berries to ship all through the northern 

 States of the coast and eastward to Colorado, the Dollar is grown 

 almost exclusively, with a few Jerseys for extra early. Other vari- 

 eties which do well in the interior valley are: Longworth, Lady 

 Thompson, and Tennessee Prolific. In the Fresno district, Mar- 

 shall and Jessie are chiefly grown. 



In the districts near Los Angeles, the Brandywine prevails. 

 It is best for shipping and is held to be sweeter than at the east; 

 and next to it, in the commercial fields at the south, are Excelsior 

 and Klondyke. The Arizona Everbearing is declining in popu- 

 larity, although still favored by some growers in Southern California. 



Three old kinds which still hold favor for home use and local 

 sale are the Longworth Prolific, the Sharpless, and the Monarch 

 of the West. The Sharpless is the most widely grown ; the Mon- 

 arch shows better size and color in Southern California and on the 

 Sierra foothills than in the regions adjacent to San Francisco, 

 although it is still grown therein to some extent. The Longworth 

 is an old favorite, early, productive and hardy, and its style has 

 become very popular in the markets. Wilson's Albany also holds 

 favor. 



It has been demonstrated that varieties show marked difference 

 in behavior in different soils and situations. In planting for market 

 or home use the planter will be safer in making his largest planta- 

 tions of the varieties commended by leading growers and well 

 informed nurserymen, and at the same time he should put out 

 experimental plants of other varieties. Mr. H. A. Hyde of Wat- 

 sonville is getting some surprising results by selecting distinctly 

 prolific strains of Nick Ohmer, Klondyke, Magoon and Melinda. 



