STRAWBERRY. 71 



the compost is turned over, the less time it will require 

 for its decomposition. 



Leaf mold from the woods or friable muck, with a little 

 addition of pure sand, will answer in the place of sods. 



PREPARATION OF PLANTS. 



When the first runners appear upon plants in the open 

 ground, fill as many three inch pots with the compost as 

 you desire, and set them near the old plants from which 

 you wish to take those for forcing, placing the top of the 

 pot just level with the surface of the soil. When the 

 young plants on the runners begin to show roots, place 

 one on the soil in each pot, and lay a stone or a little soil 

 on the runner to keep it in its place. 



The end of the runner should be pinched off just beyond 

 the plant, so that it will receive all the nutriment furnished 

 by the parent. When the young plant has become rooted 

 in the pot, it should be taken up and the runner cut off 

 close to the plant ; then set the pots away in an open and 

 airy place for a few weeks, being careful not to let them 

 suffer for the want of water. Set them on flat stones, 

 bricks or boards, so that no worms can have access to the 

 pots through the hole in the bottom. 



When the plants have remained in the pots a few weeks, 

 they should be shifted into larger ones. Some prefer to 

 place them in five-inch pots, and afterwards shift into six 

 or eight-inch pots, in which they are to be fruited, while 

 others make but one shift from the small pots. It will 

 make but little difference, as either plan will work well if 

 carefully done. The ball of earth containing the roots 

 should not be broken when re-potting, but preserved 

 whole. A few pieces of broken pots or brick should be 

 placed in the bottom of these large pots for drainage. 



There are a few gardeners who assume that drainage is 

 of no importance, but from my own experience of several 



