Pot Grown Plant. 



Strawberry Culture. 267 



live-stock. If the first, most vigorous runners from young 

 vigorous plants that have not yet been weakened by fruiting, are 

 used, and this method of propagation is continued for some time, 

 the strain will be improved, and stock of such strain is likely to 

 give better results than the later, and 

 less vigorous runners taken from old 

 plants, debilitated by years of fruit 

 production. The grower also has to 

 take in consideration that there are 

 sorts with perfect flowers, and others 

 with imperfect flowers. The former 

 possess both male and female organs 

 of reproduction, and are called her- 

 maphrodite or bi-sexual, sometimes 

 (although erroneously) staminate 



sorts, and will produce fruit, even if a single plant or variety is 

 standing all by itself. The imperfect or pistillate varieties have 

 a perfect pistil (female organ), but no stamens, or these but imper- 

 fectly developed. Consequently they cannot 

 be depended upon to produce fruit, at least 

 not in profusion and perfection, unless planted 

 in proximity to varieties that have perfect 

 stamens (male organs) and can furnish pollen 

 (the principle of fecundation) to the pollenless 

 pistillate sorts. Purely staminate plants 

 Perfect Strawberry those having no pistils and always barren 

 Blossom. are more rarely met with. In buying and 

 setting plants these facts must be kept in 

 mind, and whenever imperfect varieties, which usually are the 

 most fruitful, when pollen is furnished by others, are planted, a 

 row or two of some suitable and perfect sort 

 should always be alternated with every four 

 or five rows of the pistillates. I might make 

 this statement still stronger by saying that lack 

 of proper pollen is the chief cause of barrenness, 

 or of improper development of seed or fruit, in 

 many plants. Putting many varieties in close 

 proximity usually seems to prove beneficial to 

 all, with strawberries as well as with many other bush and tree 

 fruits. 



SELECTION OF VARIETIES. No " best " variety can be named. 

 One that is doing elegantly in one locality often turns out to be 

 an utter failure when transferred to another location. Each sort 

 seems to have a combination of soil, climate and treatment that 

 suits its nature best, or special requirements of its own. The 

 grower must try to learn what sort or sorts are best adapted to 

 his surroundings. Those giving the best results in one's nearest 



Pistillate 

 Blossom. 



