STRAWBERRY CULTURE. 657 



I. N. STONE, 



FORT ATKINSON, JEFFERSON COUNTl. 



Strawberry Culture — Soil — Transplanting — Cultivation — 

 Gathering — Marketing. 



PREPARING SOIL. 



I select good corn land, that is free from clover and sod. 

 I plow deep late in the Fall, or, if I do not plow in the Fall, I 

 plow as early in the Spring as possible. If I plow in the Fall, 

 I either plow again in the Spring or loosen deep with a culti- 

 vator, then harrow well and plank it. I mark the rows three 

 and a half by one and a half feet, with a wheelbarrow or a 

 marker that will not make a deep mark, or guess at the dis- 

 tance in the row while transplanting. For garden culture I 

 have the rows two and a half by one and half feet. 



TRANSPLANTING. 



Early Spring is the best time to transplant strawberry 

 plants, north of latitude forty-two degrees. If I set in the 

 Fall, I must wait until new plants get well rooted. I never 

 set any but new plants, and I have roots fresh dug or well 

 soaked in water. I put one or two hundred into an old pan, 

 taking care to keep the roots straight ; then I take a dibble, 

 made of wood, iron, or steel, and am ready to commence set- 

 ting. I keep the plants by my side, and use the edge ot the 

 dibble to brush the dry dirt from the place where the plant is 

 to be set ; then I thrust it into the earth and work it back and 

 forth until the hole is large enough to receive the roots ot the 

 plant when spread out fan shape. I use the point of the dib- 

 ble to assist me in getting the roots into the hole straight, 

 holding the plant close to the side of the hole next to me, and 

 keeping the crown even v/ith the top of the hole, I place the 

 point of the dibble about two inches in front of the plant, and 

 thrust it into the earth with the point inclined toward the bot- 

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