CHAPTER VII. 



PREPARES^G AND ENRICHING THE SOIL. 



T T AVING from choice or necessity decided on the ground 

 on which our future strawberries are to grow, the next 

 step is to prepare the soil. The first and most natural ques- 

 tion will be, What is the chief need of this plant? Many 

 prepare their ground in a vague, indefinite way. Let us 

 prepare for strawberries. 



Whether it grows North or South, East or West, the 

 strawberry plant is the same, and has certain constitutional 

 traits and requirements, which should be thoroughly fixed 

 in our minds. Modifications of treatment made necessary 

 by various soils and climates are then not only easily learned 

 but also easily understood. 



When asked, on one occasion, what was the chief re- 

 quirement in successful strawberry culture, Hon. Marshall 

 P. Wilder replied substantially in the following piquant 

 manner : — 



" In the first place, the strawberry's chief need is a great 

 deal of water. 



'' In the second place, it needs more water. 



" In the third place, I think I would give it a great deal 

 more water." 



The more extended and full my experience becomes, the 

 less exaggeration I find in his words. The following strong 

 confirmation of President Wllder's opinion may be found 

 in Thompson's " Gardener's Assistant," a standard English 

 work : — 



