. 1877.] ESSAY ON THE STRAWBERRY. 21 



the ground nearest the plant being, by this process, made as it should be, 

 a little lower than the surrounding surface. In this manner I have set 

 out 5,000 plants in a day with my own hands. Vigorous plants set in 

 this way, freshly transplanted, will nearly every one live and succeed. 

 Plants should be set out very early in the spring. I have no faith in fall 

 planting. Properly set out they will very seldom need any watering. If 

 set out late in the season it should be done on a cloudy day or late in the 

 afternoon. After the field is planted the ground should be kept entirely 

 clear from weeds, and all blossoms and runners should be pruned off the 

 first season. 



Wood ashes will be found one of the most valuable top dressings that 

 can be appUed. Late in the fall when the ground has become frozen, a 

 mulch of pine leaves, hay or straw, should be applied, covering the whole 

 ground. If the strawberry growers would unite in buying salt hay, 

 probably there is no other material that is superior for this purpose. The 

 following spring I should not remove the mulch, but only open a small 

 space for the crown of each plant. This mulch will serve three purposes. 

 It will keep the ground moist, prevent the growth of weeds, and keep 

 the fruit clean as it ripens. But to secure the most bountiful crop per- 

 haps the most important hint has not yet been suggested. 



When President Wilder, our eminent horticulturist, was asked how 

 he succeeded in growing such beautiful strawberries, he replied, " three 

 " things are necessar3^ First, you should give them plenty of water. But 

 " this will not answer unless you observe the second requisite; viz: Give 

 " the plants a little more water. But with all this labor and care you will 

 "fail in obtaining the best results if you fail in the third condition, viz: 

 " Give the plants a little more «jaier." This I believe to be the grand secret 

 of success. How it can be accomplished is an important question for us 

 to discuss. 



After the fruit has been carefully gathered the tops of the plants may 

 be cut off with a scythe and allowed to remain on the ground a few days, 

 until the new shoots start up from the stools, (otherwise the hot July 

 sun may kill the plants) then the whole ground should be raked over, 

 and all mulch and rubbish removed and stacked up, ready for another 

 winter's use. 



For the remainder of the season the ground should be thoroughly cul- 

 tivated and manured, and my practice has been to continue to keep off 

 all runners as before ; yet many prefer to let the runners take root the 

 second season, and by covering the ground with plants, secure one more 

 very large crop (although of rather smaller berries than when grown in 

 hills) , and after that plough them up and reset. 



In the cultivation of this fruit, as in all others, remember the better 

 4 



