CULTIVATION 173 



runners, one on each side of the parent plant. If more 

 runners appear they are removed. The plants in the rows 

 should be set from 18 to 20 inches apart, and the rows from 

 30 to 36 inches apart. 



Double Hedge Row System. — In the double hedge row 

 system the mother plant is allowed to develop from four to 

 six plants around her. Should more runners appear they are 

 removed. The grower should see that the plants are evenly 

 distributed over the ground. The original plants should be 

 set from 18 to 24 inches in the rows and the rows should be at 

 least 36 inches apart. 



Fig. 82. — Matted row system. The plants are allowed to grow unmolested 

 until they completely cover the ground. (After R. M. Kellogg.) 



Matted Row System. — This system of planting is widely 

 used. When the plants are grown by this method they require 

 less labor and usually produce larger yields. When growing 

 the plants by this system, all of the runners are allowed to 

 develop and to form a dense mat of plants. Many growers 

 permit the runners to set plants until the row is from 18 to 

 24 inches wide, but this always produces many small, inferior 

 berries. 



Cultivation. — The value of cultivation is not fully realized 

 by many growers. The strawberry plants should be cultivated 

 frequently and thoroughly from the time the berries are 

 picked until frost. Newly set patches must be well culti- 

 vated the first year if a good crop is to be expected the next 



