448 MANUAL OF GARDENING 



further to reduce the number of plants, and after layering from three 

 to four plants between those originally set, to remove all others. 



Strawberries are often set in August or September, but this is advis- 

 able only for small patches or when the soil is in the best possible condi- 

 tion and the highest culture is given. For garden culture, it may pay 

 to secure potted plants (Fig. 290). These are sold by many nursery- 

 men, and they may be obtained by plunging pots beneath the runners 

 as soon as the fruiting season is passed. In August, the plant should 

 fill the pot (which should be 3-inch or 4-inch) and the plant is ready 

 for setting in the plantation. Such plants should bear a good crop 

 the following spring. 



During the first season strawberries should be frequently worked, 

 rather deep at first, but as the weather be- 

 comes warm and the roots fill the ground, 

 tillage should be restricted to a depth of not 

 more than 2 inches. The weeds should never 

 be allowed to get a start, and if the season 

 is dry, cultivation should be so frequent 

 that the surface soil should at all times be 

 loose and open, forming a dust mulch to con- 

 serve the moisture. If the fall is moist and 

 the plantation free from weeds, there will 

 290. A potted^strawberry ^^^ jj^^j^ occasion for cultivation after the first 



of September, until just before the ground 

 freezes up, when a thorough cultivation should be given. In addition 

 to the horse cultivation, the hoe should be used whenever necessary to 

 loosen the soil about the plants and to destroy weeds that may start 

 in the row. 



After the ground has frozen, it will be advisable to mulch the plants 

 by covering the space between the rows with some waste material to 

 the depth of about 2 inches. Directly over the plants a covering of 

 1 inch will generally suffice. The material used should be free from 

 the seeds of grass and weeds, and should be such as will remain upon 

 the beds without blowing off and that will not pack down too closely 

 upon the plants. Marsh hay makes an ideal mulch, but where it can- 

 not be secured, straw will answer. Corn fodder makes a clean but 

 rather coarse mulch, and where they can be held in place by some other 



