182 ABC OF STRAWBERRY CULTURE. 



careful pickers. The average boy would be sure to set his foot 

 right square on one of these immense bunches of huge berries. 



Now, mind you, the Great American will never be popu- 

 lar as an all-purpose berry, because it is " too soft ; " and dur- 

 ing very wet seasons they might, like the Bubach, rot before 

 ripening. But for home use, or for selling right around among 

 your neighbors, I believe I should call it one of the best. 



Before the sun went down that night I had some of our 

 best creek-bottom ground prepared ; and before another day 

 had past, some Great Americans were taken up with a lot of 

 soil adhering to the roots, and transferred to our rich ground. 

 Of course, we had to take old plants, because they have not 

 commenced to send out runners yet ; but we are going to make 

 plants this fall, and get out a plantation that will bear fruit 

 next year you see if we don't. 



The above berry, described as the Great American, we de- 

 cided later on was the Sharple c s. The old plants I took up 

 while they were in full bearing, had the fruit all picked off, and 

 in a little time they sent out runners. These runners were ta- 

 ken care of, and gave a crop of immense berries the very next 

 season, not quite as large, however, as those in the bed of my 

 neighbor ; and although I have tried almost every year since 

 to get such a crop as they had, with the best of care and with- 

 out any care at all, I have not succeeded. Perhaps the season 

 has not been just right for that method of treatment, and may 

 be his ground is peculiarly fitted for it. The bed was not a very 

 large one, but the paths were all grown up full of plants, so 

 there were no paths at all. The leaves were immense in size, 

 and the berries were borne on long stems. I presume the plants 

 stood from six to ten inches apart in this bed. There had been 

 a big crop of fruit on it the year before, and then it was allow- 

 ed to stand, thinking it might give part of a crop another year. 

 I think we paid him 10 cts. a quart for the remainder of the 

 crop after I found the bed. We sold them without trouble for 

 14 to 15 cts. on account of the size of the fruit ; and that was 

 when common berries were selling from 5 to 10 cts. When 

 every thing is favorable I still consider the Sharpless one of the 



