NOTES ON TH5 FAUIOUTH STRATOERRY CROP (County Agricultural Agent Bertram Tomlinson 

 subi.iits the following interesting coimnents on the strawberry situation in 

 Barnstable County, V/hat he says about yields in relation to cultural 

 practices is especially significant.) 



Cape strawberry grovvers enjoyed a fairly £;ood harvest through the past season 

 with prices ranging from 60/ a quart vAolesale for early shipnents to a loxv point 

 of 12/ a quart during the height of the berry season. The weighted average price 

 to groovers ranged from 28/ to 31/, depending on the amount of early bsrries shipped 

 in at the higher prices. Ordinarily, the harvest season gets underway about the 

 second v;eek in June and is completed by July 1st, but this year, for the second , 

 season in succession, the harvest carried through the first full week of July, 

 This was because botii 1947 and 1948 were characterized by unusually cold spring 

 v/eather that retarded growth. 



One of the most interesting features about the Capo crop is the tremendous 

 jdeld received by the bettor growers rxnd the rather high average yield for all 

 grovrers. This year v;as no exception, for Jack Saiabade of Teatickot actually 

 shipped 26,000 quarts from his tv/o-acre strav.-berry bed,ujid when he stopped shipping 

 July 9, there seemed to be at least 1,000 quarts still on the vines. Furth.ernorc, 

 most of this crop was shipped in trays v/ith baskets filled to make a high crown, 

 Kad those been packed for shippiiig in orates v.'hero the crowr. is much less, he 

 v;ould have had a much higher count., possibly oO,000 quarts instead of 26,000. 

 Vrtiilo Mr, Sarabadc considers this a good yield, he also speaks of it as a normal 

 yield if one has healthy, strong, well-developed plants, and u good growing season, 

 laany growers in other areas may find it hard to believe this statement, but I knov/ 

 from my close observation of the Gape industry that yields of ten and twel^/e, and 

 e-'/on fifteen, thousand quarts are not crrnsidertd unusual. In fact, one gro';;er this 

 year was so worried about his crop that he put in an urgent plea for a visit to 

 determine the trouble tuid remedy, if any. His field v;as examined carefully, :.Jid 

 although he did have an o.bnormal condition brought on by heavy application of 

 fertilizer in Liarch and some d^mgor fri:x:i the t^/zo- spotted red spider nov/ called red 

 mite, he shipped 9,000 quar.ts from the plot slightly under one acre in size, 



I believe no other area in the country can match the Falmouth area in this 

 consistent high production, end the secret, in my opinion, is the care given during 

 the first season when the beds are being made up. The prevailing custom is for ro-z/s 

 to be planted 5^- feet apart, and the plants are spaced one foot apart. All daughter 

 plants are hand spaced in straight rows, tiiree on each side of the mother plant. 

 In the fall, the beds consist of seven plants across -che rov.' allo'.ving approximately 

 9" of space betv/een plants, Grov/ers are now giving more attention than ever before 

 to cover cropping, and some of tlie better grov.-ers devote two full seasons to cover 

 cropping before setting out the land to strav;berry plejits, 



Vfliile the system of fertilization varies somewhat, the general practice is to 

 apply a band of super-phosphate ai'v-iund each plant a week after setting in the 

 spring, at the rate of 500 or 600 pounds per acre. Tvvo or three v/eeks later, a 

 similai' application is made of 5-10-10 fertilizer or 4-12-4, This is cultivated 

 in and clean culture is practiced to keep all weeds out of the patch. This 

 usually means one hoeing in addition to several cultivations. About mid- July, 

 another application of fertilizer is made, this tiiae between the rov.'s, applying 

 5 to 8 bags per acre, ;Jid this is cultivated in. Rakes are. then used to pull the 

 soil in towards the mother plant to form a bod throe ^r four inches nighcr than 

 the area bet'-voen rows. Runner plaits are handspaced through July aaid AUt,ust if 

 necessary, and all runners not noodod are pulled off. Another application of fer- 

 tilizer, 5 to 7 bags per acre, is applied as u topdressing in o'urly September, 

 and the following spring around the middle to latter part of iiarch, the beds 

 receive cjiother application of fertilizer varying from 5 to 7 hiandred pounds per 



