STRA W 'BERRIES. 1 8 1 



STRAWBERRIES. 



There are but few persons who do not thoroughly enjoy well- 

 ripened Strawberries, fresh from the garden, with cream ; nevertheless 

 there are some persons to whom, as a matter of peculiarity of habit, 

 a single strawberry is poisonous. As the latter are the exception, the 

 majority are to be provided for : we calculate on having strawberries 

 from the 1st of May till the middle of July, and Alpine strawberries 

 in continuation till the frost destroys them. In Scotland, strawberries 

 begin to ripen a month after they have finished in England, but 

 they are destitute of flavour. 



The varieties of strawberries are legion, and are obtained by sowing 

 seed and by selecting those which are finest. Particular varieties are 

 propagated by runners. The method we adopt is to fill a " sixty " 

 pot with loam and place a runner upon it, and keep it there with a 

 stone. In a short time the runner takes root, when it is shifted into 

 a larger pot, or planted out, as may be required. 



For our first crop we plant about two hundred plants of Keen's 

 seedlings in "thirty-two" pots in rich top spit loam, and carefully water 

 them throughout the summer to ensure good growth and abundance 

 of roots. During the winter the pots and roots are carefully protected 

 from frost. At the end of February the pots are plunged, about 

 one-third of their depth, in the cold frames, keeping them sufficiently 

 apart to ensure the action of the sun upon the leaves. They are then 

 watered with manure water, and the fruit ripens about the 1st of 

 May, and lasts till strawberries ripen out of doors. This first crop 

 of strawberries is sometimes the best of all. Their perfume is pene- 

 trating, and the flavour intense ; but then, if we desire either flavour 

 or odour, the plants ought not to be watered for two or three days 

 before the fruit is picked. This simple plan should be invariably 

 adopted in every garden, as the plants can be grown in the same 

 frame which was used to protect the cauliflowers from the frost : not 

 less than a hundred plants should be grown to secure a good supply 

 of fruit. We rarely force any plants, but the cold-frame strawberries 



