STRAWBERRY CULTURE. 



STRAWBERRY CTTLTtJRE. 



The Strawberry is, and deserves to be, the most ex- 

 tensively cultivated of all our small fruits. Produc- 

 tive, easily cultivated, and equal to any fruit in flavor 

 and general usefulness, it would be strange were it 

 not familiar to every garden. Neither has it lacked 

 notice in horticultural literature. Much valuable in- 

 formation has of late years been disseminated relative 

 to its history and management ; and although there 

 are various opinions held, with reference to its bo- 

 tanical distinctions, its treatment as a fruit-bearing 

 plant is reduced to a matter of certainty. On the 

 (ormer question it is not my present purpose to enter, 

 but beg to offer a few remarks in regard to its gener- 

 al treatment and culture. 



When we consider the habit of growth, season of 

 ripening, and permanency of the strawberry plant, 

 we are led to the conclusion that the soil intended 

 for its growth should receive the most thorough pre- 

 paration. Its dwarfj spreading growth is not favor- 

 able for after improvement of the soil, farther than 

 what can be derived from applications on the sur- 

 face. Ripening at a period which, in nine seasons 

 out of ten, is characterised by deficient moisture in 

 the soil, and extreme atmospheric aridity, suggests 

 the idea of allowing the roots a deep and rich medium 

 where they can luxuriate uninfluenced by surlace 

 temperature. And when we farther consider that a 

 strawberry plantation should produce at least three 

 crops before removal, we may safely aver that the 

 preparation of the soil in the first instance is of the 

 utmost importance. 



This leads us again to the foundation of all perma- 

 !ient improvement, subsoil culture. Trench the soil 

 at least 18 inches in depth, incorporatiug a heavy 

 dressing of well-decomposed manure, and if the soil 

 is clayey, or adhesive in its nature, an application of 

 charcoal dust will be highly beneficial. As a cor- 

 rective for clayey soils, charcoal cannot be too high- 

 ly recommended. In a physical view, it renders the 

 soil porous and permeable to gases, and chemically, 

 its absorbing and disinfecting properties are equally 

 valuable, the amount of ammonia and other gases 

 which it is capable of absorbing, giving it value as a 

 fertilizer. On a soil thus treated, there will be no 

 danger of a defective, half ripened crop, or the plants 

 burning out, as frequently happens on poor shallow 

 soil, for although the strawberry is a jilant of small 

 structure, I have traced the roots, in favorable soils, 

 a distance of three feet from the surface. 



There are various methods of arranging the plants. 

 They may be placed in rows thirty inches apart, the 

 plants standing one foot from each other in the. row, 

 or, planted in beds six feet wide, thus admitting of 

 four rows, the plants fifteen inches apart. Some strong 

 growing varieties require more space than the above 

 to attain their greatest perfection, and such as Bos- 

 ton Pine, Goliah, &c., do best in hills thirty inches or 

 three feet apart. The best method for garden cul- 

 ture is the first-mentioned, keeping between the rows 

 clear of weeds and runners, unless the latter are re- 

 quired for a new plantation, which, on the principle 

 of rotative cropping, should be done every third or 

 fourth year, as the plants seem to retain their vigor 

 and fruitfulness. 



Young plantations may be set out at various sear 

 sons ; either at midsummer, fall, or early spring. As 

 early as young plants can be obtained, say about the 

 last of July or beginning of August, is the time for 

 midsummer planting. Choosing a cloudy day for the 

 operation, the plants immediately on removal should 

 have their roots preserved by dipping them in a pud- 

 dle. This system of encasing roots with a coat of 

 mud, is very useful and elBcient, and may be practised 

 in the transplanting of all young plants in dry weath- 

 er, as it obviates, in a great degree, subsequent atten- 

 tion in watering. A thin covering of shortgrass, or 

 litter of any description, should now be laid about 

 the young plants. Planted thus early, a good growth 

 will follow, the plants mature buds before winter, and 

 produce an average crop the following season. 



Fall planting is frequently practiced, and if the 

 plants are set out eariy, not later than the middle of 

 September, they will root and get somewhat estab- 

 lished before winter; but the alternate freezing and 

 thawing of the soil during winter, throws them out 

 of the ground, unless the soil is of a sandy nature 

 and protected with a covering of litter. Instead of 

 planting them out permanently in the fall, it is more 

 advisable to place them a few inches apart in a shel- 

 tered spot, where they can be preserved by a cover- 

 ing of leaves all winter, and planted out early in 

 spring. This practice not only affords time for a 

 suitable and thorough preparation of the ground, but 

 the plants being carefully lifted with small balls of 

 earth to their roots, will produce a more uniform and 

 vigorous plantation, than those permanently planted 

 out in the fall. 



Mulching is a very material consideration in straw- 

 berry culture, more particularly in spring and fall. 

 Covering the ground between the plants with hay, 

 leaves, Arc, in spring, preserves the fruit while ripen- 

 ing, and retards the escape of moisture from the soiL 

 Li'the fall a covering of short manure will .=ierve the 

 double purpose of enriching the soil and sheltering 

 the plants during winter. Tan bark has been much 

 recommended for this purpose, and has been pro- 

 nounced a special manure for the strawberry. I have 

 used it largely for many years, but have not discover- 

 ed its utility as a manure ; its protecting qualities 

 cannot be questioned, and :nay be usefully employed 

 as a substitute — but not equal to a mixture of partly 

 decomposed leaves and stable-yard manure — for win- 

 ter covering. 



The long list of named varieties, and the constant 

 additions to the list, renders it diSicult to make a 

 choice selection; some catalogues enumerate over 

 100 named sorts. Having tested at least half that 

 number, I prefer and would recommend the three fol- 

 lowing as combining all that has been attained in this 

 fruit: 



1. For flavor alone. Burr's Pine. 2. For size and 

 flavor, Hovey's Seedling, and for size, M'Avoy's Su- 

 perior. These, with a few plants of the Cushing, or 

 Buist's Prize, as fertilizers, will leave little to be de- 

 sired in the excellence of this valuable fruit. — Wil- 

 liam Saunders, in Germantown Telegraph. 



PuNCTDALiTT begcts confidence, and is the sure 

 path to honor and respect. 



