STRAWBERRY CULTURE 



91 



The soil is the next important determinant. There is no question 

 but that many varieties' are partial as to soils. Just^ what the 

 determining soil character is, cannot always be ascertained. We 

 know that some varieties prefer a heavy clay soil, while other 

 kinds are only at home in a light soil type, and doubtless many a 

 variety would become surprisingly profitable could its soil prefer- 

 ence be known. In a general way, however, most varieties are at 

 their best in a wide range of soils, with the; preference toward a 

 well-drained, loamy soil, not too heavy, containing an abundance 

 of available plant food and humus. Levels or slopes and direction 

 of exposure are usually of minor importance. 



Climate and soil being well disposed, there yet remain several 

 factors of location which at once become great assets or heavy 

 handicaps. These are distance of market, road conditions, char- 

 acter of market, facilities having to do with transportation, whether 

 by rail or water, the availability of plenty of cheap and reasonably 

 efficient labor. The ideal market is a good local one, but at the 

 same time with opportunity to shift quickly to a more distant 

 market whenever desirable and it is also a great asset not to have 

 that market under the control of distant growers who through 

 more favorable conditions are able to capture and often flood it 

 just as the local fruit reaches maturity. 



There is great agreement as to the value of stable manure for the 

 strawberry. Discord and harsh sounds greet the ear, however, 

 when an attempt is made to line up the best fertilizers for this fruit. 

 No sooner has one grower solved the problem to his personal satis- 

 faction than his neighbor goes him one better by securing a much 

 heavier yield and a more handsome product with a formula quite 

 different. Another grower trys to copy the method of his successful 

 neighbor only to meet with failure. Growers should experiment 

 by using various amounts and kinds of the fertilizers rich in the 

 chief elements of plant food, nitrogen, potassium, and phosphoric 

 acid, until by trial they have worked out the preparations which 

 give them the best results under their own farm and soil conditions. 



A discussion of varieties and how to select them is reserved for a 

 later paragraph. Some attention, however, should be given to the 

 kind of plants to set. Are all equally good? Can we secure an 

 advantage at the start by good judgment in the selection of the 



