THE STRAWBERRY 159 



plant has an abundance of room to fully mature and 

 will give a much larger crop of fruit with larger berries 

 than the small plants of the second method. 



The Matted Row System — Probably more berries 

 are grown by this system than by any other, and perhaps 

 it requires less labor, yet the size of the fruit will be 

 smaller and, in time of drouth, the ground between the 

 plants not being stirred easil}^ the roots will be near 

 the surface, and therefore more injured. One advan- 

 tage that the wide matted and the matted row have over 

 the hill and the hedge row system is that the roots are 

 running through all of the soil, holding it together, and 

 the plants are not as likely to be thrown out by frost. 

 Whatever the system, the crop will depend more upon 

 whether the land is rich in plant food and has an 

 abundant supply of moisture in it at the time the fruit 

 is maturing than anything else. 



CULTIVATION" 



If the plants have been set in regular lines both 

 ways, most of the work of cultivation can be done by 

 the horse cultivator or the small hand cultivators, of 

 which there are many different kinds. All of the run- 

 ners are generally cut off until the plants get strong, 

 or up to about the first of July, after which such as are 

 needed are allowed to grow. After the runners begin 

 to grow, if in the matted row, great care must be taken 

 not to disturb them after they have become rooted. If 

 the plants are grown by the hedge row or in the hill 

 system, the runners being cut off before they are rooted, 

 they will not interfere with the use of the hand or wheel 

 hoe, and better work can be done, and be done more 

 cheaply. The land should be kept fine and mellow to 

 the depth of two or three inches, and the drier the time 

 the more frequently the soil should be cultivated- 



