THE STRAWBERRY MARCH 1906 



and skill to give them fine returns? The 

 story of Miss Pollard in February Straw- 

 berry ought to be an inspiration to every 

 woman, young or old, who reads it, and 

 we hope there shall be many to follow 

 her example. 



Suggestions for March 



MARCH is essentially a month for 

 preparation, and as such we may 

 well count it one of the most val- 

 uable seasons of the year; for upon thor- 

 ough preparation depends, more than we 

 may estimate, the results of the entire 

 season. In many sections of the country 

 to which The Strawberry already goes in 

 large numbers the month will be one of 

 great activity, in which the plow will be 

 an important factor. How much de- 

 pends upon the plowing of the soil just as 

 it should be done! And you never 

 should rush it through, for it takes time 

 to put the soil in proper shape for the 

 tender plants that are to draw from the 

 earth and air and sky the elements that 

 go to make up big crops of delicious 

 berries 



The soil should first be broken up to a 

 depth of at least five inches; deeper if the 

 depth of soil will permit. But never 

 turn the subsoil up to the surface, no 

 matter how shallow the top soil may be. 

 Having turned over the soil with the 

 plow, harrow thoroughly and fine the soil 

 to as nearly the consistency of ashes as 

 its nature will allow. You will find it 

 much easier to get your soil in proper 

 condition before the plants are set than 

 after. If the soil be sandy, roll it firmly; 

 but clay and other heavy, stiff soils 

 should be pressed but lightly, and once 

 over with the roller usually will do the 

 work in the case of the heavier soils. In 

 brief, get your soil into ideal condition 

 before the plants are set, and you will 

 find in this case, as in every other, that 

 "well begun is half done." 



How are your tools and implements.? 

 Do you keep them stored snug and safe 

 from rain and snow, or are they left to 

 the tender mercies of wind and weather.'' 

 We hope that your mechanical helpers 

 have been given good care and are in 



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first-class shape for the work they must 

 do. But whether they are cared for poor 

 or ill, now is the time to see that they 

 are in complete readiness for the first ap- 

 proach of spring. You may recall that 

 there was a loose bolt in the cultivator 

 that cost you lots of time and trouble last 

 season, and the plow needed some repairs. 

 Don't let the blacksmith get his shop 

 filled up witn others' work before you 

 get there, and so lose many precious 

 hours, perhaps days, of time. Get out 

 tools and harness and every sort of con- 

 traption that contridutes to the working 

 force of the farm and see to it that they 

 are in the most perfect condition possible 

 for the season's work. 



Many are thinking this month over the 

 lively times they are sure to experience 

 just as soon as the picking of the berries 

 begin. We wonder how many of them 

 are all ready for that eventful moment in 

 the year's business. Have you a packing 

 shed in which to handle the crop so that 

 it shall be kept cool and where each box 

 may be inspected before it goes to mar- 

 ket to make or mar your reputation.^ If 

 you have not such a shed, get to work at 

 once to make one. Substantial or inex- 

 pensive, the shed is one of the big things 

 in the strawberry business. Packing-shed 

 No. 1 shown herewith is a permanent 

 and valuable addition to the farm build- 

 ings, and serves other purposes through- 

 out the year, but if i,'ou don't feel able to 

 build one like it, or for any other reason 

 prefer a less expensive affair, Packing- 

 shed No. 2 will serve you well. Berries 

 should be put under cover from the sun's 

 rays just as soon after picking as possible, 

 and they should be cooled oft before 

 marketing. 



And another thing about picking time 

 is the pickers themselves. Have you en- 

 gaged your force for the season."" If you 

 haven't don't delay any longer; for if you 

 do you may find it difficult to secure all 

 the help you require to make and handle 

 the big crop that's coming, or you may 

 find that the other fellow has snapped up 

 the best help in the community. And 

 there is the other help on the place, help 

 that you will want to be right on hand as 



Pa«e 53 



soon as the wintry blasts have given way 

 to gentle southerly breezes. Good help 

 on a strawberry farm is as essential as in 

 any line of business we know about, and 

 you will find that the quality of your fruit, 

 the way it is put on the market and the 





."t*.. 



CUT 2 AN INEXPENSIVE PACKING SHED 



size of your profits will depend quite as 

 much on the character of the men and 

 women you have on the farm to do its 

 work as would success in any other en- 

 terprise. One incompetent man, careless 

 of his employer's interests, can do more 

 damage in a day than ten men can repair 

 in a week. 



OLE Groun'-hog he come outen his 

 hole," as Uncle Remus would say, 

 "an' see hisself and den go back ter sleep 

 and ter snore fur six weeks mo'," which 

 means, in terms of the weather, that we 

 shall have a late spring. It is not pleas- 

 ant to have \Vinter linger too fondly and 

 too long in the lap o' Spring, but it has 

 its advantages if warm weather do not 

 come too quickly. It gives one more 

 time to get his manure well scattered 

 over the strawberry bed and get himself 

 in complete readiness for the activities of 

 the ripening season. Last season one 

 might safely have uncovered his bed 

 April 1 in many sections of the North; 

 this year the work may be postponed 

 from five to ten days later. Of that the 

 individual grower must be the judge, as 



