THE STRAWBERRY JULY 1907 



ual and in social relations. Eminent 

 speakers from all sections of our countiy 

 and some from abroad will address the 

 congress. A program is being prepared 

 which will cover every phase of the move- 

 ment, including pre\enti\'e, educational, 

 rescue, legislative, law enforcement and 

 sanitary lines of effort; the white slave 

 traffic, social diseases, and good-health 

 topics. A general invitation is extended 

 to all who are interested to attend this 

 congress. The Strawberry considers its 

 mission to be distinctly along horticultural 

 lines, but it is glad to aid in giving pub- 

 licity to this movement whose sole pur- 

 pose is the uplift of all. We are sure 

 that strawberry folk everywhere will bid 

 godspeed to this noble endeavor. 



Preparing Ground for Strawberries 



By Francis A. Badger 



FOUR acres were selected of a deep, 

 stiong loam with a clay subsoil, slop- 

 ing gently toward the north-west, as 

 this slope lengthens the season for late 

 berries. By the way, setting early varieties 

 on a south-east slope the early season will 

 be made more early, which is the object 

 sought, as we wish to make the season as 

 long as possible. 



This land was broken in November, 

 1906, to a depth of nine inches with a 

 sulky plow and every rock struck at that 

 depth taken out; and while my land is not 

 called rocky, it would make a good-roads 

 advocate, looking for material smile a 

 broad smile to see it after I got over it. 

 1 his spring it was harrowed with a disc 

 harrow, the work being repeated once a 

 week until about the last of May, when 

 some who saw it told me it was too bad 

 to waste that piece by planting it to pota- 

 toes when it was good enough for corn. 

 But it was planted to potatoes just the 

 same, as I find this thorough cultivation 

 brings the bumper crop of potatoes as 

 well as everything else. 



Rows three feet apart are furrowed out 

 straight and potatoes cut to single eyes are 

 dropped in the furrow ten to twelve inches 

 apart using from three-fourths to a ton of 

 special pota;o fertilizer per acre. No 

 stable manure. These are covered with 

 a cultivatOi' with wings reversed leaving a 

 ridge whch is leveled by using a float 

 made of plank and drawn over it length- 

 wise. This is followed by a light smooth- 

 ing harrow once in four or five days, run- 

 ning both ways so that the field is level 

 when the potatoes come up. 



This treatment is kept up as long as 

 the tops V- ill go under the frame of the 

 harrow, a.iJ then the twelve-tooth culti- 

 vator is used alternately with a fi\e-tooth, 

 gradually working the dirt toward the 

 plants. Just before the last cultivation 

 the field is gone over by hand and all 

 weeds an? grass are removed and then 

 with cultivator they are hilled up and 



FRANCIS A. BADGER 



laid by with the exception of spraying; 

 for if the bugs eat the tops you won't 

 eat many potatoes. 



When the tubers can be handled with- 

 out breaking the skin harvesting begins, 

 and they are taken direct from the field 

 to market. The tops from four rows are 

 thrown together with any stray weeds and 

 when dry are burned and the ground is 

 ready for plowing about the last of Octo- 

 ber, 1907, too late for a cover crop, but 

 that is furnished free in the shape of heavy 

 snows in this latitude. 



Through the winter this will be given 

 a coat of stable manure, twenty cords to 

 the acre. This would be more than could 

 be used to' advantage on some soil, but 

 this does not leach and the crop of grass 

 that will grow after two years of straw- 

 berries is good proof that it is not wasted. 



As soon as the ground can be worked 

 in the spring of 1908 this manure will be 

 turned under six inches deep and then 

 harrowed until it is ready to plant, and 

 then harrowed twice as much more and 



after smoothing, rolling and marking it 

 will be ready to set strawberry plants, and 

 should grow, with good care, as many 

 bushels of strawberries as potatoes. My 

 yield of potatoes is usually 300 bushels, 

 or slightly over, per acre, which sell from 

 the field in the fall to regular customers 

 at 50 cents per bushel as a minimum 



price. Belmont, N. H. 



UNDER date of June 17, M. N. Ed- 

 gerton of Petoskey, Mich., writes 

 The Strawberry as follows: "We are 

 having the finest kind of weather for proper 

 pollenation of strawberry blossoms. Va- 

 rieties of the Warfield class began bloom- 

 ing middle of last week. We covered 

 leaves with Bordeaux just previous to 

 this. Such a luxuriant healthy growth of 

 foliage; we never saw its beat. The bed is 

 located in a sheltered place and the plants 

 are just humping themselves. We shall 

 install an irrigating outfit this week at an 

 expense of about $200. People who like 

 great big strawberries will help pay for it. 

 If we don't make a success of our straw- 

 berry crop this season we will know the 

 reason why!" 



^ >^ 



SIMONSCHERTZERofAda,Ohio, 

 writes The Strawberry as follows: "If 

 you have felt the charm of strawberry 

 growing it will sweeten your declining 

 years to mingle with the blooms and han- 

 dle and taste the ripened berries. ] quite 

 agree with S. H. Warren on the associa- 

 tion of plants. Seven years ago I pur- 

 chased fifty Enhance (B) and fifty each of 

 Crescent and Bubach (P). Being a be- 

 ginner and not caring to sell plants or 

 berries, I mixed them all together. I 

 still propagate a quarter-acre of the mix- 

 ture and find them similar somewhat in 

 fruit and foliage. Indications point to a 

 larger crop than ever, due, no doubt, to 

 my association with The Strawberry jour- 

 nal. I have added some other famous 



IN THE STRAWBERRY FIELD OF GEORGE CREWS, ELKVILLE, ILL. 



Pa«e 161 



