154 SUCCESSFUL FRUIT CULTURE 



per acre, according to the fertility already in the soil. 

 A southern slope should be selected for an early crop 

 and a northern one for a late crop. 



FITTING THE LAND 



It will be especially advantageous to work the soil 9 

 deeply with a trench plow, fining it to a depth of fifteen 

 to twenty inches, as the more deeply and finely it is 

 worked the greater will be its capacity for resisting 

 drouth. If it is plowed in the fall it will work up much 

 earlier in the spring, and if stable manure is plowed 

 under in the fall it will give better results than if turned 

 under in the spring. Turf land that is to be devoted 

 to the strawberry should be planted with some hoed 

 crop like potatoes, etc., for one season, or it may be 

 planted with some leguminous crop like cowpeas, soy 

 beans, hairy vetch or clovers, that can be turned, under 

 to supply nitrogen, and also humus to hold the moisture. 

 The surface of the land should be thoroughly fined with 

 the harrow and drag or leveler and marked out carefully 

 to rows of accurate distances, that the work of culti- 

 vating may be done quickly and easily. If the land is 

 not well supplied with plant food any good fruit fer- 

 tilizer may be scattered along the rows, to be worked 

 in as the plants are set, the remainder to be worked 

 in with a weeder or fine-toothed cultivator within a few 

 days after planting. 



TIME FOR PLANTING 



While the strawberry may be planted at any time 

 in the year when the ground will work, it is the practice 

 of most of the large commercial growers to set only 

 in the spring. This is done so that the plants may 

 have plenty of time to make a full growth and mature 

 an abundance of blossom buds, and the largest crops will 

 be produced when planted at this time. Strong layers 



