THE BUSH FRUITS 213 



this work and are paid by the box, though when fancy 

 berries are produced that require especial care in pick- 

 ing, etc., men are sometimes employed (Fig. 76). It 

 is a very trying job to keep a lot of young strawberry 

 pickers in order so that they will at all times do good 

 work. To get the best results one attendant or overseer 

 is required in the field to look after twelve to fifteen 

 pickers and another to carry in the berries and keep 

 records. To pack the fruit for this number of pickers 

 one person is needed when the berries are only topped 

 out and two when all are sorted. Many growers make 

 two sorts, No. i berries being sold with the grower's 

 stamp, while the No. 2 grade is sold without the stamp. 

 As soon as the berries are picked they should be put in 

 a cool, dry shed or cellar, but not upon ice unless they 

 are to be kept a long time. If wet when picked they 

 should be placed in a cool draft if possible to dry them 

 off before packing in the crates. The most common 

 package is the 32-quart crate. This is a gift package 

 costing from ten to fifteen cents each. Southern grow- 

 ers who ship their fruit to the North must buy new 

 crates for each crop, as the old ones are not returned to 

 them, but those at the North secure these crates early 

 in the season at almost a nominal cost or as a gift 

 package, exchanging each full crate for an empty one. 



Varieties. 



The varieties of the strawberry in cultivation may be 

 divided into two groups the staminate or perfect 

 flowered kinds that have both stamens and pistils, and 

 those that have pistils only and will produce no fruit 

 unless staminate flowered varieties are planted beside 

 them. These two kinds are arranged in many ways, 

 but the best results will be obtained if a bed of three or 

 four rows of one kind is planted and then the same 



