THE STRAWBERRY AND ITS CULTURE. 269 



comparative ease. On the other hand, if the third and 

 fourth crops are gathered, it is with added expense and 

 much reduced yield of less perfect fruit for home use or 

 market. It is much less expense and trouble to set out a 

 new plantation than to clean out an old one, and at best 

 we cannot get the yield of the matted rows secured the 

 first two years. 



Plowing under the plants after the second crop is picked 

 adds much humus and plant-food to the soil, which will 

 give quick growth to a crop of cow-peas to be plowed 

 under late in the fall. If necessary on account of 

 restricted space, the ground can again be planted with 

 strawberries the next spring. But repeated crops on the 

 same ground should not be attempted for the third time 

 without giving a period of at least two years to the grow- 

 ing of other crops. 



258. The One-year System. In about all the States 

 small fruit-growers and gardeners combined practice the 

 system of turning under the plants after picking one crop. 

 The plants are set in rows only three feet apart, and 

 matted rows established the first season about one foot 

 wide. The next spring the crop is picked and the plants 

 turned under for a crop of late vegetables the same season. 



With this plan the ground is kept rich and weed-growth 

 is kept down with comparatively small expense. Those 

 with little experience would decide that this plan is not a 

 wise one, as the second crop is usually as good as the first. 

 But the gardener is pleased with it, as weeds have no 

 chance to get established and insects and fungi do more 

 damage the second year than the first. Again : the gardener 

 knows that the expense of setting out a new plantation 

 on clean mellow ground is a small item when compared 

 with fighting weeds and grass in a two-year-old plantation. 



259. The Hill System of Growing. The hill system of 

 growing is practised with such large fruiting varieties of 



