ioi6 



Gardening for Amateurs 



come on naturally. Under this treatment 

 the fruit will commence to ripen by the 

 middle of August, and it will continue until 

 the end of October. 



The runners should be regularly picked 

 off until the time of fruiting. Water must be 

 given as necessary during dry weather, and 

 apart from protecting the fruit from the birds 

 with netting, no other treatment is neces- 



The bottle filled with fruit and 

 fastened up. 



sary. Alpine Strawberries produce good crops 

 for two years, but after that the fruit is not 

 so fine, especially on poor soils ; conse- 

 quently it is advisable to raise a fresh stock 

 regularly to ensure the best results. 



BEST VARIETIES. Varieties are not very 

 numerous, the following being the best : 

 Belle de Meaux, with richly flavoured fruit 

 of dark colour ; Rouge Ameliore, a vigorous 

 grower and free cropper, with long bright 

 red fruits ; Button's Large Red, a prolific 

 variety ; and Janus, with fruit of delicious 

 flavour. Other autumn-fruiting varieties are 



Saint Joseph, a sweetly flavoured variety, 

 which is particularly robust and free bear- 

 ing ; La Constance d'Automne, bright red 

 fruit, globular in shape, the flesh white and 

 the flavour rich ; and Saint Antoine de 

 Padoue, vigorous in growth and producing 

 larger fruit than the other varieties. 



Strawberries in Tubs. Where the space 

 is somewhat limited, the method of culti- 

 vating Strawberries in tubs is well worth 

 attention. Any kind of tub or barrel is 

 suitable for the purpose, though if it is a 

 fair height so much the better. Before the 

 barrel is ready for use it is necessary to have 

 a large number of holes bored all over it ; 

 these may suitably be about 3 inches in 

 diameter, and should be separated from each 

 other by about double this distance. It is 

 important to place the barrel in as open a 

 situation as possible, if plants are to be 

 planted on all sides. If the tub is placed in 

 a corner, only the portions which will get a 

 strong light should be planted. In a per- 

 fectly open situation the barrel may be 

 planted in all parts. On the side with a 

 southern aspect the fruit will ripen early, 

 on that with a northern face it will be later. 



The soil for the barrel should be com- 

 posed of fibrous loam and some well-rotted 

 manure. Before putting this in, at least 

 3 inches of drainage material should be placed 

 in the bottom of the tub. Some means 

 must be devised to break up the mass of soil 

 in the barrel. A good plan is to put a 4-inch 

 drain pipe right down the centre, or a narrow 

 strip of wire netting bent round in a coil may 

 be used. In the latter case it is a good plan 

 to stuff the opening with moss, in order to 

 prevent the soil from working through. As 

 the soil is placed in the tub it should be well 

 pressed down. 



For quick fruiting it is important that well- 

 established plants should be placed in the 

 tub. With the hand force back the soil in 

 each opening ; then, before putting in the 

 plants, loosen the surface so that the roots will 

 quickly secure a hold. In making the change 

 disturb the roots of the plants as little as 



P ssible ' 



How to Bottle Fruits. " What shall 

 we do with our surplus fruits ? " is a ques- 

 tion that crops up almost every year, since 



