15 



getting it well round the plants and under the fruit. We are always wanting 

 new varieties and would be glad to get any samples that are being tried at 

 the Experimental Farms. I might mention that Magoons and Sharpless 

 have been grown here on high land, alder bottom and peat soil, with very, 

 good results. 



A wholesale dealer in Victoria gives the following as his experience : ' 

 " The Magoon is far and away the best all-round strawberry. Clarke's 

 Seedling is equally good, better in some respects, but it is a poor cropper. 

 It is the berry grown at Hood River, Oregon. Sharpless is altogether con- 

 demned. It is a fine large berry, but does not hold up at all." 



MOISTUKE AND IRRIGATION. 



(Michigan Bulletin No. 163.) 



There are few locations where strawberries are not each year more or 

 less injured by lack of moisture in the soil, and where water can be readily 

 secured for irrigating purposes the expense of applying it will be well repaid. 

 Oftentimes a single application made when the fruit is about one-half grown 

 will double the yield, and occasionally a crop will be saved which would be 

 otherwise lost. Although its use is of less value during the first season's 

 growth, it will often be found desirable, when the weather is dry, to make 

 an application in order to promote the growth of the plants. 



SUB-IRRIGATION. By placing a line of drain-tile below the surface, a 

 strip from 10 to 20 feet can be watered. If it be left permanently, the line 

 should at least be below the reach of the plow ; and in case the laud requires 

 underdraining, the tiles may be so arranged as to answer for both purposes. 

 The depth should be then not less than 2y 2 feet, and the tiles should be laid 

 as nearly level as possible, and yet give a fall towards the outlet. When 

 required for irrigation, the lower end of the tile can be closed and the drains 

 flooded from the highest point. If merely needed for the strawberry crop, a 

 temporary system of tiles may be laid. If put in before the plants are set, 

 they should be covered at least 4 or 5 inches to be below the reach of the 

 cultivator, but oftentimes the necessity is not recognised until about the time 

 the fruit is ripening, and then it will be sufficient if the tiles are barely 

 covered. Care should be taken to have the lines of the tile practically level 

 for lengths of less than 100 feet, and beyond this the slope should be very 

 slight. Where the tiles have a greater slope the water rushes to the lower 

 end and breaks through to the surface. When properly arranged, the water 

 should enter the tile only as fast as it soaks through the joints. In this way 

 the tiles will be kept full and the water will be very equally distributed 

 throughout the length of the tiles. While smaller or larger sizes might be 

 used, a 3-inch common drain tile will give the best results. As most tiles 

 are slightly curved in burning, by placing them with their rounded sides 

 uppermost, a small crack will be left on the under side of each joint, and if 

 care is taken that these openings are of about the same size, the water will 

 be very evenly distributed. When the plants are set in narrow beds, a single 

 line of tile along the centre will suffice, but the best results will be secured 

 if the lines are independent, and each is filled from the highest point. A 

 very small stream of water through a garden hose will supply a line 100 to 



