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With the majority, however, strawberries are raised solely for 

 the sake of their fruit. As a general thing it requires considera- 

 ble time, and extensive and therefore expensive advertising to 

 build up a profitable business in plants. 



What is the best method of culture where fruit is the chief 

 object ? I will briefly give that one which most pleases me, and 

 then name some others which may be better and more satisfactory 

 to the grower. 



For the field I prefer that the rows be three feet apart, 

 and the plants one foot apart in the row. If set out in spring, 

 keep the plow, cultivator and hoe going among them so that 

 the ground is always loose and free of weeds. Let no runners 

 grow. If you want new plants of the variety, set out a bed 

 for the purpose and let them cover the ground. There is no 

 such excessive labor in keeping off the runners as many sup- 

 pose. A little boy or girl with a pair of shears, by going over 

 the plants once a week, in the running season, will keep a very 

 large area free. When there are children in the family, the 

 work is so light as to be almost play ; and if they are paid some- 

 thing, the satisfaction of earning money for themselves will 

 change the task into a pleasure. Where many are grown it will 

 pay well to hire one or two good boys and they will keep acres 

 clipped. There is no need of putting high-priced labor at the 

 work. Thus the plants, whether set in spring or fall, are permitted 

 to make no runners unless the varieties are very scarce. Even 

 if they are, I keep* a few hills or rows clipped to see what they 

 will do with good culture. It must soon become obvious to those 

 who have studied the habits of most varieties of strawberries, 

 that a plant will expend most of its vitality in its effort to propa- 

 gate itself. If the best results in fruit are desired, this vitality 

 must be restricted to the one office of producing berries. 



By fall, plants treated in this way touch each other and 

 make a "strong, bushy, continuous row. Of course if any of the 

 plants die, I let enough run to fill up the spaces. By having 

 but a single line of plants the plow and cultivator can run very 

 close to them the first year, thus keeping the ground mellow and 



