STATE POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 87 



to be omitted if the best results would be realized. I need not 

 tell those that are experienced in raising strawberries, that manure 

 and thorough cultivation are the foundation of success in growing 

 this fruit. As we have intimated, it is all the better if the soil is 

 inclined to be moist, but stagnant water in any form is an evil that 

 must not be tolerated. Some varieties will produce good crops on 

 land in such heart that another would nearly fail. For instance, 

 the Green Prolific will bear a fair crop on land that the Wilson's 

 Albany would fail entirely on ; but the former is as susceptible to 

 good treatment as any. 



The best manurial agent to be employed in the preparation of 

 the strawberry patch is a compcJst of manure and leaf mold, — the 

 manure to be at least one year old. A spoonful of superphosphate 

 scattered about each plant at the timo of setting, will give them a 

 good start. But almost any fertilizfr will be appropriated by this 

 plant. Ashes are very beneficial, applied at any time after the 

 plants are set. 



The usual method of planting is to make the rows three feet 

 apart, with plants a foot apart in the row. The runners, as fast as 

 they appear, are cut off and the ground hoed and cultivated to 

 keep the soil light and the weeds down. Two crops may be taken, 

 after which it is better to plow the vines under and cultivate to 

 some other crop for two years or more, when it may be suitably 

 enriched and planted to strawberries again. The neatest S3'stem 

 by far, and the one to be recommended for garden culture or on 

 land liable to be weedy, is what is termed the annual system. By 

 this plan the plants are set early in the spring, a full crop is real- 

 ized the next year, when the plants are plowed under — a bed in 

 the meantime having been set for the next year's supply. By this 

 sj'stem the weeds are prevented from getting a foothold, and on 

 the whole the labor and returns — unless the land is pretty clear 

 from weeds — about as profitable as by any other. 



Too little attention is paid to the selection of plants for setting 

 out a bed, and also to the work of setting them. All old and weak 

 plants should be discarded. If the plantation has to be set every 

 year, or two years even, we cannot afford to set poor plants or do 

 the work improperly. Let us take measures to secure as large a 

 crop as possible. The best plants for setting are the strongest 

 plants of last year's growth. They are readily known by their 

 roots, which are a bright yellow color, while the roots of old plants 

 are black. The plants should never be pulled up until loosened 



