THE STRAWBERRY. 66^ 



which we consider a i>eriect pastoral idyl (as the German school 

 would say) in itseh^ nothing remains to be wished for. Wa 

 have heard of individuals who really did not, by nature, relish 

 strawberries, but we confess that we have always had the same 

 doubts of their existence as we have of that of the unicorn. 



Ripe, blushing strawberries, eaten from the plant, or served 

 with sugar and cream, are certainly Arcadian dainties with a 

 true paradisiacal flavour, and, fortunately, they are so easil}^ 

 grown that the poorest owner of a few feet of ground may have 

 them in abundance. 



To the confectioner this fruit is also invaluable, communi- 

 cating its flavour to ices, and forming several delicate preserves. 

 In Paris a cooling drink, havaroise a la grecqiie^ is made of the 

 juice of strawberries and lemons, w^ith the addition of sugar and 

 water. 



The strawberry is perhaps the most wholesome of all fruits, 

 being very easy of digestion, and never growing acid by fisr- 

 mentation, as most other fruits do. The often-quoted instance 

 of the great Linnaeus curing himself of the gout by partaking 

 freely of strawberries — a proof of its great wholesomeness — is a 

 letter of credit which this tempting fruit has long enjoyed, for 

 the consolation of those who are looking for a bitter concealed 

 under every sweet. 



Propagation and Soil. The strawberry propagates itself 

 very rapidly by runners* which are always taken to form new 

 plantations or beds. These are taken off" the parent plants early 

 in spring, and either planted at once where they are to grow, 

 or put out in nursery beds, or rows, to get well established for 

 the next spring-bearing. When the parent plants have become 

 degenerated, or partially or wholly barren, we should avoid 

 taking the runners from such, and choose only those which grow 

 from the most fruitful ones. In order to be sure of the latter 

 point, it is only necessary to mark the best bearing plants by 

 small sticks pushed into the bed by the side of each when the 

 fruit is in perfection. Some varieties, as the Prolific Hautbois, 

 the English Wood, and the Large Early Scarlet, are not liable 

 to this deterioration, and therefore it is not necessary to select 

 the runners carefully ; but others, as the Pine strawberries, and 

 some of the Scarlets, are very liable to it; and if the runners are 

 taken and planted promiscuously, the beds so made will be near- 

 ly barren. 



The best soil for the strawberry is a deep, rich loam. Deep 

 it must be, if large berries and plentiful crops are desired ; and 

 the wisest course, therefore, where the soil is naturally thin, lies 

 in trenching and manuring the plot of ground thoroughly, be- 



* Excepting the Bibsh Alpines, which have no runners, and are propa- 

 gated by division of the roots. 



