102 TRANSACTIONS OF THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE. 



But it must be remembered that the varieties now in cultivation have 

 been so mixed and cross fertilized that it is impossible to get a true cross 

 between any two varieties. 



The eifect of fertilization of previous generations will sometimes show 

 itself when and where least expected. Sometimes the best results will be 

 obtained by merely sowing seeds of any good variety, trusting to its inhe- 

 rent good qualities being transmitted to the offspring. 



From the Austin I have got seedlings, all of which resembled the parent, 

 but were inferior; and I have noticed that all of this class, such as the 

 Downer, Iowa, Charlton, Georgia mammoth, &c., are very likely to produce 

 varieties no better than the wild Western berry from which they evidently 

 all originated. It is very easy to get a large variety from this class, but 

 seldom a good one. From the Picton pine I have grown large, sweet, 

 orange-colored fruit, but, like the parent, unproductive. 



From the Oscar, which is a poor grower, I have produced fine growers, 

 and those that were moderately prolific; but the fruit was sweet and dry. 



The results of some of my experiments are exceedingly curious, such as 

 producing five distinct varieties from the Bartlett, all of which had entire 

 leaves, not lobed. They were very similar to those described by Duchesne 

 as raised by him at Versailles in 1761, and called the Monophylla, it being 

 just 100 years (so far as I have been able to learn) since the first one-leaved 

 strawberry was grown until the second was fruited by me in 1861. But 

 neither were of any value, except as a botanical curiosity. 



From the Iowa I produced a five-leaved variety, and one with leaves 

 having a beautiful silver stripe, but of no value to the cultivator. 



HOW TO RAISE SEEDLINGS. 



When the berries from which we wish to grow seedlings are ripe, they 

 should be marked, and mixed with dry sand so thoroughly that no two 

 seeds shall remain together, putting sufficient sand to absorb all the 

 moisture. Then sow the sand containing the seeds in a bed previously 

 prepared in some half shady place, or under glass, and sift on some find 

 mold, covering the seeds about an eighth of an inch deep. If the soil is 

 kept moist, the plant will begin to appear in about four weeks, and will 

 continue to come up until cold weather; at which time they should be 

 covered lightly with straw, say one inch deep. The plants should be set 

 the following spring, eighteen inches apart, in rows at least two feet apart. 



Stop all runners every week throughout the season, and keep the beds 

 clean. The second year after transplanting, you will have fruit. Mark 

 sexes of each as they come into blossom. As the fruit ripens, mark the 

 time and character, and select the very best and destroy all other plants. 

 Lift carefully those that are to be preserved, and put them into new beds 

 where they will have more room to make runners. The correct estimate 

 of the value of any new variety cannot be ascertained until it has fruited 

 two or three years. For my own part, I shall never save a pistillate, 

 although I have done so heretofore extensively, for the purpose of ascer- 

 taining by actual experiment whether they were any more likely to be 

 better, or more productive than the bisexual varieties. 



The results of some of the largest experiments which I have tried are, 



