FRAG ARIA, STRAWBERRY PLANT. 249 



Most are only about half a ligne long. They terminate in tips that are so tiny that they 

 would scarcely be seen if they weren't edged in dark brown. These atrophied tips don't 

 contain any pollen necessary for fertilizing the pistils. In addition neither the ovaries nor 

 the receptacle show any growth at all, & the flower doesn't turn into a fruit, unless it's 

 fertilized by a male plant of its own species or by a hermaphroditic American strawberry 

 plant. We are further indebted to M. du Chesne for this discovery that freed this 

 strawberry plant from the disrepute of sterility. Cultivators aware that its flowers are not 

 hermaphroditic will propagate the female ones. They'll decrease the number of male 

 plants that they might have preferred because of their vigor & ease of propagation, and 

 they'll reduce them to a quarter or a sixth of the number of females in each plant bed. 

 Those who have pineapple, Bath scarlet, or Virginia scarlet strawberry plants will get rid 

 of their male hautbois altogether and plant one or two rows, or even only a few of the 

 former plants, in the beds of the female hautbois. They'll get the same benefit without 

 consuming their time & their ground for unproductive cultivation of sterile strawberry 

 plants. 



Fertilized female flowers become fruit that's very adherent to the calyx. It's almost 

 ovoid in shape; the largest part is closer to the calyx than it is to the other end. The 

 diameter of the largest ones is nine to eleven ligrtes & their height is about the same. The 

 skin on the side in the sun is purple-red, sometimes quite dark & bordering on violet. The 

 other side is lighter, & some spots frequently are yellow or whitish. The flesh is firm & 

 the juice is not very plentiful. In cold & damp soil its flavor & fragrance are mingled with 

 honey & musk and are not very pleasant. Growing it in warm & loose soil can garner for 

 this strawberry more appreciation than it customarily gets. The seeds are big. 



