CHAPTER II 



PLANTING 



It is not well to set strawberries in freshly turned sod 

 land, or land that has been lying out for several years 

 and has grown up more or less with grass. Recently 

 plowed land usually has air spaces between the pieces of 

 turf; these make it difficult to secure a good stand of 

 plants. It is also infested with white grub. If sod land 

 is used it should be plowed several months before plant- 

 ing. Land infested with nut-grass, bermuda-grass, John- 

 son or witch-grass, should be avoided ; if obliged to fight 

 these weeds the cost of cultivation will be doubled. 



PREPARATION OF THE LAND 



In localities where strawberries normally are planted in 

 the spring, fall plowing is desirable except on very light 

 soils. It is especially advantageous when turning under 

 a sod. Fall plowing makes the land warm, so that it 

 can be fitted and planted early in the spring. It kills 

 white grubs, and stores rainfall. If the soU is rather 

 heavy it may be cross-plowed in the spring, but the disk 

 or cutaway harrow usually will put it in condition. Spring 

 plowing for strawberries should be shallow ; the soil dries 

 out as deeply as it is stirred. When planting is to be 

 done in the summer or fall in the North, do not plow at 

 all unless this is necessary to cover weeds ; a firm plant- 



18 



