Locations, Sites and Soils 3 



provinces and embrace a great variety of conditions of 

 altitude, climate and soil (Fig. 1). This leads to the 

 presmnptioii that practically every state and province 

 has, at various points within its boimdary, large areas 

 of land that are as suitable for commercial strawberry- 

 growing as any in the districts that now ship hundreds 

 of car loads. The most important shipping centers are 

 listed in the appenduc. 



Type of market. 



It is necessary for the prospective grower to decide 

 at the outset whether he will produce berries for the 

 general market, or for the personal market. If the 

 former, the location may be many miles from the market 

 that he expects to supply. Distance from large cities 

 usually means lower land values, more stable labor and 

 a lower cost of production. On the other hand, it means 

 higher transportation charges, greater opportunity for 

 vexatious delays and loss in getting the fruit to market, 

 and a less intimate touch with market conditions. The 

 fruit is grown in considerable quantity, perhaps twenty- 

 five acres or more, without special or intensive culture. 

 It is marketed in car-lots, often through cooperative 

 shipping associations. The grower deals with the whole- 

 sale merchant, not with the retailer or consumer. 



When growing strawberries for the local or personal 

 market, the location will be quite near the town or city 

 to be supplied, usually less than forty miles; the closer 

 the better, up to the limit of reasonable land values. A 

 comparatively small acreage is grown, perhaps not more 

 than two to five acres. Intensive culture is practiced 

 and the fruit is marketed in comparatively small quan- 

 tities, always less than car-lots. The grower deals with 



