26 E. W. Townsend & Son, Square Deal Nursery 
CULTURAL DIRECTIONS: 
Strawberries will thrive in almost any 
soil that is not too dry or water-soaked, and 
no crop will respond more quickly to good 
cultivation than the Strawberry. Straw- 
berries require a great deal of moisture, es- 
pecially at fruiting time. 
PREPARING THE SOIL.—Strawber- 
ries should follow some truck crop if possi- 
ble. We do not recommend planting 
strawberries after an old sod has been turn- 
ed under, too many grubs are likely to des- 
troy the plants. All sod land should be 
plowed at least a year in advance and sow- 
ed to some vine crop and manured the fall 
or winter before planting to strawberries, 
and then thoroughly worked up in the 
spring, where it is possible; land that has 
been manured a year in advance makes the 
best strawberries. We do not recommend 
heavy application of manure immediately 
before planting, and under no circum- 
stanees do we recommend the use of com- 
mercial fertilizer, directly under the plants 
when set. The fertilizer is likely to cause 
the plants to die as soon as the sun gets hot. 
If fertilizer is to be used, broadcast on the 
land, thoroughly work in the land a few 
weeks before setting plants. The finer 
the condition of the soil at planting time 
the better forthecrop. Ifland is hard and 
cloddy, better roll, also if very loose sandy, 
it is best to roll, as this rolling holds the 
moisture that is so much needed at this 
time. 
TIME TO PLANT.—The fall from No- 
vember list to March 30th in the South 
plants may be set any time. In the Mid- 
dle States, March and first half of April. 
In the North, as early in the Spring as the 
ground can be worked, the sooner the bet- 
ter. Northern customers should always 
order their plants shipped at least two 
weeks before they expect to set them out. 
The plants should be healed in a V-shaped 
trench after they have been unpacked and 
untied, bunches opened and roots dipped 
in water. Cover with a board to shade the 
plants and they will keep several weeks and 
be in fine condition to plant when the prop- 
er day arrives. Weship most orders to the 
far North during the last half of April. But 
some of our wisest customers order plants 
shipped during August and September, we 
have as good plants at this time as any one 
in the business, but we cannot recommend 
the planting at this time, and do not see 
where the gain is in August planting in the 
North. Everbearing plants set in April 
will fruit just as quick as the August and 
September plants, and much less trouble 
and expense. 
SETTING PLANTS AND MARKING 
OUT THE ROWS. 
After ground is in perfect condition mark 
rows out with any kind of light marker, that 
will not make too much of a sink in the 
ground. 
IF HILL SYSTEM.—Mark rows 30 
inches apart one way and fifteen inches the 
other and set plants in the check with a 

| spade or trowel, being sure to get roots 
down straight and fan shaped, firming 
ground around plants hard with the hand 
or foot. Some customers write us they 
water the plants when setting them. Don’t 
Do That! Nothing could be more injur- 
ious to the strawberry plant. Under this 
system, all rumner plants are kept cut off 
and only the plant you set is allowed to 
grow. Plants grown this way grow to be 
very large and usually meet the 15 inch 
way, and produce more quarts of berries 
per acre than the latter named system. It 
is easy to grow one quart of berries per 
plant under this system. | Fruit will aver- 
age twice as large and sell for more money 
in the markets. We recommend the hill 
system, as so many of our customers have 
repoxted such large yields from their fields. 
SINGLE HEDGE ROWS.—Mark rows 
thirty inches one way, and set plants'twen- 
ty inches apart and allow each plant to 
make about two to four plants. Some 
very fine berries can be grown this way. 
DOUBLE HEDGE ROWS.—For dou- 
ble hedge rows, mark rows thirty-six inches 
one way, two rows of plants are set zig zag 
fashion, and each plant is allowed to make 
only a few plants. The obiect of the dou- 
ble hedge row is to get more fruit to the 
acre than by the single hedge row. The 
center of the bed is kept open so as to give 
the plants air and sun. This is one of the 
intensive systems and requires much more 
work than the other ways, and should not 
be practiced on a large scale. 
THE NARROW MATTED ROW.— 
Mark rows forty inches apart one way, set 
plants eighteen to twenty-four inches apart 
and allow to grow until row is as wide as 
desired and then keep down by cutting 
runners off the balance of the season. Usu- 
ally ten inches is the desired width. This 
is probably the most common system of 
growing berries in the large commercial 
growing sections, where fancy fruit is not — 
the particular object. Too many plants 
should never be allowed to mat in the bed 
as their growth is only at the expense of 
the former plants and when such crowd- 
ing is allowed small berries and smail yields 
may be expected. One acre grown in the 
proper way is worth at least two grown 
the wrong way. It takes a strong robust ° 
plant to make a productive plant, it must 
have plenty of room and moisture, if the 
roots are crowded moisture will be lacking. 
If one is not particular about neither qual- 
ity or quantity, strawberries will generally 
grow with as little attention as any other 
crop. But we always contend that any- 
thing that is worth growing is worth grow- 
ing right, and advise our customers to get 
all there is in it by using the proper meth- 
ods. The large crops are produced when 
grown in hills and cultivated each way, one 
way with horse, if in commercial lots, and 
the narrow way with hoe or wheel hoe. If 
for garden purposes, plants may be set 12x24 
inches and worked with wheel hoe and give 
the largest yield. 



