46 



SMALL FEUIT CULTUHIST. 



Another important consideration in cultivating pistillatf 

 varieties is to grow as a fertilizer a kind that produces an 

 abundance of pollen ; besides that the two should bloom at 

 the same time. 



STRUCTURE OF THE PLANTS. 



All the varieties and species of the Strawberry have a 

 family resemblance; still there is considerable difference in 

 the form and structure. Some produce large stools, while 

 others naturally divide into individual plants. One of the 

 prominent features of the Strawberry is to multiply by 

 runners ; yet among the Alpine or Wood species Ave have 

 varieties which produce none or very sparingly. There- 

 fore it is apparent that the different forms will require dif- 

 ferent treatment. Some have long, slender, wiry roots, 

 while others have very short, fleshy ones, each of which 

 require a soil suited to their growth, if the very highest 

 development is obtained. 



Our native varieties, particularly those grown from the 

 F, Virginiana^ have longer and more wiry roots than 

 those grown from tlie F. grandiflora. Consequently 

 they are better suited to field cultivation, and wliere the 

 soil is not frequently stirred, or upon light soil, the roots will 

 spread further in search of food and they are not so 

 readily affected by drouth. 



There is another peculiarity in the form of the roots 

 which is worthy of attention. The native Strawberry 

 produces stools, but the crowns, instead of adhering to- 

 gether, often separate as they become old, each producing 

 roots for self-support. 



To show more fully the peculiar form usually observed 

 hi the varieties of the F, 'Virgiiiiana and F, grandiflora^ 

 I have inserted the two following illustrations taken from 

 the Strawberry Culturist. 



Figure 17 is an exact representation, half size, of a plant 

 of the Boston Pine that is three years old. While it 



