almost equally good if one of these ap- 

 plications has been made for the previ- 

 ous crop. Poultry manure is better when 

 applied to the previous crop but is help- 

 ful to current crop if full of litter and only 

 three to four tons per acre are used. Ex- 

 cessive applications of poultry manure 

 may cause some burning especially in 

 dry seasons. If used, apply poultry ma- 

 nure to field or garden in the Fall for 

 spring planting. 



For small areas a good guide in the 

 application of horse, cow, sheep or hog 

 manure is to figure 1 to 2 bushels for 

 every 100 square feet. Manure from 

 poultry and broiler houses either con- 

 tains chick weed seed from feed or 

 bedding or stimulates excessively the 

 growth of chick weed, which becomes 

 very serious in many strawberry grow- 

 ing areas. 



WHEN SHOULD PLANTS BE SET? 

 EARLY! 



The most important single thing in 

 growing strawberries successfully is to 

 set the plants EARLY. With no other 

 crop that you grow is early spring set- 

 ting so ALL IMPORTANT. With dor- 

 mant plants available plants can be set 

 safely at least two weeks later than with 

 freshly dug stock. 



In the Southern States this means Feb- 

 ruary, March and early April. In the 

 Middle States, March and April. In the 

 Northern States, April and May in late 

 seasons and in states far North. In all 

 states it means just as early as the 

 weather permits you to get the ground 

 ready and the plants set. 



A good stand and growth are easy if 

 plants are set early so they can become 

 established while the soil is still cool 

 and moist. With late setting good re- 

 sults are very unlikely unless soil and 

 moisture conditions are entirely favora- 

 ble. 



SHOULD CHEMICAL FERTILIZER BE 

 USED? On very fertile garden soils none 

 is needed. On most good soils fertilizer 

 will not prove beneficial if plenty of sta- 

 ble manure of any kind has been ap- 

 plied. On many soils chemical fertiliz- 

 ers will be very helpful. 600 pounds 

 per acre of any fertilizer containing 3 to 

 6% of nitrogen and 5 to 10% of phos- 

 phorus may be used. This may be 



stirred into the soil down the row be- 

 fore the plants are set or- applied as a 

 side dressing in one or more applica- 

 tions after growth starts. Inorganic nitro- 

 gen like nitrate of soda or sulphate or 

 ammonia should be used in these appli- 

 cations only with great care, as they 

 will injure either roots or leaves, if they 

 come in direct contact. Organic nitrogen 

 materials like tankage, fish, dissolved 

 bone, cotton seed meal, dried blood, 

 etc., are safe to use. Any form of phos- 

 phorus is O.K. Potash is not usually a 

 limiting factor. However, we sometimes 

 use a fertilizer with 2 to 3% of potash 

 just as insurance. 



Whatever the soil preparation and 

 earlier treatment it is well to examine 

 the plant beds in the late August or ear- 

 ly September. If the growth is satisfac- 

 tory and the leaves have a rich dark 

 green appearance, no further fertilizer 

 is necessary. If color and growth are 

 not satisfactory at that time apply as a 

 top dressing directly on the plant beds 

 about 600 pounds per acre of 6-8-2 or 

 any fertilizer mixture your dealer has 

 containing 4 to 6% of nitrogen, 6 to 10% 

 of phosphorus and 2 to 5% of potash. 

 Apply only when foliage is thoroughly 

 dry and brush loose material off the 

 leaves at once. This is important to pre- 

 vent injury. 



An application of 600 pounds per 

 acre means about 1 pound for each 20 

 feet of row. 



PLANTS FOR VARIOUS PLANTING 

 DISTANCE 



Rows In the row Total per acre 

 3 ft. apart 18 inches 9,680 plants 



3 ft. 



II 



24 



II 



7,260 



II 



3V2 ft. 



II 



18 



II 



8,297 



II 



31/2 ft. 



II 



24 



II 



6,223 



" 



4 ft. 



II 



18 



II 



7,260 



II 



4 ft. 



II 



24 



II 



5,445 



" 



3 ft. 8 



in. 



18 



" 



7,128 



" 



WHAT ABOUT LIME? If other crops, 

 weeds or grass have made a good 

 growth on the land you have selected 

 for strawberries it does not need lime. 

 However, if you want to have your soil 

 tested for acidity a pH range of 5.7 to 6 

 is best 5 to 7 is satisfactory if organic 

 matter content of the soil is fairly high. 



25 



