RECEIPTS 

 EXPENSES 



S2360.48 

 1138.65 



THE PROFIT 



PICTURE 



in growing 

 strawberries. 



Almost always "Real Nice" strawberries will sell for a good profit whether in 

 wholesale, retail or special markets. Sometimes small, over-ripe or unattractive 

 berries will cross the profit line quite frequently they fail to do so. It behooves 



fit 



m 



every strawberry grower, therefore, to do his bes: 

 regard-ess of acreage grown or kind of market. 



:o produce "Real Nice" berries 



The following suggestions are made to help :r. keeping bctr :he berries and :he profit "Real Nice." 



1. You expect a big return per acre s: select some of your best land fox setting. 



2. Study varieties and choose fancy high yielding kinds suited to your locality and market outlet. 



3. Use the best planting stocks. To do this plants from virus free sources are mandatory. 



4. If help at picking time is likely to be limited, cheese varieties hem very early to very late to cover a 

 long season and thus make the most of the help available. 



5. Gccd care is necessary — preparation of sail early setting blossom removal, hoeing, cultivation, 

 fertilizing if necessary, mulching, etc. 



6. Grow only what you can handle properly. Just because you may make S500.00 to 31,000.00 profit 

 from one acre it doesn't necessarily follow that 10 acres will yield a profit of 55,000.00 to $10,000.00. 



7. At harvest time don't let berries get over-ripe. Pick most varieties at leasi every second day. Clean, 

 bright, high priced berries handled on time may become dull, unattractive law priced berries two or 



three days later. 



3. Possible markets include sales a: the field rtadside markets hotels, restaurants, retail stores, auction 

 blocks and shipments t: wholesale markets — etna Pick your own The trend toward ; p:ck your awn" 

 deserves special mention. 



'TICK YOUR OWN." 



This means, of course where the buyers come to the field pick and pay for the berries they want. It's a 

 good deaL For the grower it means more help and more markets in harvesting his crop. For the buyer 

 u means or. curing with fresh air exercise ar.d sometimes sore muscles as well as much fresher, nicer 

 and cheaper berries than they could buy at their food store. Areas within a few miles of any city or 

 town of 5,000 or more population form an ideal setting for this type of business. A S5.C0 or less radio 

 spot or newspaper ad will generally bring plenty of customer pickers the first year and a pest card, 

 giving the date, to this year's customers will bring them back year after year. 



Distinguished examples of successful "Pick your own" operations include Dr. George M. Darrow 

 and his family at Glen Dale, Md., about 5 miles outside of Washington, D. C. They successfully and 

 profitably harvested the crop from seven acres of strawberries in 1958. On several days they had over 

 200 picker-customers and on one day an amazing 900 people came. Dr. Darrow, now retired, was for- 

 merly with the U.S.D.A. He is the Dean of all strawberry research men in this country. Among many other 

 accomplishments he is the originator of many of today's leading strawberry varieties. 



Mr. Thayer P. Jones of New Haven, Conn, is another outstanding "Pick your own" grower. His berries 

 are so nice and the plan s: popular that you oar. pick berries for him only "by appointment." He told 

 us that his customer-pickers picked and paid him for S 11 CO. 00 worth of Midland berries from 6,000 Midland 

 plants set at just the first picking. 



At Hebron Md. about 5 mules from Salisbury (17,000 Population) Mr. H. Milton Hearne is a truck 

 farmer who frequently has two or three acre; of strawberries. For the last two years his crop has been 

 harvested completely ar.d profitably by customer-pickers — right here near the heart of a strawberry 



?:z?.-"Z"? 



.e rrZ7'-. PICTURE. 



