Allen's Book of Berries for 1914 



SOME SUGGESTIONS FOR PLANTING STRAWBERRIES 



>— — ^ — . F ALL the small fruits the Strawberry is probably of the greatest commercial importance 

 ^^^^^ in this countrj-. There is no plant that adapts itself so well to all conditions and to all 

 I r^ ■ sorts of soil, whether loam, sand or clay. Good drainage is absolutely essential, but the 

 ^^ ^' M plants should have a reasonable amount of moisture. Avoid setting the plants in land that 

 :7^^^^^ has been for a long time in grass, for in such places you will find the larA-3e of the May 

 " beetle, which are extremely destructive to small plants. The soil cannot be made too fertile, 



and the richer it is made, and the more humus you can get into it, the better will be the 

 crop. Stable manure is probably the best fertilizer that can be used, although there is an 

 objection on account of the grass seeds which may be brought in. If commercial fertilizer 

 is used it can be made at home, and the following formula is probably the best: Acid phosphate (i6 per 

 cent), 900 lbs.; nitrate of soda, loo lbs.; fish-scrap, 600 lbs.; sulphate of potash, 400 lbs. This will make 

 a ton. This fertilizer should be applied broadcast and worked well into the soil before plants are set, or 

 applied as a top-dressing and worked into the soil after the plants have started to grow. Don't put directly 

 under the plants when setting, as thousands upon thousands of Strawberry^ plants have been killed in this 

 way, and the one furnishing the plants accused of furnishing poor stock. I repeat, don't put commercial 

 fertilizer directly under Strawberry- plants when setting. 



In the middle states and north, Strawberries should be planted in the spring. In the southern states 

 fall and spring planting are both practical. The plants should be set as early in spring as the soil can be 

 worked, the earlier the better. If the plants are grown in matted rows, a distance of 3K feet between 

 the rows is best, but if for garden culture they can be set in hills 2 by 3 feet. If planted in this latter way 

 and the runners are kept off, you can get large crops of berries. For field culture the matted row is a method 

 in general use. In large plantings furrows are run from 3^2 to 4 feet apart, and another furrow thrown from 

 each side, making a small ridge, which should be raked flat enough so that the plants will be level after 

 first cultivation. This gives j'ou a good mellow bed for planting. The plants are set on this ridge, and it 

 is especially important that they be set at the proper depth. The crown of the roots should be even with 

 the surface of the soil and the earth pressed firmly about them. Some growers set plants as close as 15 

 inches in the rows, but the usual distance is from 20 to 24 inches. 



Strawberry plants bear pistillate and staminate blossoms, and in planting pistillate varieties a row of 

 the staminate sorts should be set about every sixth or eighth row. Some commercial growers recommend 

 planting the p>erfect-flowering sorts every two or three rows. 



It is ad\"isable in the middle states and in the North in general to protect the plants in winter. A 

 mulch of wheat-straw in the late fall should be applied, just enough to cover the crowns of the plants. With 

 the earliest start of the leaves in the spring, the mulch should be pulled back from the plants and left on 

 the beds to keep the fruit clean. After the mulch is off, and before the fruiting season, keep a sharp lookout 

 for weeds that will start in the rows. After the plants have fruited, 

 the space between the rows should be cultivated to prevent 

 evaporation of moisture, keep the plants growing and kill weed 

 growth. And this loose mulch should be maintained through 

 the remainder of the season. 



Hewatisco. A valuable berry, and I want my custonjers to try it iSee next page) 



