(Strawberry Culture— Also See Page 42) 



Mating Varieties — All the varieties we offer are 

 perfect flowering and will produce a full crop when 

 planted alone. Varieties will not mix. 



Winter Mulcliing — Mulching is a good practice 

 because it guards against winter injury to roOts 

 and crowns and prevents plants from heaving out' 

 of the ground by alternate freezing and thawing. 

 Ordinarily as soon as temperatures of 25 degrees 

 or lower have occurred, mulch should be applied 

 to cover beds at least 2 inches deep. Straw, marsh 

 hay, pine needles and similar materials are satis- 

 factory. Where growth is not too vigorous, strawy 

 stable manure is recommended. As soon as growth 

 starts in Spring the surplus mulch should be raked 

 into the alleys. A light covering may be left for 

 the plants to grow through. Mulching helps keep 

 down weeds, keeps berries clean and conserves 

 moisture, and for that reason is often practiced 

 where winter injury is not a hazard. 



REMEMBER THESE 

 STRAWBERRY POINTERS 



FIRST — Plant EARLY in the Spring, just as 

 soon as weatlier conditions permit preparing tlie 

 soil. Plants set while fully dormant start far 

 better and moisture supply and temi)eratures are 

 most favorable in the Spring. 



SECOND — Renew a part of your plantings eacli 

 year. A planting is usually considered good for 

 two or three years fruiting, witli proper cultivation 

 and favorable weather. However, the first year's 

 fruiting is the best and in successive years the 

 plants tend to blossom earlier and are more sus- 

 ceptible to frost damage and the size of fruit 

 begins to run down. By renewing a part of your 

 plantings each year you are assured of a more 

 constant supply of finest quality berries. 



Growing 

 Blueberries 



Adaptability — Cultvated blueberries are being 

 successfully grown from North Carolina to the 

 Northern boundaries of the Country. The best 

 indication that blueberries may succeed on a soil 

 is that they or some related plants, such as 

 huckleberries, azaleas, or laurel, are found growing 

 there naturally. We do not feel any exact limit 

 of adaptability has been established and would 

 suggest trial plantings anywhere except in the 

 deep South or where the soil is alkaline or very 

 dry. 



Soils— VERY IMPORTANT— Natural blueberry 

 soils have a pH value from 3.8 to 5.5 with best 

 growth occurring between pH 4.1 to pH 5. These 

 soils have an abundance of humus and a fairly 

 constant high water table. Such soils must have a 

 good surface drainage, as flooding during the 

 growing season may cause serious injury. Plant- 

 ing on this type of soil is usually done on wide 

 ridges, six to seven inches high. DO NOT PLANT 

 BLUEBERRIES IN RICH GARDEN SOIL THAT 

 HAS HAD THE BENEFIT OP LIME, STABLE 

 MANURE OR OTHER SOIL SWEETENERS. If 

 you set blueberry plants in your garden or lawn 

 the best method is to dig a large hole where each 

 plant is to be set and fill with woods leaf mold 

 (the decayed leaf and straw matter found in 

 woodsland). If this material is not readily avail- 

 able mix your soil with generous proportions of 

 peat, sawdust (preferably rotting hardwood saw- 

 dust), or similar humus materials. UNDER NO 

 CIRCUMSTANCES should lime or stable manure 

 be permitted to come into contact with the area in 

 ■vyhich plants are set. It should be borne in mind 

 that the productiveness of a blueberry planting 

 depends largely on the moisture supplied in the 

 upper soil. 



Mulching— On all but natural blueberry soil, a 

 permanent mulch should be applied as soon as the 

 plants are set. Such materials as straw, sawdust, 

 salt hay, sudan grass, pine needles or leaves should 

 De spread around the plants about six inches deep. 

 t urther applications should be made each year in 

 sufticient quantities to maintain the mulch. With 

 individual plants mulch should be applied over an 

 area six to eight feet square. 



Fertilizer— The application of commercial ferti- 

 lizer iias given a very marked increase in the yield 

 wi^^V^® of fruit. Applications of % to % lb. per 

 Dush have been very successful. We are using a 

 standard 5-l()-5 fertilizer with ver^ good results. 

 Application should be made in a wide band spread 

 evenly around the plant about 10 inches from the 

 Plant. ^^ here sawdust mulch is used, 2 oz. sul- 

 phate ammonia per bush should be added the sec- 

 ona and third years to supply necessary nitrogen. 

 vn*'T.?.^T^l.P^^*^^^^Ph 2 on bottom of this page. 

 &?pS^^-T"^^^^^ SHOULD BE APPLIED THE 

 FIRST YEAR PLANT IS SET. 



25TH YEAR OF SERVICE — YOU CAN RELY ON RAYNER BROTHERS 



Planting — For commercial planting, plants are 

 set every four feet in rows eight to ten feet apart 

 as many varieties of blueberries reach a height of 

 six to seven feet and a width of five to six feet. 

 Plants should be set slightly deeper than they grew 

 in the nursery, with the roots well spread out. 

 When planting, we place a thin layer of pulver- 

 ized peat and sand, which has been soaked and 

 mixed half and half, below and above the roots. 

 We feel this makes an ideal rooting medium, and 

 will keep the plant w^ell supplied with moisture 

 until it becomes established. Before planting, one- 

 half to two-thirds of the top growth sliould be 

 pruned off. Should some of the buds be missed the 

 blossoms may be pinched off first year as they 

 appear. For the home planting plants may be 

 set in whatever manner is convenient, giving them 

 about thirty-two square feet of space to each plant. 



Yields — On good blueberry soil, yields of 6 to 8 

 pints per plant may be expected from mature plants 

 and with medium pruning plants may produce 12 

 to 20 pints. However, most varieties will tend to 

 overbear and after the third year it is the practice 

 of commercial growers to prune the plants to keep 

 up the size of the berries and encourage vigorous 

 new growth for the next year's crop. Individual 

 bushes will produce some fruit after being planted 

 r year. A good rule of thumb is to estimate 1 

 pint per year of age of well established bushes ; for 

 example, 6 pints from a 6 year bush, etc. Present 

 records indicate that blueberry plantings, with 

 proper care, will be profitably productive for fifty 

 to seventy-five years, and possibly longer. 



IMPORTANT POINTS 



1. Plant at least two varieties to provide for cross 

 pollination. Cultivated blueberries are consid- 

 ered self-sterile. Do not permit to fruit first 

 year. Be sure to follow instructions in planting 

 paragraph above. 



2. Blueberries should not be planted on soils limed 

 in recent years unless actual tests show soils are 

 still acid enough for blueberries. For less acid 

 soils, decaying leaves or acid peat, rotting straw, 

 sawdust, etc., may be mived into soil to make 

 conditions suitable. This is important if you 

 are planting in your garden or on your lawn. 

 Aluminum sulphate at rate of 5 lbs. per 100 sq. 

 ft. and up to 10 lbs. on heavy loams is excellent 

 for garden plantings. See page 25. 



3. Do not permit lime or stable manure to come 

 into contact with immediate area in which Blue- 

 berry plants are set. See directions on Soils and 

 Fertilizers on this page. 



43 



