THE SAWDUST MULCH SPACED PLANT SYSTEM 



The Growing Plants 



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Everbearers Have Arrived! 



They are no longer a novelty only! THE 

 SAWDUST MULCH SPACED PLANT 

 SYSTEM and varieties like SUPERFEC- 

 TION have made everbearers a real asset 

 in the home garden and under favorable 

 conditions a profitable money crop. 



A report from the Ohio Station which 

 took the lead in developing this system 

 states. ''The 4-row system can be expected 

 to produce 7,000 quarts per acre of Super- 

 fection the first year. The latest develop- 

 ments in everbearing strawberry produc- 

 tion demonstrates that the largest yields, 

 greatest ease and economy of operation 

 and highest profits are to be secured by 

 following a 4-row bed type planting sys- 

 tem." (See diagram and picture above) 



In this system the plants are set one foot 

 apart in rows which are one foot apart. 

 A two foot alley or middle is left between 

 each 4-row bed. The 4-row system produces 

 high yields in August, which are main- 

 tained during the remainder of the season. 



The plants should be set just as early 

 in the spring as the land can be prepared 

 ■ — late March or early April. The first crop 

 of weeds will usually appear within two or 

 three weeks after planting. These should be 

 controlled by hoeing. After this first hoeing 

 the entire area should be covered with a 

 layer of sawdust one inch thick. This mulch 

 is very important for conserving soil mois- 

 ture and suppressing weed growth. Later 

 weeds, if any, must be removed by pulling 

 because hoeing would mix the sawdust w ith 

 the soil and eliminate its mulch efl^ect. 



All the blossoms which develop on the 

 new set plants should be removed until 



30 



early July or a week or two later if plant 

 growth has not been quite vigorous. After 

 fruit production starts berries may be har- 

 vested about twice each week until frost 

 stops growth in October. The sawdust 

 mulch helps to conserve soil moisture dur- 

 ing the late summer. H an extended 

 drought occurs the crop can be greatly 

 increased in size and quality by the use 

 of irrigation. All runners should be re- 

 moved from the plants as fast as they 

 develop. This is essential if highest yields 

 are to be secured. 



'T^e sawdust mulch appears to give ade- 

 quate protection over the winter period. A 

 thin renewal layer may be needed in the 

 fall if the spring application was too light. 

 A full inch of mulch should be main- 

 tained.'' 



The spaced-plant sawdust mulch system 

 comes high per acre, w ith more plants and 

 much hand labor required, but numerous 

 Ohio growers have demonstrated in small 

 and medium sized plantings that a care- 

 fully managed patch will give high profits. 



''You sure did strawberry growers a 

 good deed when you gave us the Ohio saw- 

 dust mulch plan for growing everbearers 

 in the hill. There is no everbearing variety 

 that will grow strawberries and make run- 

 ners all at the same time,'' writes a prom- 

 inent Indiana grower. 



The Iowa Station has had yields fully 

 equal to anything reported from Ohio and 

 the Kentucky Station with irrigation ob- 

 tained yields of 13.000 quarts per acre 

 from both Gem and Superfection. 



