FORCING THE STRxVWBERRY. 



515 



house, with strong and vigorous roots to support them. Those in twenty- 

 fours remain ; after a time examine the others, and those that have the 

 strongest roots re-pot into twenty-fours, pursuing the same method as 

 hefore ; so that, out of 700 or 800 pots, half the number will be twenty- 

 fours, with one, two, or three plants in a pot, and the remainder in thirty-twos, 

 with one plant in a pot. One plant to either sized pot is preferable to a 

 greater number; and if the above method is pursued, it will, from the 

 rapidity of their growth, be found quite sufficient. If the autumnal rains 

 are heavy, lay the pots on their sides, and about the middle of December 

 place them in some frames, to keep the frost from injuring the roots, till 

 they are placed in the forcing-house, 



1092. Thus grown and protected, the strawberries may, any time between 

 December and March, be brought into the forcing-pit, previously filled with 

 tan, dung, or leaves, to about eighteen inches of the glass. On this bed the 

 plants are set, and a gentle temperature of from 50° to 55° is maintained in 

 the pit : if without fire-heat, so much the better. From this time, till the 

 plants have perfected their fruits, a leaf should never be allowed to droop 

 for want of water : yet the reverse is equally destructive, more especially 

 before the flower-stems appear ; as soon, however, as these are up, a liberal 

 supply of water is necessary till the fruits get to their proper size ; 

 when it must again be supplied sparingly, only just enough to keep the 

 leaves from flagging, till the strawberries are gathered. Whilst in flower, 

 a temperature of from 60° to 65°, with a free circulation of air, is best. 

 The fruit once set, the plants will do well in a stove where the minimum 

 temperature is as high as 75°, provided abundance of air can be admitted. 

 Plants treated in this manner, introduced into the forcing-house in the 

 middle of December, will generally perfect their fruit about the middle 

 of JMarch. The fruit ought to be thinned out : all the deformed ones should 

 be cut clean away, and the more promising ones should be pegged to the 

 sunny side of the pot, and if there are too many leaves the footstalks of a 

 number of them may be broken or twisted, so as to check the flow of sap 

 and throw it into the fruit. Dry heat and free air are indispensable to their 

 being w^ell flavoured. 



1093. After forcing, turn the plants out of the pots, and plunge them in 

 rows, at moderate distances, in a piece of spare ground in the garden, well 

 exposed to the sun and free circulation of air. From these a slight gather- 

 ing will be obtained after the natural crops are over ; and well-established 

 plants for forcing may be obtained from their runners, the latter being so much 

 earlier produced than they are from plants in the open ground. In the 

 autumn take the plants up with good balls of earth, and plant them in rows 

 in a melon-pit or cold frame, placing them rather thick, to economise the rows 

 and press the mould firmly to their roots. The pit need have neither 

 bottom-heat nor pipes, but be simply covered with mats. As soon as the 

 frosts set in, place the lights on, but do not begin to cover up with mats 

 before March. If warm showers come in April, take the lights off, and let 

 the plants have the benefit of the showers (which is better than watering from 

 a pot), to forward them. When the sun is shining hot in the afternoon, 

 shut up close, and cover up directly with double mats. You will find the 

 next morning a sensible diflerence in their appearance. These plants will 

 bear abundantly, coming in at a very seasonable time, just before the out- 

 door strawberries, which are very often retarded by late frosts ; when the 



