J. A. HAGERMAN WINS SUCCESS IN THE KELLOGG WAY 
JN a letter dated from his home at Seaton, 111., July 20 1907, Mr. Hagerman says: "This photograph was taken 
while the plants were in bloom, and it was as beautiful a sight as one would wish to see. 1 began raising 
strawberries some ten years ago, and I made the same mistake that lots of others do: 1 would go to any old patch 
and dig my plants, generally getting them for nothing— and they were dear at that. Well, 1 did not raise many 
berries, and no good ones at all. but finally I got hold of R. M. Kellogg's "Great Crops of Strawberries and How 
to Grow Them' — and I sent for some of his plants and studied that book, and now I am raising as fine berries as 
1 ever saw grow anywhere, and I never fail to send Kellogg's an order for plants each spring." 
rich barnyard manure, the whole being plowed 
under and mixed with the soil the following 
spring. This treatment fills the soil with humus, 
making it rich and spongy, and capable of 
holding large quantities of moisture; it also fills 
the soil with the richest of plant foods. Thus 
the plants are kept in a highly vigorous condition, 
growing from the day they are set until dug 
without interruption or backset of any kind, and 
producing a plant with a strong root system, with 
all its roots starting direct from the crown or 
body of the plant. The crowns of these plants 
are perfectly developed and stored full of vital- 
ity, which sustains the life and vigor of the plant 
until they take firm hold upon the soil in which 
they are to fruit. 
How to Prepare the Soil 
ONE important and advantageous feature of 
the strawberry business not always appre- 
ciated is the fact that the strawberry in any 
ordinary soil yields large harvests of fruit. As 
to fertilizer, we prefer stable manure over any- 
thing else. If the soil is strong enough to pro- 
duce a large crop of corn or potatoes, it will 
grow a fine crop of strawberries without the 
application of any fertilizer. 
The best time to apply the manure is in win- 
ter, just when the soil tiller has ample time at 
his command in which to do the work. It should 
be spread evenly over the entire surface, so that 
it will mulch the ground. Not only does it 
enrich the ground when thus applied, but it also 
keeps the soil from puddling, and in the spring it 
will plow up loose and mellow as a garden. 
After the plowing is done, go over the field with 
a harrow or disc until the soil and manure are 
thoroughly mixed together. It should be pul- 
verized finely to the depth of the plowing. 
If your soil is sandy, or loose black soil, it 
should be rolled firmly, but if it be clay or stiff 
black soil, roll it only enough to crush the clods. 
If the harrow follows directly after the breaking 
plow, before the clods have time to dry out and 
become hard, the clods will crumble and it will 
be unnecessary to roll at all. We recommend 
that this course be followed if you have but one 
team: plow awhile and then harrow thoroughly, 
the newly plowed ground. 
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