Fruit-growing in Kent. 
117 
Strawberries. — This fruit is largely cultivated in West Kent, 
and not to any extent for market purposes in other parts of the 
county more distant from London, on account of its perishable 
nature. It is not uncommon to find individuals having as many 
as 100 acres of strawberries in this district, chiefly planted upon 
the clays of the Thanet beds, in many cases upon grubbed 
woodland, which suits them remarkably well. An owner of 
land in this neighbourhood states that poor woodland, whose 
underwood was never worth more than 11. or SI. per acre at 
twelve or fourteen years' growth, has yielded as much as 150/. 
per acre when grubbed and planted with strawberries ; but this 
was in the earlier, palmy days of strawberry growing. Clay 
lands suits strawberry-plants best, though they grow fairly well 
upon sandy soils, but do not bear much fruit after three years. 
On the clay they come into full bearing at the expiration of 
three years, and continue to be fairly productive for six years 
or so. Strawberry-plants are propagated by the long runners 
which cover, and strike root in, the ground in the autumn. 
When it is desired to obtain young plants, these runners are 
not cut away as usual directly after the fruit has been picked, 
but are left until small rootlets have been formed at their joints, 
and then taken up and planted. The price for these is about 
5s. per 1000. The chief sorts planted are, the British Queen, 
one of the best strawberries, of great size and fine flavour ; 
Keen's Seedling ; Princess Alice, an early sort ; Comte de Paris, 
an early strawberry and an excellent bearer ; the Elton Pine ; 
Goliath, one of the best sorts for culture on a large scale ; 
Eleanor, described by Dr. Hogg as " able to endure drought 
without material injury " ; and Sir Joseph Paxton, a large, 
prolific sort. Previous to planting, the land is well manured 
and hand-dug to get a level surface, which ploughing and har- 
rowing would not obtain. The plants are set in rows 2 feet 
(3 inches wide, and about 1 foot 6 inches from plant to plant in 
the rows, giving about 10,500 plants per acre. The rows are 
put thus far apart in order that horse-hoeing may be done, and 
some growers have lately put the plants in 2 feet 6 inches apart 
each way, which would give rather less than 7000 plants per 
acre, in order that the horse-hoe might work in all directions, 
and the expense of labour be much diminished. In an esta- 
blished strawberry-plantation, the " runners " are cut away in 
the autumn, being generally used for propagation, and the land 
is dug by hand. In the spring the horse-hoes, and hand-hoes 
where the plants are set closely in the rows, are continually 
worked to keep down the weeds. Just before the fruit is 
changing its colour, the ground is covered with rough dung, or 
straw cut into 6-inch lengths, laid carefully under the plants to 
