1863.] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
341 
the application. As there must be some limit, 
we know of no better one than to make the 
distribution to subscribers for volume XXIII, 
(1864). We therefore repeat. 
The plants are offered free to ALL persons receiving 
the Agriculturist for 1864, (exchanges included ), xvho 
apply for them, if there he plants enough for all, and 
if not, the plants will he sent as far as they go to 
those first applying, in the order of the receiving of the 
names for 1864 —the only charge being the cost of 
postage and oil cloth (5 cents) as above. 
A single plant can be rapidly multiplied to 
hundreds. We once made about 1200 plants in 
a single year from 6 plants that had been ten 
Fig. 3. 
days in reaching us. They had met with such 
hard usage that only six lived out of a dozen 
received, and those were very weak. It will be 
seen then, that our mode of distribution will 
soon scatter them over the whole country, as 
we have subscribers at more than three-fourths 
of all the Post Offices in the Loyal States, and 
in the British Provinces. 
The plants are not offered as prizes, but rather 
as a gift to all subscribers wfio receive tho 
Agriculturist for 1864. If any present subscribers 
prefer to be among the first on the list, they 
can do so by sending in their subscriptions now 
for the next year, to begin when their present 
subscriptions close. New subscribers, beginning 
at the middle of the present volume, will go on 
the same list. 
IT. B. —All persons sending in subscriptions will 
confer a special favor by stating whether their names 
are already on our books. It will save us much extra 
labor in arranging the names upon the mail hooks. 
Good Strawberries—At Least Two Bushels 
for Every Family. 
Yes, two bushels of good delicious fruit, the 
berries larger than walnuts. A single rod of 
ground, a few hours’ work, and 25 to 50 cents 
for plants to start with, will do it. We wish 
we could impress this fact* so strongly upon 
every family in the land that they would set 
about the work at once. Everybody loves 
strawberries; they are grateful to the taste, and 
healthful. They will grow wherever corn will 
grow, and in many places where corn will not 
ripen. They are almost as easily cultivated as 
corn, and will even flourish on poorer soil. 
See here ! From June 12th to July 4tli our 
own personal rations included a quart of fine 
strawberries every day, part in the morning and 
the rest at evening. We eat much less of other 
foody and never enjoyed better health. Those 
delicious berries did not cost a cent a quart, 
aside from the picking, and the labor of picking 
was trifling, for not “ a great many made a 
quart.” Every member of the household was 
also similarly supplied, and several friends shar¬ 
ed with us. Besides, we bottled three pecks for 
next Winter, and the grocer came and bought 
enough to pay the entire expenses of the whole! 
The saving in meat and other food, to say noth¬ 
ing of health, would have paid the expenses 
three times over, if the grocer had not. All 
this came from less than four rods of ground, 
which was only set to vines last year, partly in 
September, but msmfly in April. Does any 
reader wonder that after such experience we are 
earnest in our effort to induce all the mem¬ 
bers of the Agriculturist family to grow 
strawberries if we desire to promote their 
pleasure ? Other fruits are good in their 
season, and should be under culture, but 
years of time are required to get the tree 
fruits. Strawberries set in Spring yield 
abundantly the next year, and those set 
early in Autumn yield a partial supply the 
next Spring, and are in the bight of bear¬ 
ing the year after. The next month of 
September, and the first of October is 
perhaps the best time to begin, the earlier 
the better. The last of August is a 
good time when the plants are not mov¬ 
ed fiir enough to require packing. The 
plants of good standard varieties are now 
within the reach of almost every one. Un¬ 
der the new postal law, plants go every¬ 
where to the most distant States and Territories, 
for 2 cents postage on each 4 ounces. A few cents’ 
worth of oil cloth will envelope them securely. 
We have demonstrated that they can be sent 
hundreds and even thousands of miles by mail, 
and safely, especially in the cool weather of 
Spring and Autumn. Of 40,000 plants distrib¬ 
uted by us toseubscribers last year, nearly the 
whole lived, and have already multiplied to 
millions. Our advertising columns, this month 
and the next, will doubtless tell where an abun¬ 
dance of plants can be obtained by mail. As 
noted elsewhere, next year we shall offer, free 
to all our subscribers, plants of the largest 
strawberry yet produced. But do not wait for 
that. Try your hand this year at raising some 
of the good sorts already before the public in 
abundance. There are the Triomplie de Gaud, 
the Bartlett, the Austin, the Wilson, etc., any 
one of which is better than wild diminutive 
sorts, or even the older improved kinds. A 
small sum will buy a dozen to a hundred plants. 
Any Soil Will Do .—There are only two ex¬ 
ceptions to this rule, viz., soils too sandy and 
barren to bear anything, and those subject to 
standing water. The freezing of standing water 
in Winter is apt to kill all the plants. Good 
corn ground is good for strawberries, though 
they need more water than corn to produce the 
best results. We have seen first rate crops of 
strawberries on very heavy clay land, which 
had been deeply plowed and lightened up by a 
large mixture of leached ashes, with an open 
drain or two to carry off surplus water. Any 
soil is improved for strawberries by working 
into it a good quantity of rotten manure and 
black mold from the woods. 
Strawberries Will Grow Everywhere .—We should 
hardly attempt to grow them at the North 
Pole, but they can be grown about as far north 
as civilized society extents at present, and as 
far south as the equator. North of 40° or 41°, 
a slight covering of straw is useful in Winter, 
and necessary for most varieties north of 42° 
or 44°. The main requirement is to prevent 
the destruction of the plants by freezing and 
thawing. In the moist climate of Great Britain 
the same varieties grow larger than with us, but 
inferior in flavor. They require but a short 
season of warm weather to perfect their fruit. 
Varieties .—The Wilson’s Albany is a popular 
variety, because it yields large crops of large 
and beautiful berries. For our eating it is 
too acid, when sugar is so costly as now. For 
general culture we prefer the Triomplie de Gand, 
which bears nearly as well, the fruit of bet¬ 
ter flavor, and equally as good in appear¬ 
ance, and the plants are less apt to die out 
after heavy bearing. The Austin is a great 
bearer and the fruit large, but it is not so firm, 
and not quite equal in flavor. Its prolificness, 
its hardiness, and long bearing render it worthy 
of a place in a family assortment. Two or 
three kinds are preferable to one, both for var¬ 
iety and to lengthen the season. The La Gon- 
stante is one of the most beautiful strawberries 
in appearance, is excellent flavored, and de¬ 
sirable in a collection, but plants are not very 
abundant or cheap this year. There are many 
other desirable new sorts, but we are only 
speaking now of a few of the good varieties so 
abundant as to be accessible to the millions. 
The Triomplie de Gand, the Wjlson, and the 
Austin will supply an assortment that will give 
satisfaction to the great mass of people. 
Hints on Culture. —Strawberries will grow 
without any culture; they will thrive under 
moderate care; they will repay the best atten¬ 
tion. If one has but few plants and the first 
object is to multiply them, prepare a well ma¬ 
nured plot, digging in thoroughly a free supply 
of decomposed or half decomposed manure, and 
set the plants two to three feet apart each way, 
so as to leave room for runners. The straw¬ 
berry is multiplied by runners which start out 
in every direction, and take root at the joints of 
the runners. When well rooted, the runners 
may be cut between each two new plants. A 
level surface of fine soil is best for the runners. 
If anxious to get as many plants as possible, 
put a little crotched limb, or a lump of earth, 
or a small stone, over the runner near each joint, 
so as to insure its taking root there. Usually 
this is not necessary, unless there be considera¬ 
ble wind to sway the runner and disturb the 
catching of the roots. If two or more runners 
start together, they may be moved apart, or the 
direction of one be changed so as to distribute 
the new plants well over the ground. The first 
plants formed on runners starting in July, will 
usually produce other runners during Autumn. 
If carefully transplanted in August or early in 
September, each young plant may become the 
parent of many other plants before frost. By 
this process, we have made half a dozen plants 
set in Spring, cover 500 square feet thickly with 
new plants during the same season.-The 
fruiting plot will become thickly studded with 
plants in Autumn, unless the runners be clipped 
or removed as fast as formed. In regard to 
manuring, the whole soil may be made fertile. 
We are however, pursuing the following plan 
with our New Plants. They were set 3 feet 
apart in soil moderately manured and prepared 
for other crops. Then a coat or mulch of half 
rotted manure was spread upon the surface 
around each plant, and the water applied, wash¬ 
ed some of its strength down into the soil, while 
that remaining upon the surface, acts as a mulch 
to keep the ground moist. This is one of the 
