POTTED PARKER EARLE STRAWBERRIES. 
WHERE THEY THRIVE ABUNDANTLY, 
[editorial correspondence.] 
Last year we had a picture of a scene in the straw¬ 
berry field of Mr. T. C. Kevitt, of Athenia, N. J. 
Mr. K. then told some large stories about his Parker 
Earle strawberries. One plant, for example, had 267 
berries on it! From 1,200 potted plants set August 23, 
he picked, the next spring, 1,600 quarts up to .June 27, 
with “more to follow.” 
Naturally, I was anxious to see how this thing is 
done ; so this year I took pains to be on hand when 
the berries were about at their best—June 14. From 
what was seen there, I am prepared to believe almost 
anything that can be said about the Parker Earle. 
Mr. Kevitt cultivates 18 
acres of fruits and nurs¬ 
eries. With two men to 
help him, he is able to keep 
all so clean that not a weed 
can be found. In addition 
to his big trade in nursery 
stock, he sold this year 
30,000 quarts of strawber¬ 
ries, and will have over 
40,000 next year if his plans 
mature. 
First you will ask—where 
are the weeds ? The an¬ 
swer is-—they never grew, 
because the land was not 
seeded. Mr. Kevitt is one 
of the men who saw, right 
off, the point that The 
Ii. N.-Y. made about chem¬ 
icals and clover. When he 
started in the fruit busi¬ 
ness, he saw that good 
fertilizers and plenty of 
vegetable matter in hay or 
straw would supply to his 
soil all that stable manure 
would. It wasn’t neces¬ 
sary to run that point into 
him and break it off, for he 
saw it at once. Therefore, 
he has never bought any 
stable manure ! Coarse, 
Swale hay and fertilizers, 
have done the business en¬ 
tirely. The soil, when 
originally broken up, was 
so thin and poor, that it 
would not produce 10 bush¬ 
els of corn per acre. That 
was a good thing, in one 
sense, for such land could 
not produce many weed 
seeds to curse unborn generations of strawberries. 
Therefore, when asked how three men can keep this 
place so clean, it is easy to answer, “ We never seeded 
to weeds with a manure fork ! ” 
When Mr. Kevitt visits strawberry growers who use 
manure, and finds them down on their knees pulling 
up grass and weeds from among the plants, he thinks 
more than ever of his hay and chemicals. 
If you were to ask Mr. K. how he managed to grow 
20,000 quarts of berries for sale, he would answer in 
three words: 11 Potted Parke'r Earles /” The Parker 
Earle berry is his pride. For his location and market, 
there is nothing like it yet. He has crossed Parker 
Earle with Bubach, and hopes to get a seedling with 
some improved qualities; but up to date, Parker 
Earle is good enough for him. 
All the newer varieties are carefully tried and 
propagated, but this variety does so well with him 
that he purposes to make his place the Northern head¬ 
quarters for it as grown under the best conditions. 
His chief reason for using potted plants is, that by 
thus doing, he gains one full crop from the land. For 
example, a crop of early potatoes can be grown and 
harvested by the middle of August. Then the land can 
be set with potted strawberries, which can be made to 
average nearly a quart to the plant the following 
spring, and will fruit well at least two seasons. This 
is a good argument with the man who has but a small 
area, though, of course, it would not mean so much 
to the grower with more space. As Mr. Kevitt man¬ 
ages, he prefers this system to the others. 
The plants are started by sinking two-inch pots 
filled with rich earth in the soil close to the plant. 
The young sets or runners are rooted inside these 
pots, and cut off from the parent plant. When firmly 
rooted, the pots are taken up and removed, leaving 
the plants with a little ball of earth around the roots. 
These are planted out on soil well fined and heavily 
fertilized. Mr. Kevitt’s plan is to mark out shallow 
rows or trenches 30 inches apart and three inches 
deep. The plants are set 20 inches apart in these 
rows. Clean and shallow culture is given, and the 
plant is protected as needed during the winter. Of 
course I do not pretend to say that this is the best 
plan for everybody. It just suits the conditions that 
are found at Mr. Kevitt’s place, and that is why he 
follows it. 
The berries are sold in Passaic, N. J., and there is 
a big demand for them. They are all sorted after the 
pickers, and all second-sized berries are sold by them¬ 
selves. Nothing goes into a first-class basket but 
large, firm berries. The boxes are all heaped up as 
high as they will stand. Mr. Kevitt has-invented*a 
new package for shipping fruit that is very satisfac¬ 
tory to his customers. Instead of using the ordinary 
32-quart crate, he uses a “flat ” holding 24 quart boxes 
placed side by side. This makes a big flat package, 
which a handler must carry carefully. He cannot 
throw it as he does an ordinary crate. The heaped- 
up boxes of fruit are placed in it side by side, and 
covered neatly with parchment paper. Then the top 
is fitted on, and sealed at the corners with a little slip 
bearing the name of Mr. Kevitt's place. This big flat 
enables the seller to make a beautiful display of the 
fruit—far better than can be done with a crate. All 
who have seen this flat, are delighted with it. We 
shall have a picture of it before another season. 
Of course, Mr. Kevitt will try Crimson clover. In 
his rotation, it will work 
just right. As I spoke of 
its possibilities on Mr. 
Dwyer’s place last week, 
so here it will come in 
after the last picking of 
strawberries, and make a 
big humus crop to plow 
under for potatoes—which 
may be followed by potted 
strawberries ; or the clover 
could even be cut and used 
as mulch for the berries. 
Mr. Vreeland, a neighbor 
of Mr. Kevitt, was the 
first one to sow Crimson 
clover in that locality. The 
crop was a great success, 
and when at its best, “the 
road was black with peo¬ 
ple ” coming to see it! 
One great advantage Mr. 
Kevitt has is that he is close 
to town, so that people can 
easily drive out and see the 
berries. He advertises 
them in a unique way, and 
many who use them come 
out to see how they 
grow. It is not uncommon 
for a lady to drive out in 
her carriage and take back 
one or two flats for preserv¬ 
ing. Walking about the 
place, I noticed a number 
of missing plants. 
“I sold them for $1 
each !” said Mr. Kevitt. 
“ People come here and see 
these plants loaded down 
with fruit. They know 
that their friends won’t be¬ 
lieve them when they de¬ 
scribe such a plant, so they want the plant itself to 
take back and show. Of course, when they offer me 
•fl for a single plant, I can’t refuse it! ” 
That’s the only “ big story” I shall tell about these 
plants, though there are plenty more just as big and 
just as true. I am ready to give attention to any tale 
that may be told about potted Parker Earles. 
The farmer who neglected to set a strawberry bed 
last spring, may, by the use of potted plants, start a 
bed this summer, and be pretty certain of a good crop 
within 10 months of the time of planting. Mellow, 
fertile soil, well enriched, and good, clean cultivation, 
are all that are needed, unless it be a mulch during 
the wimter. Potted plants are now so carefully packed 
that they may be shipped long distances, and by 
planting them this summer, a full year's time be 
gained over these set next spring. Have you a 
bed set? If not, better set one ! H. w. c. 
ROSA SETIGERA—MICHIGAN ROSE. Fig. 156. See Page 507. 
