mulched regularly never send any sandy or 
gritty berries to market. It will pay any 
man to apply from $25 to $50 worth for 
every acre in cultivation. Salt hay is the 
best, wherever obtainable, and will last two 
seasons. About ten loads to the acre will 
he needed. There is another point in fancy 
strawberry culture not. generally known, and, 
perhaps, may not be believed. After a bill 
of berries has borne for one or two seasons, 
it is well to cut olf the old leaves and Ihiit 
stalks, and permit anew top entirely to form. 
The effect is sometimes wonderful in the 
next crop, which is often the finest ever pro¬ 
duced. A neighbor, whose patch of Wil¬ 
sons had borne for three years and was very 
Adi of weeds, looking pretty well “ played 
out,” after fruiting time permitted the run¬ 
nels to run freely over the ground, and also 
the weeds and grass to grow in abundance 
for two months. Then taking down his 
scythe, he went into the field and mowed 
everything, from beginning to end. lie sup¬ 
posed the plants would die out, and in their 
place next spring there would be a good 
patch of grass. To his astonishment, next 
spring he hud the largest and lincsL berries, 
as well as the most prodigious crop ever 
known. This practice is a common one 
among many English gardeners, whose fruit 
grounds are celebrated for their beauty, ex¬ 
cellence, and productiveness of the fruit. It 
is a practice we cannot yet recommend here 
for general trial, until we know a lit tle more 
about the best time and best manner to do it, 
but the theory is very plain. It relieves the 
plant of the incubus of its old leaves and 
fruit stalks, now nearly exhausted, and while 
the roots are still in full vigor, it forms new 
tops and sets for the coming year. It seems 
to be a very reasonable and proper prac¬ 
tice, as much so as the pruning of trees 
and shrubs. 
Profits. 
The profits of strawberry culture have 
been greatly exaggerated. I have no doubt 
many will support me in the assertion that 
no branch of rural industry demands so 
much time, labor, capital, and yet. is so un¬ 
certain as fruit culture. Production varies 
exceedingly. On the light lands south of 
us the average number of quarts per acre is 
about 1,000. Very few fields average over 
1,500. Prices, too, have been fluctuating 
and unremunerative. It is likewise impos¬ 
sible to provide for the safe arrival of fruit 
in market, and every cultivator must expect 
a good share of losses and disappointments 
in the course of each season. My field ol 
four acres is well attended to in every re¬ 
spect, yet I lose from $200 to $300 yearly in 
spoiled fruit. Seasons, too, are often disas¬ 
trous. A wet season will cause the fruit to 
Plum ins. 
In the latitude of New York, and north¬ 
ward, the spring is the only favorable sea¬ 
son for planting. The plants will have the 
advantage of the spring rains, get well 
started, grow finely, and produce a good 
crop the succeeding spring. Fall planting 
in this climate is more, often a failure, the 
plants not often liviug through the winter, 
nor having any crop the next season. But 
south of here, say below Philadelphia, fall 
gardeners, who can devote time to a small 
spot of ground, manure thoroughly and cul¬ 
tivate well. It certainly cannot he made 
permanently successful on any other plan. 
While I have observed the rush into large 
strawberry farms of twenty acres or up¬ 
wards, yet the natural result, after a while, 
is to dwindle down to less than six, or else 
to be given up entirely. I advise no fruit 
grower to depend upon one crop alone, but 
to have a variety, one succeeding the other. 
Even then I would not, depend upon fruit 
exclusively, but would have a little extra 
land, on which to grow food to support, the 
family, horse and cattle, if the fruit crops 
should fail. Manure is one of his most im¬ 
portant items. He will need immense quan¬ 
tities, and it must be made at, borne. Every 
dollar spent off the farm for manure di¬ 
minishes I he profits. To make the business 
truly successful, every grower must endeavor 
to secure a home market, as well as a distant 
one. 
Varieties. 
After cultivating a large number of old 
and new varieties, 1 have thinned my list 
down to the following:—For market,, Wil¬ 
son, Jucunda, Triomphe de Hand, to which 
I might add for trial the Barnes Mammoth. 
All that a market berry needs is good size, 
firm flesh and deep red color. Flavor is of 
minor consequence. The Wilson is our 
main reliance. The Triomphe de Gaud 
pays with line treatment, heavy soil and 
good prices. The Jucunda is doing better 
every year, as Mr. Knox’s system becomes 
better understood. The Fillmore is hardly 
second to the Jucunda. They must he 
grown only in bills, and the runners vigor¬ 
ously clipped. 
For family, in addition to the above I 
would select the Green Prolific, Russell’s 
LATE PROLIFIC STRAWBERRY, 
Tuts strawberry received a premium 
offered at Buss’ late straw berry exhibition 
for “ the best seedling having a perfect 
flower, never before exhibited, and in the 
opinion of the Judges worthy of cultivation 
as a market variety.” We give herewith an 
illustration which fairly shows the charac¬ 
teristic of the fruit so far as form and size 
are concerned. The fruit, is large, compact, 
round, nearly as firm as Wilson, brighter 
and darker crimson than Jucunda, retains 
color well, is attractive. It hasno fragrance 
and no high flavor, though iL will please 
many in this respect. It is not acid ; hasno 
neck; uniform in size, and so far as appear¬ 
ances go, is likely to become a profitable 
fruit in market. The plants arc strong, 
healthy, and for two years have proven 
hardy aL Irvington, N. the only point 
where it has been tested. I t is regarded by 
strawberry eullurista hereabouts as a prom¬ 
ising berry, with distinct characteristics. 
DUC D’AUMALE, 
We think our specimen of this pear was 
from Mr. Wilder, under name of the 
Gedcon Paridant, a name which Downino 
gives as a synonym to Due d’Aunmle, hut 
a name to he found nowhere else in the pub¬ 
lished works of any author. It is not a 
large pear, but ils vigorous growth and pro¬ 
ductive habit call for it a trial among those 
who love and arc willing to test fruits for 
the benefit of their fellow men. 
Fruit medium, blunt, acute pyriform, pale 
yellow green ground, mostly overspread 
with russet, tracings, and in the sun becom¬ 
ing brownish red, with many dark dots; 
stem long, rathe* Stout, a medium size, in¬ 
serted by a flight lip; calyx irregular, with 
short round consecutive segments; basin 
very shallow, with slight ridges; flesh gran¬ 
ular, almost melting, very rich, sweet and 
juicy; almost, if not quite, best; core very 
small; season, middle of September. 
STRAWBERRY CULTURE, 
and a half feet apart. I think it a decided 
injury to put plants too close, together. 
Their roots need considerable space to ram¬ 
ble round in, and I am satisfied the more 
room we give our plants the stronger will 
be our stools and the greater the productive¬ 
ness. An acre of plants, in bills two feet 
apart, will yield twice as much as one where 
the plants are a foot apart (manure and cul¬ 
tivation being the same.) The Stilsou is a 
variety sure, to bear under any sort of treat¬ 
ment; but the Jucunda and Triomphe de 
Gaud, and, in general, all first-class choice 
varieties must he grown in hills aud kept 
well trimmed. 
Cultivation. 
Keep the cultivator stirring every week 
the first year. Keep down the weeds and 
grass, or you will lose your berries; clip off 
the runners constantly. The effect of this 
practice is wonderful; the plants having 
now no interference from weeds,nor runners 
to support, make a line growth, form large 
shoots, and are able to mature large quanti¬ 
ties of fine berries. Strawberries must not 
be left to take care of themselves. Every 
fall, just as the ground freezes, cover the 
field completely with mulch. This consists 
simply of salt hay, straw, leaves, or c hopped 
cornstalks. I consider this the most impor¬ 
tant of all points in the culture of berries. 
It prevents the plants from being injured by 
the winter weather, it protects the soil from 
scorching suu in the time of drouth, it often 
doubles the crop of fruit by supplying mois¬ 
ture and coolness to the roots of the plauts, 
while it also keeps the fruit from contact 
with the earth, aud assists in rapid ripening 
and fine coloring. Plantations that are 
DUC ll'AUMALE I’EAR. 
teres! on cost, and a profit of from $100 to 
$200 per acre per annum. Our neighbors 
call us very lucky, for none of them arc able 
to approximate these figures. I believe the 
average profits in Delaware are not over 
$150 per acre, while iu South Jersey they 
will run from $100 down to zero—more fre¬ 
quently the latter. I do not believe in stiaw- 
berriee as a farm crop by ordinary farmers. 
With them it is generally a failure, and it is 
DUC D’AUMALE PEAR — OUTLINE. 
plants, well planted and established, will 
give the grower, with their runners, a better 
stock for his bed or plantation, than 3,000 
obtained at a cheap rate. Every time 1 have 
purchased cheap stock l have lost money, 
and it is well for till beginners to avoid it if 
they would be successful. They must un¬ 
dertake less work, but do it more thoroughly. 
