1901 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
5i 
ESSENTIALS OF STRAWBERRY CULTURE. 
How It fs Done in Oswego Co., N. Y. 
THE SOIL AND ITS CARE.—The soil in which the 
strawberry attains its greatest perfection in this sec¬ 
tion seems to be a deep, rich, clay sand loam mixed 
with small stones, originally wet but underdrained. 
Our soil contains large quantities of potash, chiefly in 
the form of silicate of potash, which we are told by 
the chemist gives up its properties very slowly; hence 
our soil is strong and lasting. On account of late 
Spring frosts the best results have been attained on 
hilltops and north and east slopes. Low lands are 
as a rule avoided, both on account of frost and char¬ 
acter of soil, which being mucky or heavy clay is not 
congenial to strawberries. Fertilization is best done 
by preparing the land a year or two in advance by 
thorough tillage and the addition of something to 
make humus; if nothing better is at hand plenty of 
straw. For slow-starting varieties, a light applica¬ 
tion of nitrate of soda is of value, • but great care 
must be taken in applying it, as it is very caustic. The 
fltting of the land is of the very highest importance. 
Nothing should be spared here, as upon this prepara¬ 
tion the success or failure of the future crop depends. 
In short, it should be as flnely fltted as an onion bed, 
and furrowed. The Meeker harrow is the best tool 
known for the purpose. Marking is done by a hand- 
marker made of a tough board of bass-wood, spruce, 
etc., 10 to 12 inches wide, %-inch thick, about 12 feet 
long, fitted with a light pair of thills and little run¬ 
ners on the bottom of board at desired distances to 
mark the rows. A iine is stretched along one side 
and one end of the field, and a guide-mark made. The 
marker is then drawn carefully across the field both 
ways, thus throwing it into squares. The utmost care 
is needed here to keep the rows straight and of 
uniform distance apart. This care is amply repaid 
during the season both in appearance of field and 
ease of culture. The distances vary from 2% to 
three feet, according to varieties, individual taste 
and other conditions. 
PLANTS AND SETTING.—The plants, which 
have been grown in beds separately for that pur¬ 
pose, and not taken up between the rows, as is the 
custom with some, are carefully lifted with the 
spading fork, earth shaken out, roots straightened, 
runners and old leaves pulled opposite way, and 
while yet in bunches in the hand the roots are 
shortened back to about four inches, and tops 
sheared back as closely to the hearts as can be done 
safely. This is a much shorter way than the old 
one of trimming each plant separately. The roots 
are then dipped in water and the plants placed in 
tight boxes; shoe boxes are good. Tfever expose <> 
plant to the air a single second longer than is abso¬ 
lutely necessary. More plants are lost or seriously 
weakened in this way than any other way of which 
we know. The quicker the plants are dug and re¬ 
planted the better the chances of success. For setting 
we use long-handled spades. The man carries on his 
back a market basket with a board cover and a wet 
cloth inside, in which the plants are put. He thrusts 
his spade deeply into the ground at the cross-mark, 
pushes the handle well forward, while the dropper 
boy, who has taken a small handful of plants from 
the basket, places one or two plants in the hole thus 
made. The spade man then removes the spade and 
steps close to the plant, thus securely firming it. Care 
should be taken that the roots are well spread out in 
a fan shape, and when planted they should be as deep 
as before digging, but no deeper. A dust mulch should 
be made at once about newly-set plants. This is very 
important. 
CULTIVATION AND TRAINING.—After-cultiva¬ 
tion consists in keeping the soil well stirred to a depth 
of one or two inches but not deeper, and all weeds 
removed. A 14-tooth cultivator is a very fine tool if 
provided with three or four flat-cutting hoes like those 
shown in Fig. 23. These are made for us out of old 
wagon springs. They cut all thistles, dock and other 
weeds which may be left by the narrow teeth. Our 
experience has been that a strawberry plant should 
be as near 12 months old at the time of fruiting as 
possible. To attain this result, the runners must start 
early; consequently we set very early and encourage 
the plants to throw out runners at the very earliest 
possible moment. The largest, best and most fruit is 
always found on these early plants. The later plants 
are weak, short-rooted, and in many varieties par¬ 
tially or wholly barren, particularly those of the Mar¬ 
shall or Gandy type. The old rule was to cut off the 
first runners; this is now reversed, we cut off the 
later ones. We cultivate both ways frequently until 
the runners start freely, when we train lengthwise in 
the direction the rows are to be, placing the runners 
as shown at Fig. 23; those in front of the plant, as the 
bedder is working, to the left, those behind the plant 
to the right. This method prevents the plants from 
growing together in bunches and allows the extra 
plants to run out between the rows where they can 
be easily destroyed. Bedding is done by people on 
their knees astride of the row, using a homemade tool 
very like a wide putty knife. This bedding is, we 
think, the most important, though costly, part of the 
culture. Plants so treated are much larger and are 
far better rooted. We dare not omit it. 
During the latter part of the season we use hoes 
like the one shown at Fig. 23, which are 12 inches wide 
and two inches broad. There is a beet hoe now made, 
which, though not quite so wide, will do nicely. This 
BIG STRAWBERRIES; TOOLS AND CULTURE. Fia. 23. 
hoe can be worked under the leaves and runners, do¬ 
ing better and quicker work than any tool we have. 
Autumn hoeing and weeding is very important, for 
if not done such weeds as chickweed, etc., may seri¬ 
ously injure the plants before Spring. If plants are 
found to be too thick, or rows too wide, we do not 
hesitate to thin out severely, as a strawberry plant 
too many is the very worst kind of a weed in a straw¬ 
berry bed. Nature’s time for mulching the straw¬ 
berry is when the leaves from the trees have fallen 
and are blowing about. We can make little mistake 
THE PARAGON APPLE—FROM LIFE. Fie. 24. SEE Page 54. 
in following Nature. In covering with straw, which 
is our only covering here, great care should be taken 
that it is free from Timothy grass seed, which is one 
of the worst things to get into a bearing bed, as it is 
so fine it cannot be weeded in the Spring, and quickly 
forms a sod. We use from three to six tons of straw 
per acre, spreading it from a one-horse two-wheeled 
cart, with wheels from an old mower, the axle of 
which is five feet long. This cart runs on the outside 
of two rows, while the horse walks between them, 
thus doing no harm. In this article we have tried to 
touch upon a few of the more important parts of 
strawberry culture. In our experience of over 20 
years, each year impresses us more firmly with the 
fact that strawberry culture consists, in common with 
all the other higher divisions of horticulture, of an 
intelligent and strict attention to a mass of what the 
ordinary reader would consider unimportant details. 
If these details are not fully carried out, success rare¬ 
ly results. F. G. TICE. 
Oswego Co., N. TL_ 
THE HIRED MAN’S SIDE 
Establish a reputation for hiring good men, paying 
good wages, and paying promptly. 
Give your man just as much time on Sunday as is 
possible. Give him occasionally the use of a horse. 
A half holiday when fishing or hunting is good, will 
make him work more cheerfully, especially overtime. 
Do not talk about other help, lest your present hand 
think you are picking him to pieces to other people. 
Provide a clean room and a clean bed free from ver¬ 
min. If it is Impossible to give each man a separate 
room provide separate beds and something in which 
he can lock his things securely. 
Set a good table, have meals served promptly, and 
try to provide food for which the hired man shows a 
preference. 
Try to have his clothes washed clean, well mended 
and returned promptly to his room. In his room have 
private toilet facilities, and a pin cushion on which 
are several needles kept threaded with linen thread. 
a box of pants buttons handy, and a large brass 
thimble. 
If he is suffering with a cold or complains of other 
ailments, such as chilblains or chapped hands, offer 
him remedies from the family medicine chest free. 
Give him a chance to bathe in a warm kitchen once 
a week at least, with a large wash-tub. 
The women folks and children do well to give their 
orders through the head manager of the farm, for 
most men dislike to try to follow instruction of more 
than one master. 
Do not expect your hired man to take an interest 
in your crops, your stock and your general welfare 
unless you take enough interest in him to observe all 
and every one of these rules. J. J. g. 
FIGHTING THE PEACH BORER. 
Life on a California Fruit Ranch. 
I expected to write you about the results of our last 
year’s treatment of the Peach borer by this time, but 
other work has occupied our time, and we have not 
been able to examine many trees, but as far as our 
observation extends the result is very encouraging. 
The treatment that I refer to was the application of 
lime, salt and coal tar to the trunks of the trees, and 
extending down to the roots. This was applied to our 
orchards in the “Willows,” about 70 acres, and to all 
varieties of trees alike, including apple, apricot, 
cherry, peach and prune. Just as soon as we get at 
it again I will write you fully, and if the remainder 
of the orchards show up as well as the four or five 
acres that have been uncovered, I shall be very much 
gratified in being able to give to the fruit growers of 
the United States a pointer that will be of use to them 
in fighting this great pest. We treated about 100 
apricot trees here on this ranch with several hand¬ 
fuls of salt put in a depression Immediately about 
the trunk, and allowed to dissolve and wash down 
with the rain. No good results followed this treat¬ 
ment, as the borers were found there as badly as 
anywhere else. We have now hunted out the 
borers from all apricot trees on this ranch, and 
have applied the lime, salt and tar mixture. It is 
early to do this, but we wished to put Canker-moth 
traps on the trees, and were compelled to put on 
the wash first, as the traps when on would inter¬ 
fere with the work. 
Some of your readers may wonder what we are 
doing on the ranch at this time of the year. As 
we have about 20 men to keep busy we should have 
accomplished something in the past two months. 
Before the rains came nearly the entire force was 
at work digging borers; 200 acres of fruit trees 
have been examined, and the borers dug out. All 
of these trees except peaches and almonds have 
wire moth traps about their trunks. Part were 
put on in 1899, and part in November, 1900, but all 
had to be examined to see if they were in perfect 
order. The moths begin to ascend the trees ordinari¬ 
ly about December 1. At this time we are encouraged 
in finding very few moths in the traps, but there are 
some there, and also a few have passed through or 
over, and we have found a few eggs in the trees. Many 
of the moths, in fact, nearly all, are barren of eggs. 
We are hoping that this pest has run its course, and 
that we will not need the army of men and the barrels 
of molasses and tar and the sulphur and flour that 
were in evidence in the orchards last April. 
We have also dug up about 400 cherry trees, or 
about one-fifth of the cherry orchard, these trees hav¬ 
ing succumbed to the very dry weather of the past 
two or three Summers. These trees are dug out and 
will be cut up in four post lengths, the smaller 
branches being bound in bundles, and all will make 
fuel for the engine house. Large holes are dug, about 
3%x3% feet, and prune trees will be set therein im¬ 
mediately. We have also put in since the rains have 
softened the earth about 200 acres of barley and 
wheat. Our crew in the grainflelds consists of three 
five-horse gang plows, two four-horse harrows, one 
three-horse harrow and one seeder, two-horse. One 
four-horse team worked on a harrow part of the time, 
and on a seeder whenever needed to even up the work 
and keep near to the plows. Rainy days there is wood 
to cut from broken Live-oak trees in the park, or 
about the ranch, or Blue gum trees in the grove that 
was planted about 10 years ago and is now growing 
into wood faster than it is needed. The teamsters 
have harness to oil and mend and other odd jobs in¬ 
doors. To-day four men are shoveling over about 40 
tons of prunes, and rearranging a lot of dried peaches 
and other fruit in the fruit warehouse. h. g. k. 
Edenvale, Cal. 
The weather last Fall and Winter so far has with us 
been pleasant. Farmers got their work well done. Hay 
and straw hold their price well up; $16 to $20 per ton. I 
never had apples keep as well as this year. Eggs are 
very scarce, and hard to be obtained, and yet the price 
has fallen to 28 cents per dozen. Other products remain 
about the same. x. h. j. 
Madison. Conn. 
