554 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER*. 
July 20, 
manure put in a bag and dropped in a barrel of 
water is a convenient way to get it. It need not be 
darker than weak tea. It is to be put between the 
plants—not on them. An ounce of saltpeter dissolved 
in ten quarts of water is quite as good and far cleaner. 
There is no danger of using it too freely unless it is 
much stronger than this. I presume that a gallon to 
the square yard twice a day would do no harm. The 
TIIE MILLIONAIRE STRAWBERRY. Fig. 269. 
late E. C. Davis, of Northampton, Mass., raised berries 
as large as the average lemon, and he applied liquid 
manure two or three times a day during the growing 
period. This treatment encourages a great growth of 
runners, and they must be cut promptly. 
John F. Beaver, of Dayton, Ohio.; Joseph Haywood, 
of Ambler, Pa., and Arthur T. Goldsborough, of Wash¬ 
ington D. C, are all wonderfully successful with the 
strawberry. The largest berries on record were carried 
to Secretary Wilson by Mr. Goldsborough. Five weighed 
18 ounces and the largest one four ounces. 'These were 
the Commander, an English variety. Since then he 
raised a still heavier one of the St. Louis Prize, a seed¬ 
ling of his own. m. crawford. 
Ohio. 
Keep Them Growing. 
To grow fancy berries for fancy trade, plant New 
York, President, Oom Paul, Win. Belt, Dixon, Mar¬ 
shall and Glen Mary. To produce strawberries of 
mammoth size, so that a dozen berries will fill a quart 
basket, plants should be set out in the early part of 
August in good, rich soil and kept well cultivated dur¬ 
ing the growing season; all runners should be kept off 
the plant. t. c. kevitt. 
New Jersey. 
Using Liquid Fertilizer. 
I have never raised, in 50 years’ experimenting, straw¬ 
berries of the size of which you mention. 1 had a 
friend who in the early days of the Wilson used to tell 
of 14 berries filling a quart measure. 1 cannot tell you, 
therefore, how to do it, but if I were to try I should 
proceed as follows: I would lake the first strong run¬ 
ners from strong fruiting plants of the Dixon straw- 
't ,VO ORNAMENTS FOR A FARM LAWN. Fig. 270. 
berry (noticed in The R. N.-Y. of July 23, 1904), root 
them in pots, and as soon as established plant one in a 
place in soil containing a large proportion of rotten and 
partially rotten manure. I would allow each plant to 
make but four, five or six runners at distances limited 
only by the length of the runner stem. Cultivate thor¬ 
oughly and feed with liquid fertilizer containing 12 
per cent potash in form of sulphate or carbonate, six per 
cent nitrogen in form of soda and sulphate of ammonia, 
and four per cent soluble phosphoric acid, with a little 
magnesia and lime. Give a very coarse covering in 
Winter and feed with the solution during fruiting. 
Helped by partial shade, I should expect to see some 
enormous berries. If I should fail I would try to 
keep sweet and look into the future with hope and an¬ 
ticipation. DR. JABEZ FISHER. 
Massachusetts. 
From the Home of Dixon. 
I like to set strawberry plants for large fruit in Au¬ 
gust or early September on land well enriched with fresh 
stable manure the previous Spring. I prefer ground 
layer plants, with a little ground sticking to the roots 
if possible, in rows 2]/ 2 to three feet apart; plants 18 to 
20 inches in the rows. A little chicken manure and 
ground bone worked around the plants when growing, 
and all runners cut as fast as they appear, will help to 
make large plants. Cultivating and hoeing will have 
to be done often. In late Fall, when the ground 
freezes, I put some coarse stable manure over the 
plants; salt ha; over all when ground is frozen hard. 
In Spring, when danger of heavy freezing is over, I 
loosen and take a little of the cover away from the 
plants to give them air and a chance to grow through 
the cover. Enough is left on to keep the ground well 
shaded from hot sun and drying winds, as those large 
berries need plenty of moisture in the ground, and a dry 
cover to lie on. Weeds as they appear in the Spring 
are pulled by hand. No chemical fertilizers are used 
at any time. I have been advised to pull all blossoms, 
except two or three, from the stems to drive the sap to 
the few berries. It may be all right; I have never done 
it. I often had six to eight berries to fill a quart heap¬ 
ing full. The weather, of course, has to be right to 
ripen these large fellows. As far as my experience 
reaches, the Dixon is the only variety that will prod¬ 
uce such large berries under above-described culture 
on medium heavy clay soil. emil grafe. 
Staten Island, N. Y. 
Fussing With the Plants. 
Select one of the largest varieties of strawberries, as 
Sample, Marshall or Enormous. Set strong plants in 
early Spring, in deep, mellow, well-drained soil that is 
filled with well-rotted manure. It is well also to give 
it dressing of wood ashes, in case the soil may be acid. 
Be sure to get enough plant food in the soil, but no 
rule or directions can be given for all soils. I would 
set the plants in check rows at least two feet apart. 
Keep off all blossoms and runners; spray occasionally 
with Bordeaux Mixture, cultivating very frequently. 
Every few days scatter with the hand some high-grade 
commercial fertilizer in a ring around plants, a few 
inches from it; water when dry. Just before the ground 
freezes cover with straw. In early Spring rake the 
straw between the plants, and when the fruit stems 
grow remove all but one fruit stem on each plant and 
remove all the blossoms and buds from it but two or 
three of the largest. These are the first to set. Stir 
the ground a little around the plants with a fork hoe, 
and apply liquid manure around them every few days. 
If the weather is very hot or insects eat the berries, 
cover the plants with screen cloths to protect them. 
The results of this kind of culture should meet the re¬ 
quirements of the inquirer. w. H. jenkins. 
New York. 
HOW MANY PICKERS PER ACRE? 
Can you inform me how many ordinary pickers it will 
take to pick one acre of strawberries (an average crop) ? 
Will it take more or less pickers for an acre of blackberries, 
also an acre of black raspberries? I am thinking of going 
into small fruit, but where my land is there are very few to 
be hired, and I wish to know how few would do. 
St. Louis. w. s. C. 
It is rather difficult to answer the question of W. S. 
C. in few words, since there is such a difference in 
pickers. An expert would pick four or five bushels 
while an amateur was picking one. Large berries in 
the hill system can be picked more rapidly than smaller 
ones in matted rows. Some varieties, like Marshall, 
Sample, Aroma, Gandy, Brandywine, Nic Ohmer, etc., 
hold their fruit up well from the ground and can be 
picked more rapidly than such varieties as Haverland, 
Wm. Belt and others with longer fruiting stems. Most 
of my berries were in hills or open hedge-rows, and 
three or four good pickers would pick an acre if picked 
every day. But in the midst of the harvest, if many of 
the pickers are young amateurs it will require twice 
that number; and if the berries are in wide, matted 
rows the number would have to be nearly doubled again. 
If the berries are properlv picked, that is, with a portion 
of the stem left on and each berry placed in the basket 
before the next is picked, it will require more time than 
if pulled off and placed in the basket by handfuls. In 
a new neighborhood where there will be no experienced 
pickers it will not be safe to calculate on less than six 
or seven pickers not younger than 14 or 15 years of 
age for an acre of hills or hedge-rows. Then there 
should be one experienced picker to teach and super¬ 
intend the others. I pick my blackberries and rasp¬ 
berries three times a week, and it requires about one- 
half that number of pjekers. Currants require rather 
more. If the briers are properly headed back they will 
not only produce more, but can be more rapidly picked, 
and picked by younger persons. Let me suggest to 
W. S. C. that if he expects to employ girls or women 
to pick the brier berries he should provide aprons and 
sleeve protectors made of some hard, smooth material, 
or enameled goods, upon which the briers will not take 
hold, and gloves with ends of the fingers ripped and 
i 
KEVITT'S NEW SEEDLING. Fig. 271. 
turned back half wav, so as to protect the hand and 
yet allow the fingers to grasp the berry. A belt should 
be provided with one or two holders in front to hold 
the baskets, so that both hands can be used in picking 
and handling the briers. I. A. thayer. 
ORNAMENTS FOR A FARMER’S LAWN. 
I enclose you a picture of a Junior Bassett, with a 
Spiraea Van Houttei for background, shown in Fig. 
270. Either one makes a good ornament for the lawn, 
but I think I prefer the boy, as we have him the year 
round. He says he is going to be a farmer and will 
doubtless take The R. N.-Y. some day. w. a. bassett. 
New York. 
R. N.-Y.—There ought not to be any argument about 
the better of these two “ornaments.” 
PROMISING SEEDLING.—Fig. 271 shows in nat- 
ular size a seedling strawberry grown by T. C. Kevitt, of 
New Jersey. It bore a good crop this year, and the 
quality is excellent_ 
SAN JOSE SCALE ON FRUIT . 
Young scale will be born from mature female scales 
for some time after apples have been picked (just how 
long I do not know), but doubt if the new-born young 
COSGROVE AND ONE OF IIIS WYANDOTTES. Fig. 272. 
scales will mature and reproduce young on picked fruit. 
I consider the possibility of spreading it on fruit very 
remote and very much doubt if there is an authentic 
instance of its speading in that way. I do not consider 
the marketing of infested fruit dangerous, and believe 
that the Oregon law mentioned will have no influence 
upon the spread of this pest, but will tend to better 
spraying and more complete controlling of it in the 
orchard if growers know that only clean fruit can be 
sold. I doubt if such a law would be wise in the East 
at the present time. b. d. van buren. 
