1910. 
THE RURAE NEW-YORKER 
HOG 
THE KEVITT STRAWBERRY SYSTEM. 
It seems to me that the Kevitt system 
is the same in principle as spacing plants 
in the thinly matted row. If you in¬ 
crease the distance between plants to ad¬ 
mit of horse labor you “lose” the sys¬ 
tem and are practicing pure hill culture. 
Hill culture has never been a success on 
this farm, the clipping of runners causes 
the plants to overbear; the plant weakens 
at fruiting time and most of the berries 
are unmarketable. The nearest we have 
come to the Kevitt system has been three 
rows of plants one foot apart each way, 
using* about 20 varieties in the experi¬ 
ment. Some kinds did extremely well, 
others seemed to resent the clipping, and 
were not as good as when grown in the 
matted rows. Strawberry plants are of 
a social nature. They like to be in touch 
with one another. The plants in the 
inner rows, although not yielding heav¬ 
ily by their shade, mulch protection, etc., 
seem necessary to the best development 
of the outer rows. Kevitt seems to have 
demonstrated that tremendous crops of 
berries can be grown by this method; 
few growers, however, will have the 
courage to practice it. The risk is too 
great. A late frost, a drought or exces¬ 
sive moisture, which are the rule rather 
than the exception, will mean a serious 
loss of labor and capital. To get the most 
out of this method the patch should be 
retained for a number of years to save 
expense of plants and planting. 
New Jersey. j. e. kuhns. 
WHEN TO FERTILIZE ASPARAGUS. 
L. Jj., Factoryvilie, Pa .—I wish to apply 
fertilizer to au asparagus bed. I think it 
should have been done right away after the 
cutting season was over, hut was neglected. 
Would it do to wait till later in the Fall 
after the tops arc mowed oil’, or would 
it be better to put it on at once? The 
tops are heavy now, and it would be 
harder to scatter the fertilizer between the 
rows, but I would do it if better than it 
would he late in the Fall. 1 have given 
the bed a good dressing of stable and hen 
manure every season. About how much 
acid phosphate and muriate of potash 
do you advise? There is about half au acre 
of asparagus. 
Ans. —I should not apply plant food 
to an asparagus bed at this time of year. 
We often spread manure on the beds 
in the Fall and Winter, but do not mow 
the tops. We let our tops stay on till we 
wheel-harrow them in when we fix the 
bed in the Spring. The tops hold the 
snow and keep the ground from blow¬ 
ing; in fact, are a readymade “cover 
crop.” We never burn the tops, but 
work them into the soil as above. Ma¬ 
nure is best applied in the Fall, and 
commercial fertilizer or chemicals in the 
Spring. We do not think it pays to put 
our plant food on at too many times, 
but mix and make one application do. 
As to acid phosphate and muriate of pot¬ 
ash, I generally apply from 300 to 500 
pounds of muriate per acre. I would not 
use acid phosphate, but get basic slag if 
possible. The phosphoric acid in slag is 
good, the cost reasonable, and besides 
you get a lot of lime, and, by the way, 
if asparagus growers will only use a ton 
of lime to the acre they will see a won¬ 
derful improvement in their beds. The 
tests at the Experiment Station here 
have not been completed, but we find that 
the asparagus plant likes potash in the 
form of muriate and also lime. If basic 
slag is used us a source of phosphoric 
acid try 600 to 800 pounds to the acre. 
Massachusetts. c. w. rrescott. 
Late Planted Strawberries. 
G. Tj. If., Ephrata, Pa .—Would straw¬ 
berry plants set in August yield much of a 
crop next Spring? To what extent would 
it be advisable to use plants fron) a bed 
started in the Spring for next Spring 
fruiting? 
Ans. —They never have with us. We 
usually get large plants, but only one 
spray of fruit in the following season. 
This late planting can follow an early 
garden or fruit crop, and in that way 
occupy the land and make some gain, 
but we should not expect a paying crop 
of berries next year. 
Wintering Spinach. 
C. T. N., Pleasant Valley, Conn. —Will 
spinach winter-kill on land where rye does, 
and what time in the Fall should it be 
sown for early Spring cutting? How large 
should the plants get before Winter comes 
on? 
Ans. —Fall-sown spinach in sections 
north of central New Jersey is some¬ 
times a very disappointing crop, and un¬ 
certain to carry through the Winter. It 
will, however, depend somewhat on the 
time of planting and the condition of the 
soil. Good spinach can be grown only 
on rich soil, and if the seed is sown too 
early it matures its foliage before the 
cold weather sets in, the leaves turn yel¬ 
low. and have but little vitality, and it 
kills out badly. If sown too late it will 
not attain size before freezing weather, 
and in consequence will heave by the 
frost. Here in central New Jersey we 
aim to plant about September 20, and 
we prefer to plow the ground a week or 
10 days in advance of the time of plant¬ 
ing, thus allowing the rains to firm the 
soil below the surface and retain mois¬ 
ture at planting time. When we are 
ready to plant we harrow and level the 
soil on the surface, making a mellow 
seed bed to the depth of two or three 
inches, then sow the seed in rows one 
foot apart, leaving every sixth row un¬ 
sown. This method of planting will 
form beds of desirable width so they 
can be worked from either side to good 
advantage. If the seed has been sown 
too thickly it should be thinned out to 
about two and three inches in the rows. 
Cultivate and stir the soil thoroughly to 
allow it to make about two-thirds of its 
size or growth by the time the ground 
freezes. If we expect good results we 
should then cover the beds with marsh 
hay for protection. This should remain 
on the ground until growth starts in the 
Spring, then remove the mulch and stir 
the soil, and apply a top-dressing of 
nitrate of soda between the rows. This 
will give color to the foliage and com¬ 
plete its growth. We have found Savoy 
and Round Leaf the best for Fall plant¬ 
ing. T. M. WHITE. 
Monmouth Co., N. J. 
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— ^ 
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