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TIME TO PLANT. 
In regions where the rainfall is ample, beds are set in 
early spring, and from the last of August to the middle of 
September, though by far the greater part are planted in March and 
April. Under irrigation, plants may be set at any time from March 
to October, but even here, where water can generally be had when 
needed, if a plantation of any size is to be made, we would recom¬ 
mend spring as the best season to set. It is reasonable tliat all per¬ 
ennials will bear transplanting better early in spring, while in a 
dormant state, than during the growing period. In March and 
April the ground is generally quite moist, often to such an extent 
that it is not necessary to irrigate at time of planting, an item worth 
considering when a large patch is to be set. In early spring, the 
weather being cool, the plants never wilt, as they often do when set 
in summer, but soon take root and grow; furthermore, plants are 
much stronger and better rooted in the spring than in the summer. 
For summer or fall planting, it is generally difficult to get enough 
plants that are well rooted, without a great loss, as many at that 
time are not sufficiently established to support themselves when 
severed from the older plants, and, as a result, are lost. Of course, 
pot-grown plants can be procured, but these will be found to be quite 
expensive when several thousand are required. There are two sys¬ 
tems of cultivation practiced in strawberry culture, the matted row 
and the hill, but the former method is more generally adhered to. 
Where matted rows are desired, rows are marked off to 4 feet 
apart, and the plants set in the rows 18 to 24 inches apart, requir¬ 
ing 5,500 to 8,700 plants to set an acre. All runners should be cut or 
pinched off until the first week in July, as the parent plants will be 
stronger if not allowed to spend their energies in producing runners 
before they are well established. With such varieties as Crescent 
and Warfield, rapid plant producers, it would be well to keep the 
runners cut a week longer. An ideal matted row is one in 
which the plants are evenly distributed, 4 or 5 inches apart, in 
beds 18 to 24 inches wide. In hill culture, which is the more in¬ 
tensive method, plants are set 12 inches apart, in rows 2J to 3 feet 
apart, requiring 12,000 to 14,000 plants to the acre. No runners are 
allowed to form at any time, and, as a result, remarkably strong, 
healthy plants, wdth numerous w^ell-developed fruit crowms, are ob¬ 
tained. Picking is more easily done when grown in hills Both 
systems have strong advocates. Some varieties succeed best when 
growm in hills, others do best in matted rows. It would be w^ell for 
growlers to test the two systems for themselves. 
METHODS OF PLANTING. 
In the East, where large areas are devoted to growing 
this fruit, lists or ridges are made with a one-horse plow, by 
