THE W. F. ALLEN CO., SALISBURY, MD. 
A large percentage of our plants are grown in new land where they reach their highest development 
Cultural Directions 
Strawberries will thrive in any type of soil that is not dry sand or waterlogged clay. They will often 
give good crops in soils that have been given poor preparation. But, like other crops, they respond quickly 
to good cultivation. 
One ot the first essentials in producing a crop of berries is plenty of moisture. Springy land that is well 
drained is therefore the best type of soil. But on other types water can be conserved by cultivation or 
by mulching, or in most cases there may be enough natural rainfall at fruiting time. 
Preparing the Land 
Potatoes, tomatoes, beans, cabbage, and other 
truck crops usually leave the ground in excellent 
condition for Strawberries. This is because they 
are kept well cultivated for a good part of the season 
and are usually well manured and fertilized. All 
of this is good for the Strawberry crop following. 
Also any of the leguminous crops, such as clovers, 
beans, peas, vetches, etc., are excellent to precede 
Strawberries. They add humus and nitrogen to the 
soil. Barnyard manure is the very best fertilizer for 
Strawberries and it is sometimes spread broadcast 
over the land before plowing, with very good results. 
The manure or cover crops should be plowed under 
in the fall or as early in the spring as possible and 
the soil thoroughly harrowed. Rolling the ground 
is sometimes desirable, where the soil is lumpy or 
heavy; it also firms the soil and helps to conserve 
moisture. An advantage of having a cover crop to 
turn under is that it keeps out many of the weeds 
and leaves the ground cleaner, necessitating much 
less hoe-work. In all cases, sod land should be 
avoided for Strawberries, as the white grubs winter 
over in such land and cut off young plants when set 
the following spring. If you have no other land 
available, plow the land during the fall and many 
of the grubs will be killed out during the winter. 
Time to Plant—Important 
The best time to plant depends largely on where 
you are located. In the South the best time to plant 
is in the late fall (November) or early winter 
(December) months, but in the South the plants 
are also set successfully in February and March, 
and this time of year is preferred by many growers. 
In the middle states early spring (March and the 
first half of April) is the best time to plant. In some 
cases the plants are set in late fall — but this is done 
where the ground is not subject to severe heaving 
and where they can be protected by mulch during 
the winter. The main reason why it is done at 
this time is that the work may be done and out of 
the way of other spring work, which cannot be done 
in the fall. 
In the North plant in early spring, by all means. 
Plant just as early as you can get on the ground, to 
give the plants as long a growing season as possible 
and to have the plants set and growing before hot, 
dry weather comes on. Be sure to have your plants 
on hand when you are ready for them. Order the 
plants shipped early and when they arrive, if you 
can’t plant them at once, heel them in for a few 
days in some protected place, until the land is 
prepared for planting. Here’s what one man did. 
“Catalog received and is carefully studied from cover to 
cover. Yes, I ordered plants of you before with excellent suc¬ 
cess. Being so far north, I ordered them the latter part of 
March. Buried them in a big snowbank on the north side of a 
building; there they kept in fine shape for several weeks until 
ground was ready to plant.” (Signed) J. Scott Ward, Emmet 
County, Michigan. 
We repeat that it is very important to have the 
plants on hand when the ground is just right for 
planting. To do this, be sure to order the plants 
from a nursery where they can be shipped as early 
as you want them. We often have quite severe 
winters, but luckily the ground opens up early in 
the spring and we can get all orders off promptly. 
Order early, to be sure of getting what you want, and 
have them shipped early (April I to April 15 ) so 
they will be on hand when wanted for planting. 
Early spring planting is the safest, most economical, 
and most successful season for setting Strawberry 
plants in the North. 
See parcel-post table on third cover, if you wish plants sent by mail 
