L. J. FAJRMEB, PULASKI, OSWEGO COUNTY, N. Y. 
have a largre stock of plants to sell. We heard I 
a little about It in 1912, we hear a great deal 
about it in 1913. I claim that Mr. Cooper and 
Mr. Rockhill would have made scarcely anything 
out of their fall bearing varieties if it had not 
been for my efforts. When I became thoroughly 
convinced of the value of the Francis and Ameri- 
cus in the fall of 1910, I asked a rich seedsman, 
a man who is rated in the millions, to go in with 
me and buy the entire stock of these two varieties. 
His reply was that the public did not take to fall 
bearing strawberries, that their experience wMth 
French everbearing kinds had killed their con- 
lidence in them. This is how the proposition was 
viewed by the average nurseryman. 
As early as 1910, I begun writing articles about 
the fall bearing berries. My articles have been 
nrlnted in nearly every horticultural paper extant. 
In the fall of 1911, I wrote a booklet for the 
Farm Journal Company which they called “Fall 
Bearing Strawberry Secrets.’* I revised and 
brought down to date my own book “Farmer on 
the Strawberry” devoting nearly half of its 100 
pages to a full discussion of the fall bearing 
f23 
WHAT I THINK OF THE VARIETIES. 
I have always told the truth about varieties. I 
am going to tell it now. 
The AM£BICUS is the best variety for the gen¬ 
eral public. It does best on very rich, strong soil. 
On clay it is much larger than on ary other kind 
of soil. The berries are medium to large in size, 
light colored and good shippers. The flavor is 
unsurpassed. It is the flnest flavored berry I 
have ever tasted. A shortcake made from 
Americus in September is a dish fit for a king. 
The plants are glossy leaved, healthy, deep rooted 
and endure the drouth better than most any 
strawberry. When it is so dry that common 
strawberries succumb, the Americus lives and 
grows finely. The plants are very productive. 
The FBANCIS is the wery best variety in the 
hands of a careful expert. It is my personal 
favorite. One of Napoleon’s soldiers was being 
probed for a bullet that had lodged very near 
his heart. As the surgeon was working over him 
and the soldier could feel that he was getting 
very near to his vital organ, he said: “One inch 
deeper, doctor, and you will find the Emperor.” 
Showing L. J. Farmer with help and the 
of importance made 
strawberry. Since the season of 1909, I have 
issued from 75,000 to 175,000 catalogues each 
year, a large part of their space being devoted 
to the fall bearing strawberries. In 1911, 1912. 
1913 and 1934, I have advertised in the farm and 
other papers of this country to the extent of 
over $10,000.00. I have spent more money in 
advertising Fall Bearing Strawberries than all 
other nursery firms combined. I have done more 
to make them popular than alf others combined. 
I hastened their popularity and general cultiva¬ 
tion several years by my writings, talks before 
horticultural gatherings and advertising. Whether 
others saw the great possibilities of these berries 
as early as I did or not, I do not know; certain 
it is, they did not make it known to the general 
public. My pushing caused a great sale of plants, 
and Mr. Rockhill was enabled to collect several 
thousand dollars in royalties. Mr. Cooper has 
also done well in the sale of his varieties. The 
nurserymen who have planted and sold the fall 
bearing berries have all prospered. Growers who 
have planted them for berries have made a good 
thing. It has been a good thing all around. The 
end is not yet. 
last picking of Fall Bearing Strawberries 
October 30th, 1912. 
The Francis occupies much the same relative 
position with me that the Emperor Napoleon 
occupied in the chest of the poor French soldier. 
The average person will not succeed with the 
Francis because it is a small inferior plant when 
young and requires the most extraordinary care 
and petting. 
The roots are short, and the plants suffer terri¬ 
bly during excessive drouths the second season. 
If the plants are re-set every j'ear, given clean 
culture and plenty of hand hoeing, they will per¬ 
form wonders on very rich soil. I believe I 
could grow ten thousand (luarts to the acre In 
the fall, of the first year, on very rich soil. Some¬ 
times the plants are good runners and at other 
times they all run to stools. The berries are 
larger than other kinds of fall bearing straw¬ 
berries. are irregular in shaoe, but very glossy 
and attractive, and show off finely in market. 
FBOQS>x:SSrvi:. This variety makes more 
plants and produces more berries under average 
conditions than any other fall bearing strawberry. 
The plants are small and closely resemble Senator 
Dunlap which is one of its parents. They are 
deep rooted and stand drouth well. The berries 
are medium in size, very much the shape of Dun- 
