STRAWBERRIES. 
DIRECTIONS FOR CULTURE. 
The Soil and its Preparation.—The Strawberry may be successfully grown in any soil adapted 
to the growth of ordinary field or garden crops. The ground should be well prepared by trenching or 
plowing, at least eighteen or twenty inches deep, and be properly enriched as for any garden crop. It is 
unnecessary to say that, if the land is wet, it must be thoroughly drained. 
To Cultivate the Strawberry.—For family use we recommend planting in beds four feet wide, 
with an alley two feet wide between. These beds will accommodate three rows of plants, which may 
stand fifteen inches apart each way, and the outside row nine inches from the alley. The beds can be 
kept clean, and the fruit can be gathered from them without setting the feet upon them. 
Culture in Hills.—This is the best mode that can be adopted for the garden. To obtain fine, 
large, high-flavored fruit, pinch off the runners as fast as they appear, repeating the operation as often 
as may be necessary during the summer and early autumn. Every runner thus removed produces a 
new crown, and in the fall the plants will have formed large bushes or stools, on which the finest 
strawberries may be expected the following season. In the meantime, the ground among the plants 
should be kept clear of weeds, and frequently stirred with a hoe or fork. 
Covering in Winter.—Where the winters are severe, with little snow for protection, a slight 
covering of leaves or litter, or the branches of evergreens, will be of great service. This covering 
should not be placed over the plants until after the ground is frozen, usually from the middle of Novem¬ 
ber till the first of December in this locality. Fatal errors are often made by putting on too much and 
too early. Care must also be taken to remove the covering in the spring, just as soon as the plants 
begin to grow. 
Mulching to Keep the Fruit Clean.—Before the fruit begins to ripen, mulch the ground around the 
plants with short hay or straw, or grass mowings from the lawn, or anything of that sort. This 
will not only keep the fruit clean, but will prevent the ground from drying or baking, and thus lengthen 
the fruiting season. Tan-bark can also be used as a mulch. 
A bed managed in this way will give two full crops, and should then be spaded or plowed down, a 
new one in the meantime having been prepared to take its place. 
To Ascertain the Number of Plants Required for an Acre.—The number of plants required for an acre, 
at any given distance apart, may be ascertained by dividing the number of square feet in an acre 
(43,560), by the number of square feet given to each plant, which is obtained by multiplying the dis¬ 
tance between rows by the distance between the plants. Thus, strawberries planted three feet by one 
foot, give each plant three square feet, or 14,520 plants to the acre. 
YOUNG STRAWBERRY PLANTS LAYERED IN POTS. 
POT=GROWN STRAWBERRY PLANTS. 
Ready for Shipment after July 15th. 
Of late this kind of plant has become very popular, and is almost exclusively employed for garden 
planting;. The failures are few, and much care and labor are avoided. We grow the plants in thumb 
Dots and when they are well established and ready to ship, we turn them out of the pots, preserving 
5?e tan of e««", aro y „nd the roots and wrapping it in paper. In this wav f d™„g the hottest weather m 
Inlv and August plants can be transported safely and transplanted satisfactorily. 
Plants seTout in July or August will yield a moderate crop next season. 1 hese cannot be sent by 
mail. 
