Keiih’s Way to Grow 
Profitable Crops of Strawberries 
The growing of strawberries is not even difficult when you follow Keith's ways. Read care¬ 
fully the following general information, and set Keith's strong, healthy “vitalized" plants and you 
will pick more and better berries than you have ever picked before. Save this catalogue and you 
will then have this information. 
Soils. Any soil that grows a good paying 
crop of corn, oats, potatoes, etc., will grow straw¬ 
berries successfully, but the most ideal is a rich, 
moist, cool, sandy loam. Gravelly or clay loams 
will also grow them successfully, but more or¬ 
ganic matter has to be added to make them 
more open and workable. Organic matter can be 
applied in the form of straw, fodder, leaves, 
etc.—the more decayed, the better. 
Regardless to the kind of soil they are set in, 
the plant should never be allowed to want for 
water and food. Keep them alw^ays in a thrifty, 
vigorous condition. Since Moisture is one of the 
necessary requisites for successful berry culture, 
select, when possible, a rich sandy loam soil un¬ 
derlaid to a depth of one to two feet with a 
“water sand.” Such a soil is always moist and 
cool. 
Soil Prcpsiirsition. Thorough preparation 
is very essential. It should be done as far in ad¬ 
vance of planting as possible. Freshly prepared 
soil, left in an open loose condition at time of 
planting, will not hold moisture like soil prepared 
early and allowed time to settle. 
With the exception of heavy soils, it is well 
to prepare soil late the Fall before, by plowing 
or spading it 8 to 10 inches deep and allowing 
it to remain in a rough, unharrowed condition 
over winter. Early the following spring, it should 
be deeply disked, harrowed and made smooth 
and ready for planting. By following this system 
the sandy loams or lighter soils will be in the 
best condition for successful results. 
Where it is found necessary to prepare soil in 
the spring, do so as far as possible in advance 
of planting. Apply a liberal amount of manure 
and plow or spade 8 to 10 inches deep. Follow 
plowing with a clod crusher or roller, then disk, 
harrow and roll until the soil-bed is firm. Disk 
or harrow often enough thereafter to keep the 
soil well worked up and free from weeds, and 
just before planting, smooth the surface for con¬ 
venience in marking out rows and planting 
An early, thoroughly prepared soil pays big. 
Don’t neglect this essential. 
Enriching the Soil, if you are to grow 
2 quarts of berries where 1 was grown before, 
give the plants twice as much water and food as 
you did before. Many growers overlook this fact. 
Barnyard (stable) manure are considered best 
for enriching soils for strawberries—sheep, cow, 
horse, or pig manures, are all good, but any of 
them should contain considerable amounts of 
rotted straw or should be used in about one-half 
the amounts given here for horse and cow 
manures. 
To average soil, broadcast 15 to 20 wago,n 
loads per acre, (4 to 5 bushels per square rod), 
of cow or horse manure as far ahead of plowing 
as possible and disk w'ell into the top layers of 
soil before plowing under. This will get the 
plant foods of the manure more eve«ily and 
thoroughly mixed with the soil tha.n if the ma¬ 
nure were turned directly under and laid flat in 
the bottom of the furrow in unbroken lumps. 
After plowing while the soil is still in a rough, 
unharrowed condition, apply 7 to 10 wagon loads 
per acre, (2 to 3 bushels per square rod), of fine, 
well-rotted manure, which will be thoroughly 
mixed with the top layer of soil by disking, har¬ 
rowing, etc. Harrow, disk, and roll until you 
have the soil in tip-top garden shape. 
Commercial Fertilizer, on the average 
soil use 500 to 1000 pounds of 4-16-4 fertilizer 
per acre. On poorer soils use same amount of a 
4-8-8. On garden soils use 10 to 12 pounds per 
square rod. Apply about one-third of the total 
amount before harrowing, one-third along the 
row shortly after plants are set, and the remain¬ 
ing one-third about 90 days later. In applying 
fertilizer along the rows, scatter it so it will be 
worked well into the soil by hoeing and culti¬ 
vation. Thoroughly mix it with the soil. At no 
time should fertilizer come in direct contact 
with the roots or leaves of the plants. Do not 
place fertilizer in the holes where plants are set, 
nor directly under them unless you mix it very 
evenly with the soil. 
Chicken Manure, in which 16 per cent 
Acid Phosphate is mixed, brings good results. Mix 
1500 pounds of the manure with 500 of the Acid 
Phosphate and use about 2 tons per acre (25 
pounds per square rod), applying one-third at a 
time as in Commercial Fertilizer. 
Setting the Plants. Set plants as early 
as possible in the spring after the danger of 
hard freezing is over— as early as you would 
make ea,rly garden. 
Space the rows 36 inches apart in garden and 
42 in field culture, spacing plants 16 inches in 
the row in either case. Make the hole to receive 
the plants with a common spade or garden trowl, 
by thrusting it into the soil making a V-shaped 
hole. Remove it carefully to prevent any dry sur¬ 
face soil from running in, which may stunt or 
kill the plant. Spread the roots in the V-shaped 
hole, placing them downward and do not double 
or curl them up at the ends. Make the holes 
deep enough to prevent this. Set the plants so 
the bud or crown tip is just even with the sur-t 
face of the soil, no deeper, no shallower. Pack 
the soil firmly about the roots so it is in contact 
with all of them. Use the heel. There should be 
no air space around nor below the roots. This is 
very important. (Continued on Next Page). 
