How Early? 
Just as soon as weather permits getting- ground 
ready. In the South, February, March and early 
April. In the middle states, March and April. 
In the Northern states, April. Also, the first 
half of May in late seasons and in states far 
north. 
Why so Early? Experience has taught that 
strawberries live better and grow better if they 
can become established early in the spring while 
the soil is still cool and moist. Late set plants 
are more likely to run into hot, dry conditions 
which make good results unlikely if not im¬ 
possible. Furthermore, investigations have 
shown that runner plants made early are much 
more fruitful than those made in late summer 
or fall. Early spring planting, therefore, tends 
to promote a larger percentage of highly pro¬ 
ductive, early set runner plants. If ordering 
plants be sure to order early enough so that they 
can be at hand as soon as the ground is prepared. 
Results of experimental studies on the growth 
and development of strawberry plants near 
Washington, D. C., published in 1930, showed high 
growth rates for plants during days where 
average daylight temperatures were from 68 to 
75 degrees F., while lower or higher tempera¬ 
tures slowed up the rate of growth greatly. 
This checks with the experience of growers 
who know that strawberry plants often start 
out in spring and make a very rapid growth 
until the first hot days of midsummer. Then 
the growth is checked until the cooler days and 
nights of late summer and early fall. This indi¬ 
cates one more reason for early setting to give 
the plants full advantage of the favorable grow¬ 
ing temperatures of late spring and early 
summer. 
Too shallow Just right Too deep 
Care of Plants 
Set plants on arrival if possible. It will help 
if roots of the plants can be dipped in water and 
allowed to “plump up’’ for some time before set- 
, ting. If plants have become quite dry and 
withered in transit it will help to let them stay 
in the water for two or three hours, perhaps 
longer. When this is done, however, they should 
be set fairly soon after being taken from the 
water. At any rate have them thoroughly mois¬ 
tened and plump when planting. If anything 
prevents immediate planting and the weather is 
cool, the top of the crate should be taken oft 
and the plants loosened in the crate, still keep¬ 
ing the roots covered with the packing material. 
Placed where it is cool, plants will keep like this 
for two or three days on early shipments. When 
plants are received late and lots of growth has 
been made, or where longer delays in setting are 
unavoidable, plants should be heeled in in some 
shaded or protected place. Dig a V-shaped 
trench, open the bundles, spread them out in 
thin layers with buds just even with the surface 
of the ground, then firm the soil back against 
the roots of the plants. If necessary several 
layers of plants can be heeled in the same place 
with one or two inches of soil between each 
layer. Wet the soil and plants thoroughly when 
heeling is done. A covering of straw or other 
mulching material will protect these plants in 
case it gets quite cold before setting can be 
done. 
If cold storage facilities are available nearby, 
plants received early can be kept for several 
weeks in excellent condition in case weather 
conditions have prevented immediate setting. It 
may be better to keep them this way and set 
them when ground can be put in good condition 
than to set them at once in land that has not 
been properly prepared. A small lot of two or 
three hundred plants could be kept in fine con¬ 
dition for many days in the family refrigerator 
or ice box if there is room. 
Clipping 1 tlie Roots 
Some growers clip the roots of strawberry 
plants before setting. If not cut too short it 
does no harm. However, it is not necessary nor 
helpful if you can get the roots of the plants 
in the soil without being doubled up. It is bet¬ 
ter to clip the roots somewhat than to have them 
doubled up in the ground. Where a horse-drawn 
transplanter is used it is probably better to clip 
the roots anyway to expedite handling the plants 
unless they are very small. 
Distance to Plant 
We recommend setting plants in rows 3% to 4 
feet apart, or even as much as 4 y 2 feet if the soil 
is very fertile. The plants should be set 15 to 
30 inches apart in the row, depending on the 
variety, the condition of the soil, earliness of 
setting and the vigor of the plants used. If 
these things are all favorable, free growing 
varieties can be set safely at least two feet 
apart, but if set late in the season when the 
plants have become weakened with new growth 
and blossoms, or if the soil is not in good con¬ 
dition they should be set as close as 15 inches 
to 18 inches apart to insure a good stand. 
In small garden plots or where the hill system 
is used, distances can be varied to suit individual 
plots. 7,000 plants per acre is a safe number to 
calculate for larger plantings. 
Plants Required for Various Planting 
Distances 
Rows In the row Total per acre 
3 
ft. 
apart 
18 
inches 
0,080 plants 
3 
ft. 
•• 
34 
44 
7,200 
44 
3y a 
ft. 
44 
18 
44 
8,207 
44 
3 Y> 
ft. 
44 
24 
44 
0,223 
44 
4 
ft. 
44 
18 
44 
7,200 
44 
4 
ft. 
44 
24 
44 
5,445 
44 
3 ft 
. 8 in 
44 
» 
20 
44 
7,12S 
44 
Methods of Setting Plants 
Where commercial fertilizer is to be used under 
the plants, rows should be run out 3 or 4 inches 
deep with a one-horse plow, the fertilizer drilled 
into these rows and thoroughly worked in. Then 
the soil should be thrown back into these fur¬ 
rows and again leveled off. Where considerable 
acreages are planted, a horse-drawn transplanter 
such as is used for sweet potatoes, tomatoes, 
tobacco, etc., is often used. To do a good job 
this way, however, requires skill and experi¬ 
ence, if the crowns of the plants are to be left 
at the proper level with the roots extending 
straight into the ground and not set on a slant, 
oftentimes near the surface of the ground. This 
method requires a driver, two operators and 
another man to walk behind to fill in missing 
plants, reset those too high or too low and to 
firm the soil around the plants. A spade, trowel 
or dibble are the tools most often used in setting 
plants. Where one of these is used, they are sec 
down the prepared row with the roots of the 
plants spread out as much as possible and the 
bud of the plant just at the surface of the ground. 
It is also important to press the ground firmly 
against the roots and to see that dirt is filled 
in near the crown of the plant so that the top 
of the roots will not be left exposed. (See sketch 
for proper depth of planting.) Where the fer¬ 
tilizer is not put under the plants, the rows can 
merely be laid off with a marker and the plants 
set by any of the methods suggested down the 
marked row instead of down the fertilized row. 
Avoid Late Setting 
Late in the season plants have produced a 
heavy foliage growth. This drains the vitality 
from the roots and in hot, dry seasons especially 
