STRAWBERRY SPECIALISTS 13 
SPACING OF PLANTS 
Most growers allow far too many plants to set 
in the row. We believe that the largest crops of the 
finest berries can be grown in rows two and a 
half to three feet wide with runner plants spaced 
seven or eight or even nine inches apart. Any plants 
that set closer than this should be treated as 
weeds and should be cut off with the hoe when 
hoeing the plants. Have one end of the hoe very 
sharp for this purpose. In the matted row you will 
find the most and largest berries are at the side of 
the rows. That is because they have more moisture 
than plants in the middle of the rows. In the spaced 
rows they have all the moisture they need to make 
large fruit. In the spaced rows you have very little 
rot as they dry off better after rain. You also get 
larger berries in a dry season. We have a customer 
on the North Shore who set out 500 Howard 17 
plants. He allowed each plant to make only eight 
runners spaced nine inches apart and he picked 
from the 500 plants 1300 quarts of berries. Many 
of the growers in that town are following his sys- 
tem now. Some growers may think this is too much 
work. Suppose you try spacing the plants in two or 
three rows and compare these with the rest of your 
bed. 
If You Order Late in the Season Give a 
Second Choice 
