GROWING STRAWBERRIES 
SOIL AND CLIMATE 
While the adaptability of strawberries to anything from the light 
sands of Florida to the heavy clays of Southern Indiana gives us plenty 
of leeway, We do rather prefer a sandy loam because it is so easily work- 
ed. And while the climatic range in our country is from the Gulf states 
to the Dakotas, we really think of our strawberry belt as extending 
from Tennessee and Arkansas north to Michigan and Wisconsin. 
Whatever the type of soil, it must be high in fertility and 
humus content. This condition is difficult to reach in one year, 
but should be attained in the years prior to being put to berries 
by the use of barnyard manure, legumes, fertilizers, green 
manure crops, and these other practices familiar to good far- 
mers. 
Fall plowing is a good step in plant bed preparation. Certainly the 
soil must be well worked down to eliminate all clods, and to make the 
plant bed firm but friable. It is best not to have had the ground in 
heavy sod the previous year on account of cut worms and white grubs. 
These pests may do a great deal of damage in early season by eating 
off the plants at ground level. 
Extensive experiments have shown that berries do best on 
a soil that is slightly acid. Technically, we say that a pH of 
5 to 7 is most satisfactory. 
