The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1868-03-19

which these remarks have been conducting
us. namely, the best soil for strawberry
4 bed This believe to be moist, sandy loan
I the richer it is in vegetable matter, so much
| the better. No better location can be found
| for a strawberry bed, than that of newly
! cleared wood land enriched as it is by the
| leaves that an hundred autums have spread
over it. And here l would remark in passing,
| that vegetable manures are much superior to
any other kind.
Barn-yard manure, unless old and well de-
composed, has tendency to produce toe
| great growth of vines, with small crop OF
| fruit. But to this there are some exceptions.
European strawberries in general, and those
| that are considered natives, but have q good
deal of European blood in them, Will do well
on soil well enriched with animal manure
Not so our pure natives; on such SOIL they
grow too much to vines.
But I will say no more on this head, and
shall leave many points to be brought out by
the other members of the society.
BEST METHOD OF CULTURE.
1 would now call your attentio n to the best
method of culture. Properly speaking, there
are but two modes followed in the culture of
the strawberry; one is, to plant in rows from
three to four feet apart, and allow the plants
to run SO as to cover the entire ground, and
the next spring to cut up the plantation into
beds three feet broad. The plants you take
out in making the paths, are sold or used for
=.
ties, or those that are nearly so, the very best
success will be had by this method of culture.
Rut few of our popular varieties are pure ma
tives. They have been so mixed by crossing
with European varieties, that nothing but ac-
tual experiment will demonstrate what mode
of culture is best for any one variety.
Downer's Prolific, which is doubtless pure
native. did well with me when allowed to
run. but with runners kept off, it was COM
plete failure. planted two rows in bod of
Wilson's Albany and Triumph de Grande,
and kept off all the runners. During the ear
ly part of the next summer, there was every
indication of a good crop; the plants grew
with great vigor, and bloomed very full
Many of them set as many as 200 berries
Those two rows of Downer's, Were in my
strawberry bed what Saul was among the
Children of Istael-''head and shoulders above
and the fruit did not grow more than one
third the size it did when the plants were al
lowed to run.
Another method is, to plant in rows three
feet apart, keep oil runners, and use horse cul-
tivation, Those who plant in this way, and
do not use horse labor, but do all the work
by hand, put the rows 215 feet apart. They
say that though the cost of hand labor is
somewhat more than where horse labor is
used, yet the distance apart of the plants not
being so great the crop is larger, and more
than pays all the increased expense ofcul ture.
But better method Of culture than either
of those named, is to plant two rows fifteen
inches apart, then leave a space of 2111 feet ;
then two rows more Is inches apart, and so
on, over your entire ground. This method
of planting will give ample room for the
growth of the strawberry, and there will be
one third more plants on given amount Of
land than by the first method of planting,
and more than one fourth by the second a
less amount of manure Will be required for an
equal amount of plants, as they will cover
4 ~, i
to cover them.
This double row method will be found, |
have no doubt, to be the most profitable, and
it is as convenient to pick as any of the other
methods of row planting. 1t may be said in
are not only more handy to pick, but they can
be picked much faster, because all the fruit is
within easy reach. This is of considerable
Importance where there is large amount to
pick.