The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1890-08-29
Strawberry Growing in Maryland

we'll as for my family to enjoy. 1 have
been making speciality of Strawberries
for the Washington Cd. c. market fol
eight years, and during that time have
learned that this market will pay fol
good fruit, and I am trying to please
the buyers as well as my pocket.
I have tried fifty different kinds Of
strawberries to find the ones best suited
to my soil and market. The Sharpless
paid me and suited the purchaser the
best. l had meyer tried the Bubach
but having seen much about them in
papers. concluded to order 1000 plants
for the spring Of 1889, and with them
500 Jessies. They came in good order
| planted 500 in sandy soil and 500 in
clay and loan, and the Jessie alongside
of them also 5000 Sharpless and
5000 Crescent, TO be able to test them
correctly; but the winter being very
warm, strawberries were damaged con-
siderably. However, the time for
ripening came, and first found one
ripe one ON the Jessie; on the Crescent
next, then the Sharpless. Then l be-
gan to keep account of the quantity
from the same amount of land, equally
good.
The first picking for market was in
May Jessie, quarts from 500 plants;
Sharpless, so quarts from 5000; Ores.
cent, 100 quarts from 5000; Bubach
quarts from 1000. Two days later l
picked again Jessie 3 quarts, Sharp
less SO, Crescent $50, and Bubach 81
the price of Bubach being 20c.,
Crescent II, and Sharpless Is. Jessie
and Sharpless were about an average
in looks and quality-better than
Butach, but not SO pretty and snowy.
Two days later l picked again Cres-
cent, Sharpless and Jessie did not gain,
while the Bubach kept on increasing.
The third time I got 1913 quarts from
1000 vines planted one year. The
best picking was 2l2 quarts in one day.
l always pick every other day. as l
live seven miles from market, can run
to town easily, and that 2l2 quarts
brought me, wholesale, l2c. per quart
|-S25.44. l paid $40 per 1000 for
the plants, and sold over $50 worth
from that investment OF $40. besides
using some in the family. The 500
Jessie, costing one half as much, did
not pay for themselves 1000 Bubach
plants Melted me one.third as much
money as four acres of Sharpless, Ores,
cent and Jessie. But they may not do
it again, as the weather may not suit
them SO well again, and do the other
varieties so much damage However,
am trying them all again, and the
neighbors are laughing at me for the
attention they are getting.
One thing | notice about Mr. Terry
he sets people to thinking, and that
is what some need to do. One man
told me last week that Terry was a
fraud he could not do what he says.
I answered him by asking this question:
eff you had not been an eye witnes-
nearly every dayto the picking of my
berries, would you have credited it in
print" That staggered him. had
been trying to get him to plant some
vines, giving them to him if he would
plant-but no, he would not do it. Be.
fore my berries bloomed, 1 told him one
day that if he would plant 1000 Blu
bach plants l would give them to him
so he concluded to try. One day he
asked me if was going to plant any
more of those berries. l said, Eyes
but you plant till l stop you,' and be-
fore knew it he had about three times
as many planted as l. When mine
ripen, you never saw man more
pleased. only told him that 1 would
pick more berries than he would in
1891 from his Bubachs but he is try
ing to attend to them, and probably he
will be strawberry grower after this
Strawberries and sweet potatoes are
my special crops. l plant one after
the other-two years in sweet potatoes
then strawberries let them stand fol-
two pickings, unless they get grassy
then l leave them only one year. The
first year pays the best. Lots of my
neighbors just scratch along and grow
about taxes, &c. While they growl,
read and think. | cannot say that
work very hard myself, as l do not gel
time if | stop to work, something goes
wrong somewhere, and then am calico
on to fix this or explain that. Mr.