Smyrna times., 1896-04-01
NEW STRAWBERRY CULTURE.

At a recent meeting of the Horticul
tlral Society of Western New York, l..
j. Farmer read the following paper on
"The New Strawberry Cultures"
The last ten years had witnessed
great changes in many of the depart
ments of berry production. In the
matter of fertilizing we had found that
chemical manures rich in potash were
much superior to the barnyard manure
we formerly used SO freely. We now
get fruit where before we got leaves.
In place of the heavy unwieldy return
packages of dozen years ago, we now
use packages of the lightest possible
weight, and give them with the fruit
Many improvements have been made in
finding markets and in distributing
berries. In fact improvements are the
order of the day in all lines but IN pro-
duction, and here there has been none.
Strawberries are thirty to forty per
cent cheaper than twenty years ago,
vet it costs as much to cultivate an acre
now as then; in fact little more where
spraying is done, as is the practice
with Up-to-d date growers. He had hit
upon a plan that greatly lessened the
risks and costs of the first two months
cultivation, and reduced the cost of
the spraying to it's lowest terms. The
old method was to set very early, which
necessitated a large amount of cultlva-
ting, and hand hOeing to keep the early
weeds in check His method was one
of double transplanting. He would
dig early, cut the roots back to three
inches, and place in the edge of fur
row, thickly about twenty-fOur to the
running foot of row, then pack firmly
rri4b oor4b on1 ,oolro onOtbnT f111.rOHv
and so on, trenching in several thOus-
and to the square rod 1t is well to
leave path every four or five feet, of
eighteen inches, for getting in between
to spray. The rows need not be more
| than eight inches apart, and the fur
rows or trenches, may be made with
shovel, the soil from one being used to
fill the next previOug one.
Trenched in, in this way, the plants
may remain ten weeks. They form
numerous white feeding roots and
cling hold of the soil so that when again
! taken up, about as much earth hangs
TO each plant as would fill small pot,
and then transplant the second time as
readily and with as little danger of dy-
ing as potted plants. There are several
| reasons why this way of managin g the
plants is desirable. They are cOnven-
lent to spray, and but little time and
| running around, and considerable less
mixture is required than when scatter
ed over field, as the plants for half
an acre Oecnpy less than a square rod.
The ground where the plantation is to
be may be thoroughly worked and har-
rOwed with twO-hOrse implements,
and all early weeds for two months
killed, so that when finally set out, the
plants start at once in clean soil with
no cost of hand hOeing for all the time
they were in the trenches. A third
and very desirable result of this method
is that one can have plants in good
form to sell at fruiting time, which is
very handy, as there are people who
will buy and set out plants when their
desire is stimulated by the ripe fruit,
that will forget all about it before an
other spring comes around. Farmers
as a class cannot get time in early
spring to put out patch, but if they
can manage it so as to get plants that
will live if put out after corn planting,
then they may do it. The first trans
planting checks growth for q season,
and the plants rarely die, even when
not moved the second time as late as
the middle of June. He had grown
matted rows nine feet wide from plants
transplanted the second time as late as
June 1st. He had his neighbors use q
tool like hand adZe for setting straw
berries i'll the field. The plants are
carried in q basket, and plached in the
: spot made by striking in the adze, the
latter being used in the right hand
while the plants is placed with the other
E Plant setting machines are of no use
in soddy or gravelly land. A neighbOl
had bought one at cost of about $10(
? but it lay unused in a shed.
j. H. Hale did not see how straw
: berry plants treated as described coulC
be made to grow when reset. A plant
dug up accidently by the cultivation
rarely lived when reset. He beliveC
9 in early planting, and would rather
, pay $40 per day for labor to set early
in April, than 81 six weeks later.
Mr.. Morill did not see how the ole
: roots could be made to carry the plan
S for so long period. 1t was the habi
! of strawberries to throw out new roots
just below the crown, and these carried
the plants through the season, anC
/ gathered food for fruiting the following
= summer.
: Mr.. Farmer said the actual fact
were better than any suppositiOn. Th,
roots that were dug with the plan
: generally lived over and could be mad'
t to support the plant it the latter one
y were cut away. The system of double
: transplanting was similar in results t.
potting, without the expense attendin;
y the method.
q l.. b. Pierce was surprised that thi
method should be new to such larg
!. gathering of experienced nurserymel
u and fruit growers. He had pratice'
e it for more than fifteen years, some
times trenching number of Thousand
at time. Other Ohio growers prac
2 ticed the method. 1t was a nice wa
,. to treat high priced plants whenreceiy
ed in a busy time. The only troubl
v with late setting was that general
!. April wss moist month, while we OF
81 ten had drouth about the last of May
ai and land narrowed weekly was apt {
be considerably dried out. This wa
- also a buster season and extra hel
harder to get, as farmers were drawn
III manure and hurrying their corn plant